Key Elements:

- 8 types of photos that perform best on Instagram

- 4 steps to help you share stunning posts on Instagram that can double conversions

- Fundamentals of using video on Instagram

- 6 types of videos that perform well on Instagram

- Tips to help you create more effective video ads

- The most popular Instagram updates that drive the highest engagement

- Best practices for using visual content on Instagram

- Best practices for using visual content in Instagram Stories

Today, visual content undisputed holds the top spot across all social media platforms, especially on Instagram, which—thanks to its continuous updates and enhancements—is considered one of the strongest e-marketing platforms and the most effective in e-commerce.

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The important question now is, how can you improve your visual content and stand out from competitors on Instagram?

Are you ready to boost your impact and make the most of Instagram for your brand? In this article, you will learn precise details about using photos and videos that capture your target audience's attention and drive conversions.

First, fortunately, several types of photos and videos have proven their effectiveness in attracting the target audience and boosting their conversions.

8 Types of Photos That Perform Best on Instagram

Indeed, there are several types of photos on Instagram that deliver outstanding performance and generate a lot of engagement. Let's look at 8 types you should focus on:

1- User-Generated Content (UGC) Photos

Currently, user-generated content is the most effective in brand marketing because it is authentic and highlights the quality of your products and your customers' satisfaction. Therefore, it resonates strongly and serves as proof guiding visitors on how satisfied and confident other users are with your brand.

So, don't be surprised to learn that user-generated photos receive a lot of attention and engagement on Instagram.

2- Behind-the-Scenes Photos

Behind-the-scenes refers to photos taken by employees or during the production and manufacturing stages, which are almost as powerful as user photos.

When it comes to purchasing, users and customers love getting an inside look at your business, which includes discovering how a product is made or a service is delivered, as well as photos showing happy employees.

So if your employees share photos of your business on Instagram, don't hesitate to repost them; the key is that these photos are genuine and unposed.

3- Educational Content

I know educational content dominates more on Pinterest, but this type of content also performs well on Instagram.

A large percentage of users love seeing new ways to use a product. For example: I am almost 99% sure that if Starbucks posted a video showing how one of their drinks is made, Instagram would blow up with engagement.

You can also use an animated image that showcases only part of the project, along with a brief description prompting the audience to visit your website to see the rest of the steps in detail. This way, you will drive more organic visitors to your site.

4- Photos with Ideal Visual Composition

Do you sometimes feel that certain photos look more attractive and appealing than others, even without understanding the reason behind it?

According to a study by Curalate, which provides some great insights into important visual elements in an Instagram photo, it indicates:

• Users prefer photos that have a background over those that do not.

• Images with lower saturation perform better than those with higher saturation.

• Photos with a single dominant color generate higher engagement than multi-colored ones.

• Cool blue-toned images are preferred over reddish ones, and lighter images are favored over darker ones.

In general, high-quality photos of your products will perform much better than photos that look hastily taken on a mobile phone and appear slightly blurry. (Learn how to photograph products professionally with minimal costs)

5- Influencer Photos

Photos featuring influencers attract more engagement, whether posted on your account or theirs. These posts will help your brand gain a massive number of followers and product buyers.

6- Motivational Photos

Nike is considered the king of brands that share motivational photos on Instagram, and they now have countless followers and shares backing their strategy.

You can share motivational quotes on a blank background, or make them stand out by combining text with an image related to the product or your brand. The latter suggestion is best whenever possible, so if users decide to share it, it becomes trackable and attracts a new audience.

7- Contests and Giveaways

It makes sense that photos announcing contests and giveaways receive significant engagement; after all, who doesn't love winning?

8- Seasonal Photos / Trendy Topics

Tying your brand to current events is a great way to gain followers organically. Seasonal posts are an excellent opportunity to boost sales or thank your followers for their continuous support.

Trendy photos and participating in viral topics provide a distinct way to showcase your brand's personality, but be sure to use this approach very carefully so it doesn't backfire.

4 Steps to Help You Share Stunning Posts on Instagram That Can Double Conversions

Step 1: Display Photos to Grab Attention

How can Instagram posts drive purchases? It all depends on how the photo or video of the product or service is presented. For the best results, choose a well-rounded photo to leave a lasting impression on the viewer.

• Find an Interesting Angle

When photographing a product, the angle must be compelling enough to stop viewers in their tracks. Once your eye is behind the lens, take your time to find a creative angle, and you will discover the best one after several attempts.

