Instagram Ads That Sell: How to Use PPC to Showcase Properties

Instagram is a visual platform that suits property marketing. With paid ads you can reach the right local people, show your listings with strong photos and video, and turn interest into enquiries. This guide explains the practical steps to set up, run, and improve Instagram ads that win more inspections and appraisals.

What Instagram ads can achieve for your campaign

• Build awareness for a new listing in the exact suburbs you service

• Fill inspection times with qualified buyers

• Capture vendor leads using proof from buyer activity and recent sales

• Retarget warm people who watched your videos or visited your website

• Keep your brand visible between listings so you are top of mind

The ad formats that work best for property

• Carousel gallery

  • Show six to ten photos in the order a buyer would tour the home

  • First tile needs a clear street view or hero room

  • Add a final tile with call to action and your details

• Reels video

  • Fifteen to thirty seconds with fast cuts and clear captions

  • Start with the best two seconds to hook attention

  • Use a voiceover or captions so it works on silent

• Story with tap to book

  • Full screen creative with one clear button such as Book inspection

  • Use three story cards in a row that flow like a mini tour

• Lead form ad

  • Built in form inside Instagram to reduce friction

  • Ask for name, mobile, email, and suburb of interest

  • Keep it short and add a privacy note

Budget and timeline for a typical listing

Use a simple three phase plan. Amounts are in Australian dollars. Adjust to your market and stock level.

• Pre launch two to three days

  • Goal: build a warm audience and tease the property

  • Budget: 20 to 30 per day

  • Format: Reels teaser and story sequence

• Launch week seven days

  • Goal: drive inspection bookings and enquiries

  • Budget: 30 to 60 per day

  • Format: Carousel gallery, Reels tour, lead form for brochure and inspection times

• Momentum and proof three to seven days

  • Goal: collect more buyers for similar listings and attract sellers

  • Budget: 20 to 40 per day

  • Format: Just listed to under offer to sold sequence with social proof

Targeting that reaches the right people

Start simple. Let creative do the heavy lifting. Then add layers.

• Location

  • Radius one to ten kilometres around the property

  • Add key postcodes you service

• Age and language

  • Keep age broad unless the property is clearly age specific

  • Use English plus any local language that fits your area

• Interests and behaviours

  • Property search, mortgage, home improvement, renovation

  • Parents or life events such as new job can signal moving intent

• Custom audiences

  • Website visitors and video viewers from the last 30 or 60 days

  • Past enquiry lists with consent only

  • Instagram and Facebook engagers

• Look alike audiences

  • Build from your consent based database or website visitors

  • Start with one or two look alike sets to avoid overlap

Creative that stops the scroll

• Hook lines for first two seconds

  • Price guide under the median for the suburb

  • The three features buyers care about such as schools, land size, parking

• Visual checklist

  • Bright natural light and level framing

  • Clean rooms and straight lines

  • Short on screen text that is easy to read on a phone

• Brand presentation

  • Consistent logo in the same corner

  • Same font and colour across every ad tile

  • Clear agent photo and contact details on the last tile

• Call to action

  • Book inspection

  • Get full brochure

  • Ask for price guide

  • Request an appraisal for your home

• Captions and hashtags

  • One or two short sentences with the key benefit

  • Add suburb name, property type, and agency name

  • Use three to five quality hashtags such as suburb name, property type, lifestyle theme

Step by step setup in Ads Manager

Instagram ads are built in Meta Ads Manager. Avoid the Boost button for important campaigns. The steps are simple.

1. Create a new campaign

   • Choose Sales or Leads if you use a form or landing page

   • Choose Engagement if your goal is awareness and video views

2. Name the campaign, ad set, and ad

   • Use a clean naming format such as Suburb Street Launch Week

3. Set the budget and schedule

   • Daily budget as planned above

   • Start today and end after your open home window

4. Choose the audience

   • Location radius and postcodes

   • Add retargeting audiences

   • Keep audience expansion off for the first test

5. Select placements

   • Turn off everything except Instagram Feed, Instagram Reels, Instagram Stories for creative that fits vertical or square

   • If you have square tiles use Feed and Explore

   • If you have vertical video use Reels and Stories

6. Optimise and delivery

   • Optimise for leads if using a form

   • Optimise for landing page views if sending to your site

7. Build the ad

   • Upload your photos or video

   • Write the primary text up to two short lines

   • Add a headline such as Book inspection today

   • Choose a strong call to action button

8. Tracking and reporting

   • Use the Meta pixel and conversions API on your website

   • Add UTM tags so traffic is clear inside Google Analytics

   • Example UTM source Instagram, medium CPC, campaign Suburb Street

9. Publish and check

   • Preview on mobile

   • Fix any cropping

   • Confirm the lead form questions and privacy text

Copy templates you can use today

• New listing carousel caption

  • Welcome to number 12 Sample Street. Three bedrooms and two bathrooms with natural light and a family friendly yard. Tap to book your inspection.

