Kickstarter Instagram Ads (and what NOT to do…)
image is not property of Riley James Copy
Recently I met with a potential client to discuss if I am a good fit for them and their needs.
One of the things we discussed was their Instagram ad campaign, which had not performed they way they had hoped.
Now let me be very clear: I am not (yet) by any means a social media marketing expert; I am a marketer and copywriter, with lots of experience in SEO and funnels and emails and landing pages and all that stuff… but I tend to avoid social media.
That said…
I DO know advertisements.
So when it comes to the actual AD that is on Instagram, I can offer my two cents.
So this client had run an underwhelming kickstarter campaign, and their Instagram ads were the following:
A picture of the board game
A picture of a drawing of a character from the game
The word “Kickstarter”
And while I wasn’t their copywriter, I couldn’t help but speak up…
RJC: “Uh… can I ask you a question about your Instagram ads?”
CLIENT: “Yeah go ahead
RJC: “What were they trying to do exactly?”
CLIENT: “Take people to the kickstarter page”
RJC: “Right right… but how would they do that?”
CLIENT: “(getting annoyed) The person will click on the link…”
RJC: “I know… but… like… WHY would they click on the link?”
CLIENT: “Cuz they want to play a really fun game with great strategy”
RJC: “But how do THEY know that from the ad?”
CLIENT: “Because… oh… CRAP…”
The Purpose (and Steps) of your Instagram Ads
Why do you send ads on Instagram?
I’m not talking about your social media POSTS.
I’m talking about the ads you spend a small fortune on.
The answer is probably CUSTOMER AQUISITION; getting new customers that don’t know about you and your brand yet.
This is especially true for Kickstarter, and why so many have someone dedicated to just social media.
How do you do that?
By grabbing their attention.
You need to get them to stop scrolling and look at your thing.
And if Instagram’s algorithm is correct, that means they will only show the ad to the people that will actually be interested.
So it should be fairly easy to grab their attention.
But that isn’t the PURPOSE of an Instagram ad… that is the first step in accomplishing their purpose… there are two other steps.
Grab Attention
Create Desire
Redirect Them
Thats it.
If you have a video, you can do a lot more and take a lot longer.
But even an individual image can accomplish those three things in seconds.
And this client’s kickstarter was missing steps 2 and 3.
So what should they have done instead?
Add text.
Also known as “copy”… their ad needed more copywriting.
They needed a single, RELEVANT sentence that either A) sparked curiosity, B) struck and emotional chord, or C) made a bold promise…
See, this is why graphic design and images NEED to be paired with copywriting…they look really pretty, but they are vague; they don’t give the customer a reason to care.
And then, they needed a sentence telling the customer what to do.
I know that might sound stupid, or basic, but trust me, “Calls to Action” are very, very necessary.
Once the copy matches the images, this becomes the customer’s experience:
They are scrolling Instagram
The algorithm places your ad in front of them
The bold images GRAB their attention
The interesting sentence (curiosity, emotion, promise) HOLDS their attention
The call to action REDIRECTS their attention to your kickstarter page
They click, and the kickstarter page does the heavy lifting of sales.
It is shockingly simple…
But finding the right words to say?
THAT is the hard part.