• Focus on Lighting

Lighting doesn't just make a photo presentable; it adds drama to it. Whether the photo is in color or black and white, good lighting can evoke the emotion needed to excite the customer.

If you plan to photograph your products yourself, ensure you adjust the artificial or natural lighting angle according to the highest standards.

• Use Filters

When it comes to posting photos or videos, you'll find that Instagram stands out from other platforms with its filters.

Using filters might seem like fun for personal accounts, but you'll find that you can also leverage them to your brand's advantage.

Not only do they add drama to your products and services, but they also make them appealing across various age groups; studies indicate that unconventional filters and effects are highly favored by younger demographics.

This doesn't mean you need to apply filters to every photo you post on Instagram; only use them on the photos that truly need them.

Step 2: Tell a Story in the Caption

A photo alone cannot provide the full picture. Sometimes, adding a description helps; all you need is an accurate description of the product presented compellingly, rather than just listing features.

Step 3: Add Relevant Hashtags

We are all familiar with hashtags and well aware of their popularity on Instagram, so why not use them to expand your post reach? A hashtag can be an extremely useful tool if used correctly.

Step 4: Use Calls to Action (CTAs)

Using calls to action in your posts can be a key conversion tool for your online store, helping grab the audience's attention and encouraging them to convert to your site or take your desired action.

Imagine: when Instagram started, it relied entirely on photos. Today, it encompasses everything visual. Videos can be shared in the feed and in Stories, as well as on IGTV, and can also be used to create high-converting ad campaigns.

Each of these options has different requirements you should keep in mind when using video on Instagram. Let's explore them now.

Fundamentals of Using Video on Instagram:

Fundamentals of In-Feed Instagram Videos

• Videos can be up to 60 seconds long.

• Videos play automatically on mute.

• You can include videos in multi-image carousel posts.

• Aspect ratios are 1:1 or 1.9:1.

Fundamentals of Posting Videos to Instagram Stories

• A Story segment must be 15 seconds or less.

• Stories are full-screen, mobile-optimized content.

• Be sure to use stickers and emojis to help your content stand out.

Tips to Help You Create More Effective Video Ads:

It's easy to think about using videos on Instagram, but which types are best for your brand at this stage:

1- Brand Videos

These typically focus on brand awareness and storytelling. They are designed and presented to the audience to introduce the brand or drive more sales by focusing on the features that make the product or service unique and valuable; you can also include behind-the-scenes content in them.

2- Product Videos

Your product videos can take various forms, but they always focus on one or two products, explaining why the audience needs them or highlighting what the product can add to make their lives easier.

3- Tutorial / Awareness Videos

These videos often overlap with product videos, but they focus more on how to use and get the most out of the product rather than simply listing its full feature set.

For example, they might show how easy it is to maintain a certain type of blender or demonstrate 6 recipes you can make in an oven.

4- Full Educational Videos

Sometimes, this is one of the best marketing strategies: you literally educate people about the industry without even mentioning your product or video at all, focusing purely at this stage on relationship-building and establishing credibility with your audience.

5- Live Videos

When you go live, people take notice. Seize this opportunity to engage with your audience, showcase tutorials, and answer user questions.

6- Customer-Created Videos

These can be either videos created and shared by your customers, or videos you created to uniquely highlight content shared by your customers, such as a compilation of uploaded photos or published reviews.

Tips to Help You Create More Effective Video Ads:

Regardless of the video ad format you choose, here are ten tips to maximize their effectiveness:

1. Make the first 10 seconds the most fast-paced and engaging to ensure users notice it is a video, not a static image.

2. Add text; since audio is muted by default on Instagram, it's best to include text to capture the audience's attention and ensure your message comes across.

3. In Instagram video ads, identify a problem and show how your product or service solves it.

4. Focus on a single goal, and don't try to combine multiple objectives in one video.

5. Make sure the video appears organically on your audience's feed first, then launch the ad campaign afterward.

6. If the call to action on the video ad leads to a landing page, ensure it is mobile-optimized.

7. Maintain visual consistency in the video, including colors, video style, and accompanying music.

8. Add a clear Call To Action.

9. Create multiple versions of your Instagram video ads and run A/B tests to see which one works best with your audiences.

10. It is preferable to serve video ads to audiences connected to Wi-Fi.

Popular Instagram Updates Driving the Highest Engagement Rates Recently:

1- Photos Posted on Instagram with Product Tags

Tag shopping is a game-changer on Instagram; it allows you to tag any photo of your products with a specific label that includes the product name and price.

