How to Write Targeted Ads Using Personas & Sales Funnel Phases

In an earlier chapter you learned the basics of a digital content strategy and what a persona is. You also learned about a customer journey and the sales funnel. When you create Instagram ads you want to design your ads to have benefit and value to your audience (personas) and also be relevant to the sales funnel phases.

In marketing, advertising that does not consider the sales funnel phases is called a 'shot gun approach' and this means you're creating one ad with one message to the entire sales funnel, hoping it's relevant to someone in there.

HOT TIP: The more relevant and targeted your ad image, headline and caption is the more likely someone will click through to your page or website.

For example, if your number one objective is to create brand awareness, you can assume that you're targeting the top of the sales funnel (awareness and consideration) stages and you should create content that matches what people are interested in knowing at that phase.


Types of Instagram Ads to Match a Sales Funnel


Awareness Phase

Posts and ads that are intended to drive awareness should be like an introduction to you, your business and the types of products or services you offer.

Next you want to think about which persona you're wan to target with your advertising campaign. The reason you want to have different person groups for your ads is that groups of people have different needs. For example, a business traveller in his 50's would have very different needs from a hotel than a holiday traveller in her early 20's.

Example Ad Types

Let's use an example of a hotel in Sydney. Say we know from data we collected that the female persona group named Mary, is aged between 20-30, likes beaches, the outdoors, yoga, eating at cafes and dislikes paying for wifi, paying for in-room movies and slow check-in counters.

The advertising content we would want to create to target a group of Mary's would have something like:

Discover Sydney, stay right in Bondi Beach. Wake up overlooking the water, enjoy breakfast at a beach-side cafe. Guests also get free wifi and a speedy self check-in.

Compare the below Instagram Story ads - both advertising a hotel in Sydney. The one of the left is a beautiful image Bondi, has high-level information aimed at the 'awareness phase' the one on the right is a generalised ad with an image of a room and is assuming everyone who sees the ad is ready to book (aka in the purchase phase).

The ad that will capture the attention of Mary is on the left. She likely wont make a purchase yet but she is more likely to click-through this ad for more information whereby the one of the right is too far down the funnel for her to really capture her attention and also does not mention of any of her purchase considerations (wifi, beach location).


Consideration Phase

Posts and ads that are intended to talk to an audience that is in the consideration phase of their purchase journey should be aware the audience is likely seeing ads from competitors and doing their own research.

HOT TIP: Use this to your advantage and research what your competitors are advertising and than one up them in the customer value.

Example Ad Types

Keeping with our Mary persona and the hotel advertising. We now want to up the value offering in the copy and images to 'talk to Mary's needs and values' more directly than our competitors might be.

Bondi Beach Getaway- Hotel XYZ from $220 per night with free super-fast wifi, free in-room movies + a welcome drink on arrival. Enjoy a 2 min stroll to beach front Yoga and award winning cafes and bars.

Purchase Phase

This is the phase that your audience has made the decision to purchase and it's either from you or your competitor. Depending on your product offering you want to make this ad type appear impulsive and have calls to action that imply a 'hurry book now' vibe.

HOT TIP: It is always good to compare your offering to your competitors in this phase. If your hotel room is $225 per night and your competitors is $220 with the same inclusions you want to ensure you either take your price down to match OR offer an additional value item - like a free breakfast.

Example Ad Types

Keeping with our Mary persona and the hotel advertising.

XYZ Hotel in Bondi Beach. Beach front rooms from $220 per night. Free Wifi, Late check-out and complementary breakfast when you book direct today.



Think about your own business and product offering and prepare 3 - 4 advertising variations that will work into the sales funnel phases. You will then use Instagram's in-built advertising targeting to further define your audience.

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