In plain English
They are bought through the same Meta system as Facebook ads, but the placements are visual-first: feed, Stories, Reels and Explore.
Creative made for a Facebook feed rarely works unchanged here. Vertical framing, no reliance on sound and a hook in the first second are the practical requirements.
What to know
Same account
Bought through Meta Ads Manager.
Visual-first
Feed, Stories, Reels, Explore.
Vertical formats
Full-screen placements need vertical creative.
Sound off by default
Captions are required.
Why it matters
For visual products and personal brands Instagram placements frequently outperform Facebook ones. The cost is that creative has to be made for the format rather than adapted to it.
Common mistakes
×Horizontal creative in vertical placements.
×No captions on video.
×Text-heavy images in a scroll-first feed.
×Assuming Facebook creative transfers unchanged.
FAQs
Do I need separate creative for Instagram?
For Stories and Reels, yes. Feed placements can sometimes share.
Which placement performs best?
Reels for discovery, feed for consideration. Test both.
WRITTEN BY TARIQ SALLAM
Marketing Consultant. Entrepreneur. Content Creator.
I'm a marketing consultant, entrepreneur and content creator. I help businesses grow through practical marketing, websites, SEO, content and AI.
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