The social network Instagram was conceived for photo sharing, but as the demand for it rises, there is a growing need for further product development.
Thus, in addition to the function of creating a post, Insta users got the possibility to create stories. The peculiarity of such content is that it automatically disappears after 24 hours, but you can also save it for a longer time in a Highlights collection in your account.
Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms. Today the Instagram engagement of user is increasing day by day.
At its core, this is a video or photo that a person posts to diversify their day and tell subscribers what they are doing at the moment.
The length of one will be about 15 seconds, but nothing prevents you from increasing their total number.
Stories allow users to share multiple photos and videos in a slideshow format. They appear at the top of the main feed.
Instagram account holders appreciated this tool to the fullest only in the last few years, to the point where some of them have reduced traditional publications to a minimum. The users have noticed that with Instastories it is much easier to keep the audience’s attention.
This type of sharing content can be incredibly diverse — videos and classic photos, images and plain backgrounds supplemented with text. The techniques and tools also differ. You can make a few-second boomerang, a video in which your action is repeated. Photobooth combines three frames taken in turn. Layout allows you to choose multiple templates and match your best shots. Apply a level so that there is no crooked horizon in the frame.
In any case, to make your stories interesting, you need to bring in some authenticity and your personal charm, for example, to add audio to picture or use an unusual and fancy font.
Where to Begin?
If you have already decided to diversify your content and use the story mode more actively, it is advisable to alternate videos and images for maintaining your subscriber’s interest.
Users engage with short stories from your real life, and you can provide them in the form of a narrative. But keep in mind that if you talk a lot in such a post, not everyone will be listening to the end. In this case, duplicate some parts as text that can appear in your next photo story.
It will be more pleasant to the eye to look at cute animations related to the theme of the video, which you can add to different parts of it. Also, slap a trendy sticker on your food or nature photos.
If you are interested in promoting your business, the professional management of your accounts should be assisted by a range of templates and tools to help you create high-quality marketing materials. Templates make it easy to maintain a consistent style across the page without wasting much time because the design is already thought-out, and you just need to follow it. And all that is required of you is to add a photo or video using an editor.
Thanks to the function of saving stories in highlights, you have additional potential for promotion. So, users can find out information about you or your company and check out an impromptu selection of frequently asked questions. It is also convenient to make an announcement of new product lines or a full-fledged presentation of a product. It is recommended to assign a separate section for reviews so that users can get some confidence in you. If you are open to collaboration, you can also save this information. The way you present information plays an important role, so use stickers, pictures, drop-out text, blurring, and other types of effects to hook the audience.
You can also add polls to your stories. This is a good way to get the opinion of your audience. By choosing the answers “yes” and “no” or entering original answers, your subscribers will quickly provide feedback about your page, topics, or products.
Use templates and animations to create your own version of a game. Games are great content, which ignites the excitement of subscribers. Themed entertainment attracts more attention because it requires feedback from the user. And this is an additional benefit for your account in the form of natural promotion and increased reach. Catching content is more often recommended, re-posted, and shared with friends. The more actions it requires, the higher the engagement. The options can be:
- ‘Find the Difference’ game
- ‘Find the item in the picture’ quest
- emoji puzzles, and many others
To make a game look juicy, you need to use one style, correctly submit information about the rules and conditions, and keep in touch with the participants.
What If There Are No New Ideas?
In this case, it is worth waking up and directing your imagination in the right direction. To do this, you can spend a day browsing photo stocks and other inspirational platforms. A really good solution may be well-known Pinterest. Capture moments of your daily life or milestones of your workflow. Show the process of packaging or creating your products to attract a potential customer. Share your mistakes and failures. Maybe, you have an idea or a small dream, and you can tell your followers about it because you are a human being and do not work around the clock.
Bottom Line
Instagram has long ceased to be just an entertainment platform. Small businesses develop through advertising while handicrafts and artworks find their customers — all thanks to the competent development of Instagram accounts.