How to use Facebook ads for Instagram followers in 2024

Instagram and Facebook are family members, and the smart move is to cross-promote them. But here’s the deal: Facebook takes the lead in advertising, thanks to its range of pro tools with clever features.

Plus, targeting your audience is a breeze. Don’t overlook the fact that Facebook boasts a whopping 2.91 billion monthly users.

These reasons should fire up your interest in using Facebook ads for Instagram followers, don’t you think? Now, let’s dive in and explore how to increase Instagram followers through Facebook ads. Ready? Let’s roll!

Why Facebook ads for Instagram followers?

Using Facebook ads to get more Instagram followers isn’t a must-do, it’s your call. But, when you see the numbers below, you might just change your mind about diving into this massive social media opportunity.

1. Facebook has a total of 2.91 billion monthly active users. 
2. Facebook is the third most visited website in the world, attracting approximately 1.6 billion users every day.
3. The Facebook app is the third most visited app in the US.
4. Over 3 million businesses actively use the Facebook advertising platform. 
5. Over 93% of social media marketers use Facebook.
6. Facebook ads can reach about 72.5% of the total Facebook audience.

Source: Searchlogistics

Source: Statista

But, there’s more as we briefly mentioned earlier.

Useful toolkit: Facebook hooks you up with professional, practical, and free tools-all equipped with smart features.

Precise targeting: With Facebook’s tools, you can finely target your desired audience based on demographics, interests, behaviors, and even custom audiences.

Diversified Outreach: The extensive reach of Facebook introduces your Instagram profile to a diverse audience you might not otherwise reach, fostering organic growth.

Strategic Synergy: Facebook and Instagram’s seamless partnership lets you create a strategy that plays to the strengths of both platforms. It’s like getting the best of both worlds.

How to get Instagram followers with Facebook ads?

Are you ready to take advantage of Facebook ads to gain followers on Instagram? Before you jump in, make sure you have a few things ready to go. 

#1. Connect your Instagram page to Facebook

First things first, you need to link your Instagram account- a business account with a decent following- to your Facebook page. This process is pretty simple and direct. Here’s how to connect Your Instagram Page To Facebook. 

1. First, Open your profile and tap the three-line icon in the top right corner.
2. Now, go to “Settings and Privacy” and select “Account Centre.”
3. Tap on “Profiles” and then choose “Add accounts.”

4. Select “Add Facebook account.”

5. Log in to your Facebook account.

6. Set up your account center and tap “Yes, finish set up.” Your setup is now complete!

Also, read: how to delete Instagram account from Facebook.

#2. Create a Facebook business page

To whip up a business page on Facebook, you’ll need a personal account as your starting point. Keep in mind, Facebook business pages usually have a bunch of admins keeping things in check.

Here’s a pro tip: Opt for a functional email when setting it up. That way, your personal matters stay a good distance away from your work zone.

How to create a Facebook business Page (Step-by-step)

1. Log into your account and click on the menu icon on the left,
2. In the Creation section, click on “Page”,
3. Now, fill in your business name, category (like “shoe shop”), and bio. Once done, click “Create Page”,

Source: Wordstream

4. Complete your page by adding contact info (website, phone number, email), location, and hours of operation,

Source: Wordstream

5. Make your brand pop by adding a profile photo and cover photo,

6. Next, customize an Action button – like signing up, booking, or ordering. You can also link to your website or other social media. Click “Next” when ready,

Source: Wordstream  

7. After all, you can create your first post.

#3. Set up a Facebook Ads Manager 

Meta business suite is an umbrella term for an all-in-one service that allows you to manage your Instagram and Facebook accounts simultaneously. Facebook (Meta) Ads Manager is one of the tools within the Meta Business Suite.

Note: Meta business suite is available for desktop and mobile. 

What is a Facebook ads manager?

Facebook ads manager is a tool to create, edit, and analyze paid Facebook campaigns. With this tool, you can:

• Device Selection: Decide whether your ads appear on Desktop, Mobile, or both.
• Ad Placement: Choose where your ads show up – in News Feed or the Right-Hand Column.
• Personalized Targeting: Upload contact lists to reach specific groups.
• Similar Audience: Find people like your ideal customers.
• A/B Testing: Try out different ad parts to see what works best.

How to create a Meta (Facebook) ads manager?

