With more than 1 billion monthly users, Instagram has become the go-to platform for millions of businesses, professionals and influencers across the globe. Its handy features, including direct messaging, Reels and IGTV, make it an excellent platform for engaging with your audience. One of the most popular features, however, is the Stories feature. So, what are Instagram Stories and how can you use them to boost your engagement?
What are Instagram Stories?
Instagram Stories are images and videos that disappear after 24 hours. They are displayed at the top of your followers’ feeds and are an excellent way to share content in a more informal, engaging way. With features like stickers, filters and text overlay, it’s easy to get creative with your Stories and make them a unique expression of your brand.
How to Use Instagram Stories to Boost Engagement
Instagram Stories offer a great opportunity for increasing engagement and reaching new audiences. Here are some strategies to help make the most of your Instagram Stories:
Create Stories with Your Brand’s Personality
Stories are an excellent way to show off your brand’s personality and make a personal connection with your audience. Use stickers, filters and text to get creative and personalize your stories to reflect your brand’s personality. Be sure to include your brand’s logo to help make the most of this branding opportunity.
Use Stories to Promote New Products and Discounts
Stories are a great way to share sneak-peeks of new products with your followers. For example, you can create a story that reveals a new product and encourages your followers to swipe up for a lft link to learn more. You can also use Stories to promote discounts and sales by creating stories with promotional codes that can be used for discounts.
Engage with Your Audience using Polls and Questions
Instagram’s Poll and Questions features make it easy to engage with your audience and encourage them to become an active part of your stories. Use these features to ask your followers open-ended questions or conduct polls to see what content your audience is most interested in. This is an excellent way to gather information and provide content that your followers truly appreciate.
When to Post Stories
Knowing when to post Stories to get the most engagement from your followers is crucial. For best results, it’s recommended to avoid posting between 3-9pm, when most people are busy. Instead, try posting when most people are winding down for the day, around 8am or 10pm. Additionally, posting regularly throughout the week will help keep your brand front of mind.
Optimize Your Stories for SEO
Finally, it’s important to optimize your Stories for SEO to help maximize their visibility and increase engagement. Use relevant keywords in your tags and caption to help your stories rank higher in search results. Additionally, for best results, the first five tags you use should be related to the topic of your story.
Conclusion
Instagram Stories are an excellent way to increase engagement and reach new audiences across the globe. By utilizing the Stories feature, businesses can share their brand’s personality, promote products and sales, engage with their audience and optimize their content for SEO. With a little creativity and a bit of strategy, businesses can make the most out of the Instagram Stories feature.