Vamp’s recent webinar showcased how brands can drive sales with Instagram’s Branded Content ads. Creators, it’s now your turn. Here’s the run down on how you can benefit from this new ad feature.
Instagram introduced their Paid Partnership tag back in 2017. It encourages influencers to provide further transparency around a sponsored collaboration. Tagging a brand as a business partner allows them to view your insights on that post. This helps to improve consistency as brands gain access to all the performance data they need without asking you for screenshots.
Then last year, Instagram stepped up their game and offered brands a chance to turn your Paid Partnership posts into Branded Content ads. This will help brands who want to increase reach, improve targeting, aid data measuring and enable frictionless shopping. Turning your engaging content into a high performing ad is a way for them to reach new potential customers, beyond your organic following.
Read our complete guide to Branded Content Ads here.
But what’s in it for you? Here are the benefits of using the Paid Partnership tool and brands turning your posts into a Branded Content ads:
1# You provide your audience with further transparency around brand collaborations. Your organically built audience likely appreciates being told when a product is being advertised to them. Using the Paid Partnership tool makes the mentioning of a post being #sponsored less awkward.
2# Branded Content ads are for brands to increase their potential customer reach, but an ad from your Instagram account could also impact your account growth. The awesome content you created will be seen by more eyes, giving you the exposure needed to increase your followers, impressions and engagement.
3# If a brand turns your post into a Branded Content ad, it gives you the chance to prove your worth. It will help showcase your ability to create high performing content that has the ability to boost engagement, brand love and sales. If your content performs and can be measured, you’re all the more likely to be asked back for repeat work.
So how does this actually work? The first step is tagging your brand partner as a Business Partner. Heres how to do this:
Step 1
When uploading a new post or story click on ‘Advanced settings’ and turn on ‘Allow business partner to promote’. A message will pop up including tips on how to maintain eligibility. Carefully read through this, then hit ‘Get Tools’.
Step 2
Now when you click ‘Allow business partner to promote’ you have the ability to tag the brand. Search for their Instagram handle and click on their account to tag them as your business partner.
Step 3
Upload your content as per usual and the brand will either have automatic or manual approvals on. Once you have been accepted as a partner, you’ll see ‘Paid partnership with *brand name*’ underneath your Instagram handle on that post.
Step 4
To use the Paid Partnership tag on a story, just click the link button, found between the filters and stickers button when on the editing page of your story upload. You’re then taken through steps 1-3. Be aware that if you use hashtags or gifs in your Paid Partnership story, the brand won’t be able to turn it into a Branded Content ad.
Once you’ve completed this process, the brand you tagged as your business partner will now have the ability to turn your post into a Branded Content ad. These look very similar to a normal Instagram ad, except that the post is directly from you, rather than the brand. The caption includes “Paid Partnership with *brand name*” and “Sponsored” is still found above the image.
If a brand is keen to run Branded Content ads, we’ll let you know this information up front when you see the brief in our app.
In the meantime, learn more about what the branded content tool is here, how you can benefit from Branded Content Ads here and and how to approve creator partners here.
