You’ll need some ingenuity to capture the attention of Stories’ large user base. Here are some of the best examples of their application that we’ve found, and they’re all perfect for your next Story.
You can tell Instagram Stories have an effect on users because everyone who has ever got lost in the infinite scrolling of Stories knows how easy it is to get sucked in. Quickly sharing content, engaging users, and swaying their decisions on the platform are all made easier with Stories, whether that’s to join a product’s waitlist or buy a product suggested by an influencer. Agencies report between two and three times higher interaction with Instagram Posts posts than with regular content, so it’s a win-win for both users and businesses.
You’ll need some ingenuity if you want to capture the interest of Stories‘ vast user base, though. Given how simple it is to share a story with an audience, it’s crucial that you do it immediately, lest you risk losing their interest and moving on to the next story.
Stories are only available for a limited time, but with Story Highlights (located at the top of every profile), you may make your content permanent. In this article, we’ll share some of the most interesting applications we’ve come across, any of which could be used in your future Story.
Help Your Readers Find The Items That Will Best Suit Their Needs.
One in two Instagram users has found a new favourite brand or product using the app. You can use Stories to lead your audience down the sales funnel by highlighting products that speak to their wants and needs. Then they’ll know exactly what they’re looking for and only visit your website to buy it.
These Are Some Brands That Are Doing This:
- Plantmade: Plantmade explained to clients what to expect from each of their many hair oils.
- Loft: The goal of the Style Assist series at Loft is to have real individuals, from employees to celebrities, talk about how they utilise and style Loft’s items.
- What each of Hers’ skin care products can accomplish for you is highlighted in the brand’s “skin care” Story Highlight.
Show Your Audience How Things Really Work.
Your Stories are a fantastic venue for establishing your brand’s credibility and humanising it to your target demographic. What goes on behind the scenes of your business doesn’t have to be restricted to the production process. Employees can be featured in a variety of settings, including as performing their duties, demonstrating interests outside of work, responding to prompts or FAQs, and more.
These Are Some Brands That Are Doing This:
- What made the Djerf Avenue staff members joyful was expressed in the Story we overheard.
- In Youth Marketing, YMC’s “#YMCrew” Stories highlight various staff members to provide insight into their personalities and interests outside of the office.
- Mejuri: In their ‘Staff Styling’ Stories, Mejuri workers reveal their morning routines when they put in a remote day.
Boost The Audience’s Interest In The Release.
Storytelling is an excellent strategy for building up interest in a forthcoming product, service, or even blog article.
Including stickers in your Story is a fantastic way to interact with your audience and generate excitement for your launch, whether that’s through a Countdown sticker showing how long before your launch or a link to a preorder page or waitlist signup.
Here’s An Example Of A Brand That’s Doing This:
- Good Molecules: Before releasing their new product X, Good Molecules told a string of Stories that defined the product’s features and benefits and outlined the ideal client profile.
Help Each Other Out With Guides And Lesson Plans.
Value-added content is essential if you want people to keep coming back to your Stories. What this entails is giving your target market something they can use in their personal or professional lives while also incorporating your brand’s values.
To keep your audience engaged, host a contest alongside your courses. You can incentivize product reviews by offering a prize to those who post reviews on social media and mention your brand.
These Are Some Brands That Are Doing This:
- Caraway: Utilizing Story Highlights, Caraway permanently pins a how-to instruction for keeping kitchen items (particularly, the ones you might buy from them) to the top of their profile.
- In this Story, the grooming company shares its environmental philosophy by advising and demonstrating to viewers how to recycle their empty packaging.
Showcase Your Social Proof
Nothing beats hearing average folks talk about a service for free to generate trust. Using Instagram Stories, you can instantly draw attention to posts from customers and content providers that feature your business. Always check to see who has mentioned you in a post so you can give them some extra attention. Remix by Buffer allows you to aggregate brand-related tweets for re-posting on Instagram.
These Are Some Brands That Are Doing This:
- Arami Essentials: Arami, a skincare business, makes the most of its audience’s eagerness to try out its products and report back on their experiences by reposting positive comments in a highlight section.
- Kai Collective: The clothing company features social media references of Kai Collective as “Testimonials” on their website.
The Dates And Events That Are Most Significant To You Should Be Highlighted.
To deepen your relationship with your audience, consider telling stories about topics they care about. Black History Month, Mental Health Awareness Month, Pride Month, and so on are just a few of the many months where you may utilise Instagram Stories to highlight people, businesses, and products with a relevant theme.
Maintain a brand-related events calendar. Don’t forget to celebrate National Pancake Day in addition to other well-known holidays like Black History Month. In addition, Buffer’s Drafts feature allows you to prepare posts in advance.
These Are Some Brands That Are Doing This:
- For Arab American, and North African (AA+MENA) Heritage Month, Home Therapy used Instagram Stories to feature local small businesses. In this series, entrepreneurs like Dounia of @folks and tales talk about their experiences running a small business and give an inside look at a typical day in their lives.
Find out what works by trying various approaches
The brands we’ve discussed and the amazing stories we’ve told are probably not things that developed gradually over time. You should test out a variety of approaches to social media management to see what works best. You have a lot of room to experiment with Stories and the impact of various formats, even if not every idea will work for your business or audience.