5 Ways Instagram Stories Can Be Cleverly Used to Benefit Your Business

  • Social Media

Written by: Zoe Christodoulides

No matter where you’ve been or what you’ve been up to recently, you’ve no doubt taken heed of the latest social media buzzword: ‘Instagram Stories’. Much like Snapchat Stories, Instagram now enables users to create a string of images in a catchy ‘story’, with drawing tools, emojis and fun colorful text allowing for greater creative expression.

In an effort to get its 300 million plus active daily users to share more content, the videos disappear after 24 hours, meaning you can share as much as you want throughout the day without worrying about overpoting. A step away from all the perfectly composed shots we’re so used to seeing on Instagram, the new Stories feature means that any moment – picture perfect or not – can be shared with your followers.

So what, exactly, does all this mean for your business strategy? We’ve got you covered!

  1. Build up a buzz & create a fun ‘behind the scenes’ glimpse into your business

Create more dialogue with your followers while integrating more behind the scenes content and video into your social media strategy. Give them a sneak peak of what’s to come, build up suspense about a product launch, let them see the team in your office hard at work, or take them on a tour of your premises. You’ll create more of a buzz for your company, product or campaign, and you’ll build up a greater relationship with your audience.Instagram Stories

  1. You’ve not only got a greater chance of being discovered, but being noticed

Whatever you do on Instagram, it gives you more chance of being found with hashtags, geotags and the Discover section. Stories is just one extra way of using Instagram for the benefit of your business. And when it comes to Stories, instead of it being pushed into a single feed, followers voluntarily tap to pull your Story and view it – if an Instagram user follows your brand, your account will show up with a colourful ring around it whenever you release new Instagram story content. This feature gives your brand the ability to get organic content right in front of users. Remember that your aim is to be top of the feed and in the mind of as many users as possible!

  1. There’s scope for more creativity, giving your followers a fresh new experience

If you already have a presence on the Instagram platform, then it simply means you can now be a little more playful with your content, while ‘jazzing up’ any content that may look pretty bland on its own. And you can share this new content without having to build up a new audience in a new channel.

  1. Extra content used cleverly opens new doors & opportunities

The more (good) content you share on social media, the more people will know about your business and brand. Put simply, it’s a great way to share more content with your audience without killing your feed and it can open new doors for your business to connect with your audience. Just make sure it’s engaging to really make the most of Stories as a little added boost to go alongside your usual Instagram post.

  1. Test out experimental content & get to know what your followers really like

Because your Stories disappear after 24 hours, if your content works well, you can then share it across the regular Instagram feed and other social media. And because Instagram lets you know exactly who and how many people see your story, it can be used as a tool for understanding which content appeals more to your various target audiences.

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