We pulled together some of the most interesting articles we’ve read recently – and included the quotes that got us talking the most.

Instagram Hits Half A Billion Users As Growth Soars
Source: AdAge
Instagram now has over 500 million users, the most recent 100 million joining even more rapidly than the previous 100 million. The app has double the daily active users than Twitter and Snapchat with over 300 million. In this article, find out how Instagram avoided the growth plateau that plagues its competitors.

Businesses Can Now Tell If A Facebook Ad Led You To Shop At Their Stores
Source: Mashable
Facebook is now watching you even more closely than you thought—with your permission, of course. A new feature now allows advertisers to include an interactive map of nearby stores within their carousel ads. Facebook is capable of tracking people who visit stores or make in-store purchases after viewing ads on mobile—data they are then able to hand over to advertisers. This gives companies an idea of how many people who saw the Facebook ad bought something in their store, and can also give them a better idea of the demographic breakdown of their customers. Learn about how other companies are trying to connect what you see online to the actions you take in person, as less than a tenth of all purchases in the U.S. were made online in the first quarter of 2016.

Ad Blocking In The U.S. Projected To Rise By Double Digits In 2016
Source: MediaPost
A study by eMarketer found that 26.3% of internet users will block ads this year, and that number is projected to increase by double digits in 2016. Ad blocking is most common on desktops and laptops, where 63.2 million people use an ad blocker—compared to the 20.7 million who use one on their smartphone. However, as mobile phone usage increases, the use of smartphone ad blockers is expected to increase as well—to the tune of 62.3%. Find out more about the impact that the growing amount of ad blockers will have on publishers and advertisers.