5 Ways to Use Instagram Stories for Your Brand
In recent years, Instagram stories have dominated the playing field when it comes to photo and video sharing apps. Sharing stories is no longer just for millennials either. Over 64% of people ages 18 to 29 and 40% of people ages 30 to 49 in the United States use the app. Not to mention, 250 million people share Instagram stories daily, the company mentioned last year.
With statistics like these, it’s crucial that brands make use of Instagram stories to reach their target audiences. As the app continues to add new features and updates, it’s important to keep up with the trends to give your audience a reason to continue to follow your brand. Here are some ways to improve your Instagram strategy with stories.
Use Instagram takeovers
Influencer marketing is a very popular tactic to increase brand awareness and sales through social media. According to a study from Tapinfluence, influencer marketing content delivers 11 times higher ROI than traditional forms of digital marketing. Billboard will sometimes let popular artists log onto their Instagram account for a day to promote their new music, talk about Billboard or share what they are currently doing. Having popular celebrities, bloggers, employees or even customers talking directly to a brand’s audience can greatly improve a person’s relationship with a brand. This is because they feel like they can relate to someone talking about a brand that they are interested in, whether they are famous or not.
Show behind the scenes.
No matter what the brand is, people love getting a behind-the-scenes look into different projects. What’s better than a personalized tour of company’s brand new office or showing step-by-step how a coffee roaster roasts their famous blend? Making these kinds of stories adds a unique touch to any brand’s social media strategy.
IGTV is also a great option
Although IGTV videos are not technically Instagram stories, the app’s newest feature allows brands to post long-form videos that can be re-watched within the main Instagram app, as well as the official IGTV app. World-renowned designer clothing brand, Gucci, has made use of this feature to post 7 to 15 minute long videos from their fashion shows to show off their new collections for each new season. Brands can use this feature to show their products in whatever creative ways they like.
Interact with your audience
With Instagram constantly adding new features to their story feature, it is now easier than ever for brands to have interactive conversations with their followers. Features such as polls, slide ratings and their newest feature, questions, allow for followers to give their honest opinion on products and ask questions to understand the brand better.
Be innovative
With the high amount of brands that are catching on to the importance of using Instagram stories, it is important to try and standout from the rest. Try to post content that would cause your audience to engage with it more. Maybe post videos or photos that would have your audience turn their phones upside down or sideways in order to see the image properly? Maybe post a story of someone acting like they are trapped in the phone and relating it to how the product would be useful in that situation? The options are endless so don’t be afraid to be creative.