If you’re trying to promote your business on social media but have a tight budget, which platform should you focus on more: Facebook or Instagram? The answer is “it depends,” as it has been in every previous comparison post we’ve made.
Instagram and Facebook are both massively popular throughout various user demographics, and both provide a large variety of advertising options.
Facebook advertising’s benefits
To kick things off, here are a few of Facebook advertising’s primary advantages:
The most popular social channel is Facebook
Not even close! Over 2.7 billion people use Facebook, making it the most popular social media network in the world. Of course, you shouldn’t take it lightly, because your intended audience is almost certainly active on Facebook.
Facebook users span the generations
Facebook has widespread usage throughout all age groups. Facebook users include 76% of those aged 18-24 and 79% of those aged 30–49. And over half of the population aged 65 and up is also connected.
What should we remember? Advertising on Facebook is beneficial since users of all ages are exposed to your content.
It’s no surprise that Facebook is also the most popular social networking site.
At least once a day, Facebook is accessed by 74% of users. This number exceeds Instagram’s average daily visitors. Once again, this bodes well for the likelihood that your target demographic will be exposed to your adverts.
Retailers and wholesalers alike employ it
An further perk of Facebook advertising is that it is not restricted to businesses that deal directly with consumers. Facebook is used by both business-to-business and service-based enterprises. In a nutshell, it doesn’t matter who you’re trying to reach, they’re probably on Facebook already.
Facebook’s advertising options are diverse and highly efficient
The majority of the 300+ Facebook advertisers we surveyed for our latest study on Facebook ads cited Facebook advertisements as the most useful Facebook feature. It’s easy to see why: retargeting, lookalike audience creation, and a wide variety of ad formats, measurement tools, and targeting possibilities are just a few of the ways in which marketers may profit.
Instagram advertising’s benefits
When promoting your business on Instagram, you may gain the following benefits:
Instagram users make a lot of in-app purchases
There is a 30% conversion rate among Instagram shoppers. They are in the mentality of making a purchase, which bodes well for the app’s advertising.
The platform’s built-in features are fantastic
Instagram’s capacity to aid in the organic growth of your company is a major benefit. Branding can be done on the side (without cost) in addition to paid advertisements on the site. If you do it well, you can boost ad conversion by expanding your audience and getting more people to recommend you to their friends.
Instagram has a very high engagement rate
Know that the typical rate of engagement for sponsored posts is 3.5% in order to build on organic growth on IG for better paid ad outcomes. The Facebook engagement rate is lower than this.
Even more impressive is the tenfold increase in brand interaction compared to Facebook. An active client base is essential to the success of any business. In turn, this can improve the efficiency of advertisements. This social media analytics tool makes tracking your Instagram interaction simple.
Are Ads on Both Facebook and Instagram Necessary?
Once again, “it depends” is the correct response.
There are advantages to advertising on both platforms, as we’ve already mentioned and will address below. Instagram’s audience is smaller than Facebook’s, but they are more engaged and more likely to make a purchase because of their presence on the platform.
If you can only choose one platform, choose the one where your target demographic already spends their time. Facebook advertisements are preferable than Instagram ads if you want to reach a large number of people.
The same holds true for other considerations. As you’ll see in the next example, Instagram is primarily a visual medium. If your company’s ability to inspire confidence through graphics is strong, you may want to consider running advertising on Instagram.
Instagram is also a community-focused network, but Facebook is more widely used and may be a better option for advertising your business.
What Is the Average Cost of a Facebook or Instagram Ad?
Facebook advertising may be cost-effective if they are created properly. The price of promoting a product to a thousand consumers ranges from $5 to $8. The cost of reaching the same amount of individuals with conventional advertising is fifty dollars.
For an average cost of $0.27 per click and $7.19 per thousand impressions, online advertising is quite pricey.
Also see: If you’re curious about how much Facebook advertisements cost, we conducted our own analysis and discovered some strategies for getting the most bang for your buck when using Facebook ads.
Instagram advertisements cost between $0.50 and $0.95 per click (CPC) and $2.50 to $3.50 per thousand impressions (CPM). Instagram advertising may cost anywhere from $0.20 to $6.70 each day, depending on the bidding strategy you choose.
Instagram encourages more interaction
Wendy Margolin, CEO of Sparkr Marketing, recommends Instagram advertisements over Facebook ads because “engagement comes from a platform where your audience is.” The vast majority of my clients advertise on both platforms simultaneously.
However, I’ve found that Instagram Stories advertisements are more successful than feed ads.