Instagram now has 1mn monthly advertisers

Last year was an exceptional year for Instagram. The photo-sharing app launched more updates in the past 12 months than it had ever done before. And looks like the updates have paid off well. From 200,000 active advertisers last year, Instagram now claims one million monthly active advertisers, a 400 percent increase from last year.

The number of advertisers has grown five-fold from last year with Instagram's vice president for business, James Quarles calling the 1 million mark a "milestone."

"One million advertisers is a big milestone, particularly because of the scale and diversity of the businesses on Instagram," James Quarles said. "Businesses are drawn to Instagram because it's a place where people follow passions, everything from mainstream interests, like their favourite musician, to niche hobbies like candy art."

So far 8 million businesses are using the app with a profile, primarily made up of those in the U.S., Brazil, Indonesia, Russia, and the U.K, as per the company.

“People come to Instagram to follow their passions, from travel and fashion to food, entertainment and everything in between. And those passions extend to brands, with 80 percent of Instagrammers following a business today,” Instagram said in a blog post.

Instagram credits the growth to different factors, including simplicity, saying a business account can be set up in as little as four taps.

The platform began testing in-app shopping in 2016 and recently expanded analytics or Insights as well as adding multi-image posts.

Furthermore, Instagram is also planning to roll out more features for its advertising customers like adding a button to their profiles, allowing users to make a booking or appointment directly through Instagram. The aim is to enable Instagram as a primary storefront for the businesses and make it easier for consumers to engage with businesses.