Finding an innovative brand-building technique is the dream of every social media marketer. The Instagram business made this dream come true by offering budget-friendly and unique solutions.
According to Falcon, 13 percent of the world’s population is on Instagram, and 80 percent follow at least one brand. Search Engine Journal gave another staggering figure, which stated that 500 million users view Instagram stories every day.
Now effective Instagram marketing strategy demands out-of-the-box experiments each day to leverage these statistics in their favor. Apart from creating an aesthetic Instagram feed, marketers focus on mastering the art of engagement with their followers so the marketing onus gets distributed.
In this way, they start getting amplified results, which is the ultimate motto.
We will discuss one such amplifying experiment that you need to try out this weekend to skyrocket your branding,g too- Custom Instagram filters!
You must be thinking it to be a complicated, geeky endeavor, but it is not so. Read on further as we share 5 steps on how to get filters on Instagram customized for your brand quickly.
But before we start on the how to get filters on Instagram stories, let’s look at the why question!
Table of Content
Table of Contents
Why are Instagram filters necessary for brand recognition?
1. Higher engagement rate
Instagram has 15 times higher engagement than Facebook and 20 times higher than that on Twitter. Thanks to the fun filters, stories, reels, and IGTV, along with an aesthetic feed.
2. Promoting user-generated content
60 percent of the world-famous brands are active on Instagram, including big names like Nike, Gucci, Huda Beauty, etc. These brands use user-generated content to create brand awareness for boosting credibility. Each story post with their customized Instagram filters exposes their brands to a new set of people,e making a potential lead base widening the emerging loop.
3. Convey the brand message
Brands convey their belief, faith, and culture, sending across their messages right through regular presence and posting. Instagram filters are impactful in creating a personal connection with the user base with oh-so-real popup additions, thanks to Augmented Reality.
4. Holding hands with AR and other futuristic technology
AR filters improve the user experience increasing the average dwelling time by 96 percent. They give ample scope for interactive engagement. Businesses are pouring in hot cash for Augmented Reality content now.
As per Greenlight insights, a whopping $36.4 billion will be the net worldwide spendings on Augmented Reality content by 2023. Custom interactive filters on social media, in general, are the initial baby steps towards futuristic augmented reality brand retention.
Branding examples using Instagram AR filters
Let’s have a look at some campaign strategies that are quite popular in the makeup industry. Filters trying out cosmetic products are game-changing since the impressive trial sessions lure impulsive buyers for online purchases.
Take a look at Mac cosmetics having several customized Instagram filters from varied lipstick shades, blushes to eye makeups. Campaigns like these tempt the followers to switch their front face camera to try different makeup styles in seconds. The filter insights reveal the trending style, which helps in their real product sales.
Adidas embraced the new normal of work from home and released this Hometeam Power Up filter. This was also a fueling campaign to keep the fitness freak in us happy with Adidas’s lockdown.
Here is yet another example of Taco Bell playing the “Which Item?” quiz to market their lip-smacking delicacies.
Impressive, isn’t it?
Without any delay, let’s have a look at the following five steps by which you can come up with your very own brand filters.
Let’s start.
Step 1: Getting started with Spark AR Studio
In August 2019, Facebook released Spark AR studio for building filters for Facebook and Instagram stories. It was then done for public usage.
Earlier, only a set of privileged creators were invited to create Instagram face filters, but this recent public release created the AR hype among the non-tech community.
Getting started with the Spark AR studio is easy. All you need to do is to download this tool for creating 2D to visual animation wonders. It is available for both Windows and Mac environments.
The best part is no coding is required for this. Spark AR has numerous tutorials and comprehensive guides right from beginner level to advanced filter creations.
Tips Seek help from the Spark AR community if you want a perfect filter or need additional professional help.
Step 2: Build an effect
Once downloaded successfully, get acquainted with the interface. Check out the different elements available.
Start with the basics of face filters. Get your hands dirty with the face tracking and adding a face mesh process to make your own Instagram face filter.
Spark AR lets you download sample content from the Learn tab of their official site. You can make use of them to create dummy projects for your practice sessions.
Additionally, it offers free templates too, but you can make filters from scratch as well. The templates provide the following:
- Stickers in 2D and 3D
- Eye color
- Face Decoration and Mask
- Makeup
- Object reveal
- Colour filters
- Background Customization
Customize these prebuilt templates by replacing the object and tweaking their properties.
Apart from all these, you can add objects from the World Object templates too. It lets you select any 3D object that can be coupled with a real background.
It is advisable to build a compelling effect idea first before executing what kind of element fits in. Decide if the filter is for front camera selfies or back camera portraits, or both. Once you are done with the effect mind map, create a new project, and move on to the next step.
Step 3: Add an asset
As soon as you create a new project, the workspace screen appears, known as the Viewport with the Scene Panel on the left side and a Simulator on the right.
Scene Panel consists of various editing features like directional lighting, positioning, layering, visibility, etc. You can choose the way your added objects behave based on the user’s interaction.
The simulator is a dummy phone screen that projects every progress you build in the central Viewport. Make use of the dropdown to select various smartphone simulators.
If you are using templates, customize them straight away from the Scene Panel, adjusting the properties accordingly. If you are building it from scratch, add objects from the AR library. You can also import your own set of objects to create brand intensive filters. AR Library has free resources for animation and audio too.
Add the finishing touches, adding textures and patches, sufficient contrast and brightness, altering the depth with directional lighting, and so on.
Step 4: Export and test
Before you start testing, make sure the filter file size is small. You can check it by exporting it to your system.
You will get a prompt if the file is too big and exceeds 40MB. Click on the Review Unused Asset from the View Asset Summary option. Remove the unnecessary asset from the filters.
To test your newly made filter, download the Spark AR Player app. Connect your phone with a USB cable and check if the filter works as you intended it to be.
You can use Facebook and Instagram cameras directly, too, instead of the Spark AR Player app. Go to the Send to App section and select either of the two choices.
Step 5: Publish and share
After completing the testing step, make sure you complete the following:
- Give an appropriate name to your filter.
- Select the desired platform for the publish.
- Add keywords and relevant categories for listings.
- Add a screencast or demo video to showcase the effect.
- Add an appropriate icon and date of publication.
- Click on the Upload button.
This process submits your filter file to the Spark AR hub for the final review before publishing. It may take a few days, too, as per the Spark AR review guidelines and updated policies.
If it passed the review, your filter would go live in the Effect Gallery. Share it across once it’s live. Hire a few micro-influencers to spread the wildfire. Make your followers your brand ambassadors. If they add you in their highlights, you become an indispensable part of their feed, and their viewers become your viewers as well. It is a groundbreaking way to sustain visibility for an extended period.
Use Insights available in the Spark AR hub to know the detailed analytics of post publishing filter usage. Check out the number of impressions, engagement, and audience demographics.
Tips Check out engagement metrics like open, capture, save, and share to know which filter performs better.
Conclusion
Now that you know how to get filters on Instagram start creating one for yourself.
Don’t fret!
Every tool seems overwhelming initially, but with extra effort and time, you can pull it off well.
You can also hire agencies once you secure a reasonable budget and plan full-fledged campaigns. You can always rely on professional help if you lack time and expertise.
Get your creative juices flowing with the boundless creativity of AR filters. You are all set now to hop on to the branding bandwagon with your very own custom Instagram filters.
Have a stellar branding ahead!