Let’s dive into the steps for creating:

1. Go to https://business.facebook.com and log in with your Facebook account (if you have one, if not try logging in with your Instagram),

2. Click on Start Now to get started,

3. Here, if you don’t already have a business page, you can create one. Just enter your page name, category, and profile picture and tap Create Page,

4. Once you created your business page, you can connect it to your Instagram account. Note that this is optional,

5. Now, it’s time to add your payment method and then, payment information. When done, tap Next,

6. Tap on the green button to Create your first ad campaign,

7. You are in your dashboard. Click on the green create button to get started,

8. Set up your objective from the list and continue,

9. In the next steps, you need to specify your campaign’s details including:

• Categories (different niches like housing, employment, credit, social issues, and more,
• Creating A/B tests to improve your ad’s performance,
• Defining your budget,
• Choosing where you want to drive traffic (based on your objectives). For example, your website, WhatsApp, calls, and so on,

• Starting and ending date,

• Your target audience,

• Format (single image or video, carousel, and more),
• Adding text or media,
• Destination (where to direct people when they tap your ad).

10. After all, you can publish your campaign or save it as a draft to make changes. 

#4. Target your audience for Facebook ads 

One of the benefits of using Facebook ads for Instagram followers is that you can specify the audience you want to reach through ads. Generally, there are three types of Facebook audience.

Custom audience

Custom audience are those you already have a relationship with. They could be on your email list, website visitors, or Instagram followers. 

Lookalike audience

This type of audience has similar characteristics to the custom audience, but they haven’t previously been in touch with you. To create the list of lookalike audience, you need to take the size, location, and source into account.  

Saved audience

When you create your targeted audience, you can save it so you won’t need to start from scratch every time you want to run Facebook ads to get Instagram followers. 

How do I target my followers on Facebook ads? 

Here’s how to target your audience on Facebook ad manager. 

• Tap the three-dot icon next to your campaign name and select “Create ad set.”
•  Navigate to the “Audience” box further down.
•  Here, you can pinpoint users using “Locations,” “Gender,” “Age,” “Language,” and “Interests.” 
• Remember to save this audience data for your future campaigns.

Create Instagram Page Custom Audience On Facebook

Now that you’re in on the custom audience trick, let’s walk through how to whip up your very own and use it for future campaigns. 

• Log into your ad account on your desktop.
• Under the business tool, click on the “Audience” tab
• Click “Create Audience” and then choose “Custome Audience.”
• Select “Instagram business profile.”

• In the opened window, you have four different options to choose from: Anyone who visited your business profile, People who engaged with a post or ad, People who sent a message to your business profile, and Users who saved any post or ad.
• Next, choose the time duration. The longer duration you choose, the more data you can collect.
• Give your audience a name and click “Create Audience” to save it.

This is a new feature added to Facebook ads for Instagram followers that allows you to target users based on their Instagram activity and behavior. 

How To Create An Instagram Follower Lookalike Audience?

Remember, only Instagram professional accounts (business or creator) can work this audience magic. So, before you dive into the steps, switch over from your personal account mode.

1. Sign in to your Facebook account and head to the ads manager section.
2. Look for the Audiences tab and click “Create Audience.”
3. Select the “Lookalike Audience” option from the list.
4. In the new window, go to “Select Your Lookalike Source” and choose the custom audience we talked about earlier.
5. Move to the location targeting section. Pick places that fit your business, and if budget’s a concern, think about countries with lower ad costs.
6. Next, decide on audience size. For big countries, start with 1%. For smaller ones, go higher.

If you’re planning to run several ads, experimenting with different lookalike percentages is a smart move to uncover your winning formula.

Track the effectiveness of Facebook ads for Instagram followers [A/B test]

If you are creating your content, we recommend you take multiple photos and videos to do A/B testing. After that, you can track their performance and find out what content suits you the best. Fortunately, you don’t have to do it manually and can do it while creating your campaign post. 

To monitor your ad performance better, make sure to run one ad at a time and focus on the reports you receive. Here’s what to do:

Manually:

• Run one ad for 3-5 days
• Turn the ad off from your Facebook ads manager
• Create a new ad and let it run for another 5 days

 Automatic:

• To run an automatic A/B test, open your campaign page on the Facebook Ads manager
• Scroll down till you see the A/B test section and turn it on

Why Do You Need Real Instagram Followers?

Now you know why and how to get more followers on Instagram with Facebook ads. Let’s see why you need more Instagram followers.

1. Enhanced Credibility: Real followers lend credibility to your profile, showing that people genuinely value your content.
2. Engagement Boost: Genuine followers are more likely to engage with your posts, fostering a thriving community.
3. Better Reach: Authentic followers expand your organic reach, as their interactions signal content quality to algorithms.
4. Meaningful Interactions: Genuine followers offer valuable feedback, fostering deeper connections and trust.
5. Brand Growth: A real follower base builds a foundation for brand growth, potentially attracting partnerships and collaborations.
6. Conversion Potential: Authentic followers are more likely to convert into loyal customers or advocates.

How To Get Real And Organic Followers On Instagram?

There are many ways to get organic followers on Instagram, from free app followers to running Instagram ads. Here are the most key ones. 

