Instagram to trial first ad

UK users can breathe a small sigh of relief – for now – but US users of Instagram can expect to see a beta trial of advertising within the next week.

The one-time ad is designed to give users a sense for the look and feel of the ads they will see. The ad will be distinguishable from standard users photos by putting the word ‘Sponsored’ where the time stamp normally would be.

Tapping the label allows users to learn more about how advertising will work on the popular photo and video sharing site.

Last month Instagram announced that it would be introducing ads within the next year, stating that it wants to integrate marketing without “jeopardising Instagram’s cool factor.”

The company, recently purchased by Facebook for for $1 billion, said that though it wants to make money in the long term, there is no short term pressure to do so.

“We want ads to be creative and engaging, so we’re starting with just a handful of brands that are already great members of the Instagram community,” Instagram wrote in a blog post this week.

“If you see an ad that doesn’t interest you, you can tap the “…” below it to hide it and provide feedback about what you didn’t like. This will help us show you more interesting ads in the future.”