• Reels tour caption

  • Take a quick walk through this home in the heart of Sample Suburb. Close to schools and parks. Message for the price guide and full brochure.

• Story sequence script

  1. Card one: Just listed in Sample Suburb. Three bed. Two bath. Two car.

  2. Card two: Walk to Sample School and Sample Park.

  3. Card three: Tap Book Now to secure your inspection.

• Lead form intro text

  • Get the full brochure, floor plan, and inspection times. Enter your details to receive instant access.

• Seller proof caption

  • Sample Street is now under offer after strong buyer demand and twenty four enquiries in four days. Thinking of selling in Sample Suburb. Ask for your free price update.

A simple seven day launch plan

• Day one

  • Launch a Reels tour to your cold and warm audiences

  • Story sequence with tap to book

• Day two

  • Carousel gallery to the same audiences

  • Lead form ad to request brochure and inspection times

• Day three

  • Retarget video viewers and website visitors with a new Reels edit

  • Add a Story with a countdown sticker for open home

• Day four

  • Refresh the first tile of the carousel with a new hero image

  • Increase budget by twenty percent if cost per lead is within target

• Day five

  • Share a testimonial tile or market stat from the suburb

  • Keep retargeting on

• Day six

  • Push Stories morning and evening

  • Reply to every comment and direct message quickly

• Day seven

  • Post open home reminder early morning

  • After inspections, share a quick update such as strong interest and next inspection time

How to measure success and what to do next

Track simple numbers each day. Use these guideposts to decide your next move. Your market may vary.

• Cost per one thousand impressions under fifteen to thirty

  • If higher, test broader location or fresh creative

• Click through rate above one percent for carousel and two percent for Reels

  • If lower, rewrite the hook line and change the first tile or first two seconds

• Cost per lead that matches your target

  • Many markets see five to twenty five

  • If higher, shorten the form and improve the offer

• Lead to inspection rate

  • Aim for twenty to forty percent

  • If lower, follow up faster and add SMS with a calendar link

Compliance, consent, and care

• Respect privacy

  • Only upload contacts that have given clear consent

  • Include a link to your privacy policy on your site and in the lead form

  • Store data in secure systems and remove on request

• Fair and accurate advertising

  • Use correct price guides and property facts

  • Make sure you have permission to use all photos, video, and music

  • Avoid claims that can mislead such as guaranteed results

• Accessibility

  • Use captions on all videos

  • Keep text large and high contrast

  • Write alt text where possible

Troubleshooting quick fixes

• Ad rejected

  • Check for too much text on images or prohibited claims

  • Remove words that suggest personal attributes

• High cost per one thousand impressions

  • Widen the radius by two kilometres

  • Test different placement such as Reels only or Feed only

• Many clicks but few leads

  • Improve the first fold of your landing page with a clear call to action

  • Try the built in lead form for speed

• Few clicks

  • Replace the first tile or first two seconds

  • Add strong benefits in the first sentence

Ready to use AI prompts

Copy and paste these into your AI tool. Replace the items in brackets.

• Ad copy prompt

  • Write three Instagram ad captions for a property at [address] in [suburb]. The home has [key features]. Audience is [buyer type]. Each caption must use one strong hook, two benefits, and one call to action to book an inspection.

• Reels script prompt

  • Create a thirty second Reels script for a property tour at [address]. Include an opening hook, five short shots with on screen captions, and a closing call to action to request the brochure.

• Carousel outline prompt

  • Plan a six tile Instagram carousel for a listing at [address]. Tile one hook with hero photo. Tiles two to five features and lifestyle. Tile six call to action with contact details.

• Follow up message prompt

  • Write a friendly direct message to a person who liked our property ad at [address]. Offer the brochure and inspection times. Ask one simple qualifying question.

Checklist before you go live

• Clear goal and one main call to action

• Correct location radius and audiences

• Creative that fits the placement size

• Short copy that sells the benefit

• Tracking in place with pixel and UTM

• Lead handover process ready in your CRM

• Daily check and quick replies to comments and messages

Use this playbook for each listing. Keep your creative fresh, watch the numbers, and move your budget toward what works. With simple steps and steady testing, Instagram ads can showcase your properties and deliver more enquiries and more appraisals.

Author – Ken Hobson