#1. Create engaging Content

Craft posts that resonate with your audience’s interests and need as valuable content keeps followers engaged and encourages sharing.

#2. Use the right hashtags 

We’ve previously created a post about how to use hashtags for Instagram growth. Stick to relevant and trending hashtags – they’ll help your posts get noticed by users in your niche.

#3. Get help from Instagram ads for followers growth

In addition to Facebook ads for Instagram followers, you can make use of Instagram ads. 

Instagram ads are a range of posts that businesses can pay to show up on users’ feeds. They came into play in 2015 for business accounts, and by 2017, almost a million advertisers were on board. 

You’ll spot these ad posts with a “Sponsored” tag, offering calls to action and external links. Different types of Instagram ads include:

• Story Ads: These pop between users’ stories, filling the screen. They can have swipe-up links for easy action.
• Explore Ads: These don’t appear on the explore page but show after someone checks out a photo or video.
• Collection Ads: Clicking on an item in a collection takes users to Instant Experience, a store right within the app.
• Shopping Ads: You can turn your posts into clickable shopping ads, showcasing products.

#4. Use Instagram Growth Tools

Luckily, there is a wide range of tools and apps to gain followers on Instagram. But, figuring out the best one can be a bit tricky. Because picking the wrong ones could get your Instagram account banned, so be cautious.

Looking for a safe and effective tool? Let’s explore AiGrow.

Why AiGrow? 

AiGrow is an Instagram tool that does it all, powered by AI for a better social media game. Here’s why it’s a standout:

• Bot-Free Approach: AiGrow doesn’t rely on bots. Instead, it assigns a dedicated account manager who manually handles your account, resulting in genuine organic followers.
• Mass Unfollow Feature: You can efficiently unfollow everyone on Instagram who is not following you back or unfollowed you, streamlining your follower list.
• Insightful Analytics: AiGrow provides data-driven analytical reports, helping you gain valuable insights from your follower interactions.
• Strategy Updates: Stay informed about your strategy through online meetings, ensuring you’re in the loop with every detail.
• Cancel any time: If the service doesn’t meet your expectations, you have the freedom to cancel anytime.
• Mass DM Capability: Reach out to a broader audience through mass DMs, extending your engagement.
• Responsive Support: If you encounter any issues, AiGrow’s support team is readily available to assist you.

Are you prepared to boost your Instagram? Take AiGrow for a spin now!

FAQs on Facebook ads for Instagram followers

Q1:Can I get instagram followers with Facebook ads?

Yes, using Facebook ads to grow Instagram followers is an effective strategy.

Here’s why: Facebook offers nifty ad tools for free. Check out the Meta Business Tool – it lets you handle both your Instagram and Facebook accounts in one spot. Just remember, you need a Facebook business page and an Instagram professional account to dive in. 

Q2: Can You Target Instagram Followers On Facebook Ads?

If you are worried about Instagram ads not getting followers issues, you can fix it by setting your targeting. Open your campaign page on the Facebook ads manager and scroll till you see the targeting section. Next, you can target users by location, gender, age, language, and interests to reach a potential audience.

Q3: What is the best campaign objective for Instagram followers?

Before telling you the best Facebook ad objective for Instagram followers, let’s take a quick look at what each objective does and where it impacts. 

Awareness: Shows your post to people who are most likely to remember them. Good for:

• Reach
• Brand awareness
• Video views
• Store location-awareness

Traffic: Send social media users to other platforms such as your website, app, etc. Best for:

• Link clicks
• Landing page views
• Messenger and WhatsApp
• Calls

Engagement: Receive more messages, video views, post engagement, page likes, and event responses. Good for:

• Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp
• Video views
• Post engagement
• Conversions

Leads: Collect leads for your business or brand. Good for:

• Instant forms
• Messenger
• Conversions
• Calls

App promotion: This helps you to find new people to install your app and continue using it. Good for:

• App installs
• App events

Sales: Find people likely to purchase your product or service. Good for:

• Conversions
• Catalog sales
• Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp

So, The ideal campaign objective for gaining Instagram followers is “Engagement.”This objective aligns perfectly with growing your follower count, as it focuses on encouraging users to interact with your content, visit your profile, and ultimately hit that follow button.

Q4: what is the difference between Meta business suite and business manager?

These two are both platforms to run Facebook ads with only a few differences. 

Meta business suite is for managing both Facebook and Instagram ads and You can use it on your computer or your phone. 

But to get started with the business manager, you need a Facebook page and it only works on a desktop.

Q5: Can I use Facebook ads to increase Instagram followers for free?

Although all Facebook ad platforms like ad manager, Meta business suite, and business manager are free, you should pay for creating and managing Facebook and Instagram ads.