This effectively turns the post into a mini storefront, making it one of the best tools to drive sales directly through the Instagram feed.

Look at how ikeasaudiarabia uses shopping tags: they tag the product, and if a follower taps it, they are linked to an in-app product page with the option to view each item directly on the website.

Here is another example from NOON:

They composed this image with a strong focus on the product, featuring it prominently.

2- Multiple Images in the Same Post (Carousels)

Multi-image posts are a fantastic storytelling medium. Try using them to showcase your product or tell an engaging story about your team. These images give you the opportunity to be more creative in presenting different facets of your brand.

Airbnb uses carousel posts in its Instagram feed to tell stories about both users and their listings.

Take the following post as an example, which features a user's home in Idaho designed in the shape of a potato:

Notice they started by showing the exterior of the house; they didn't just focus on the multi-image feature to highlight the home's structure, but also showcased the surrounding views guests can expect upon arrival.

Airbnb then transitions through the entrance with an interior shot:

The second photo not only shows the stark contrast between the exterior and interior views in both color and composition, but also highlights the unique decor.

The final image takes viewers deeper inside to highlight finer, intimate details within the home:

Notice how the image's color palette shifts once again!

Each photo in this series works together to help Airbnb followers experience the property as if they were actually there.

Using multi-image Instagram posts is a brilliant technique because it seeks to create tangible experiences for users.

3- Animated Graphics on Instagram

Animated visuals, such as GIFs or Boomerangs, can boost engagement on your Instagram posts. They are also a great way to showcase product angles that are difficult to capture in a static photo.

See in the following example how Bellroy Instagram shares its wallet design. Without motion in this post, Bellroy's followers would never be able to see how this functional, moving part of the wallet works. The GIF also does a wonderful job of refreshing Bellroy's feed, which consists mostly of still photos.

The image should be replaced with the GIF at this link to show the referenced motion: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bw_eCq0lO5O/

By combining these moving visuals with videos, brands can make their posts significantly more interesting.

Best Practices for Using Visual Content on Instagram:

• Replying to all comments as much as possible increases overall engagement rates, helping you rank higher in Instagram's algorithm.

• Remember that audience-focused content is important, and your goals are important too, but if you don't consider your audience while setting them, your efforts will be in vain.

• Long videos or multi-image posts should only be used to highlight a specific objective, as their effectiveness will be higher that way; otherwise, you risk losing viewers' attention and trust.

• Leverage Instagram's supplementary features, such as Stories and IGTV, to influence your target audience and expand your reach.

Best Practices for Using Visual Content in Instagram Stories:

• Use stickers: GIFs and stickers breathe life into your Stories.

• Use hashtag stickers, poll stickers, and event countdown stickers—use them all to drive engagement or boost conversions. This will increase your Stories' effectiveness and give you new ways to achieve your goals.

• Split a single video into multiple segments and use it to tell a cohesive story in bite-sized, attention-grabbing pieces.

• Use storytelling and suspense techniques to draw users into your content and entice them to watch more.

• Make them more impactful using Highlights. Instagram Story Highlights let you pin previous Stories into different "Highlights" on your profile page. You can organize them into categories and use them to extend your Stories' lifespan.

Summary of the Above:

Instagram is an essential marketing strategy platform where users actively interact with brands, happily discover products, and frequently purchase them.

To get the most out of marketing on the platform, pay special attention to the photos and videos you share. Keep in mind all the elements we covered above:

- Types of photos that perform best on Instagram.

- Steps to help you share stunning posts on Instagram and double conversions.

- Fundamentals of using video on Instagram.

- 6 types of videos that perform well on Instagram.

- Tips to help you create more effective video ads.

- Popular Instagram updates driving the highest engagement.

- Photos posted on Instagram with product tags.

- Multiple images in the same post.

- Animated graphics on Instagram.

- Best practices for using visual content on Instagram.

- Best practices for using visual content in Instagram Stories.

This will help you achieve maximum organic benefits; you can use ads and hashtags on organic posts to expand your reach and connect with new audiences.

For best results, I always recommend planning an annual or three-month content calendar in advance so you have enough time to track results and refine your tools. (Learn how to build an effective Content Calendar that helps optimize content and increase engagement)

Tell us, do you rely more on image or video marketing in your Instagram campaigns? And what is holding you back from using the other format?