Instagram Introduce Carousel Ads
Sideways Thinking
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| www.techcrunch.com |
You ever get that weird, ambivalent feeling that internet
culture is just stealing words you know and recognise, hiding them away
somewhere and then pushing them back on stage in a new outfit? Just me? Fine,
keep lying to yourselves. ‘Carousel’ is the latest word to undergo a rebranding
as Instagram have unveiled a new advertising scheme under the name.
Instagram images have never linked to URLs, they don’t want
anybody leaving, they just want you to keep browsing pictures, preferably for
ever and ever. Now, apparently owing to advertiser pressure to have better ways
to engage people, they have added a function which allows users to swipe across
up to four images in a narrative cycle. The final image comes with a ‘learn
more’ button that takes you to the corresponding web page view a new internal
browser. You can’t just use the browser
like you would a normal one though, it will only take you to the page of the
corresponding advertiser and everything that leads to.
“Instagram’s new advertising format is great news for brands with visually appealing products and campaigns, with the opportunity to boost conversion rates using the “carousel adverts” and the “learn more” button. However, it’s extremely important that as brands leverage ad spend opportunities on the platform, Instagram must still maintain its thirst for authenticity. In its fledgling years, founder, Kevin Systrom claimed to check each advert manually to maintain an unrelenting focus on beautiful images and an uncluttered experience.” – Joanna Parnell, Director of Planning at Unique Digital
It’s fairly safe to assume that most advertisers are going
to be pretty dull in their approach to this new tool, but it does have some
intriguing possibilities. You could show a new building in 4 gradual states of
completion, or exterior and interior, or TV and film studios could use it to
tease new casting announcements. I’m sure there are more, even more fascinating
applications for it but I’m not an advertiser, I like Bill Hicks far too much
for that.
What’s nice about this idea is that it doesn’t throw the
information in your face or force you to interface with it; it’s completely up
to you whether or not to swipe across to learn more. It’s almost like Tinder
for advertising, but somehow actually less depressing. Instagram remains one of
the most uncluttered, easy-to-understand photo apps on the market and this new
addition doesn’t necessarily interfere with that, but they’d be advised not to
go stapling on any more extra bits any time soon.
Callum Davies
Callum is a film school graduate who is now making a name for himself as a journalist and content writer. His vices include flat whites and 90s hip-hop. Follow him @CallumAtSMF
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Instagram Introduce Carousel Ads
Reviewed by Unknown
on
Monday, March 09, 2015
Rating:
Reviewed by Unknown
on
Monday, March 09, 2015
Rating:
Unknown
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