In a world where we instinctively reject (or pay to skip) ads, Instagram Stories provides an engaging way to market your business. And with 500 million daily active users, your followers and potential customers can see and interact with your Stories.
This tool has become an essential part of any business’s social media marketing strategy, as Instagram is one of the most-used platforms, and more and more brands choose to create accounts there to better reach out to their target audience. If you don’t know how the Stories feature can help your own business, this article is here to help.
You Can Show Your Business from the Inside to Make it More Relatable for the Audience
Brands that use Instagram stories to share a behind-the-scenes look at their business can create a connection with their audience that goes beyond content consumption. FedEx, for example, uses stories to showcase their Career Insights program and show how they help people get jobs in the company. No matter what kind of business you are and what you sell, even if it’s something as obvious as selling simple goods or providing some essay writing help free online, showing the other side of your business is always a great idea, as it helps your client see you as trustworthy.
A set of small interviews with your team, some short video tours to your office, or even some work-in-progress footage displayed in Stories format can be a good ‘backstage pass’ for your clients, making them more familiar with the realities of your business and its human side. To make them even more interesting to your target audience, you can use some of Instagram’s built-in features, like polls and quizzes. Try creating a quick “game” with these tools to see how your audience responds.
Another good idea is to showcase customer testimonials to help your products or services sound as authentic and dependable as possible. This could include a Q&A with a happy client, sharing photos or videos of your products in the wild, or featuring a shout-out from a loyal customer. Seeing that other people choose your brand can motivate your less active visitors finally make a purchase, and this is just what you want to get as a business.
Stories Can Help You Communicate with Your Audience
Using Instagram stories to ask questions is a great way to leverage your audience’s feedback and gain insight into what matters most to them. You can use the Question sticker to get reviews on your latest products, ask for ideas on what they want to see in future versions of your product or service, and even host a poll.
You can use the Questions Sticker on any type of Instagram Story post, including Normal, Music, Boomerang, and Hands-free. Just tap the Sticker icon, select the Questions Sticker, and type the question you’d like to ask your audience. You can also use this feature to create a poll that gives your audience more than two options. Try asking them what their favorite color is, what type of content they want to see from you next, or even if they prefer summer or fall.
Be sure only to use this feature sparingly – you don’t want to bore your audience with questions and risk losing their engagement. Also, only use it for questions that elicit short answers, as longer ones will cause your audience to respond slowly or not at all. You can determine which times your audience is most responsive by looking at your Instagram Stories analytics or by trial and error. Be sure to invite your audience to DM you with any additional questions they may have.
They Can Also Help You Share Limited Offers
Your Stories can be used to showcase a limited-time offer that will entice viewers to take action. Their disappearing nature creates a sense of urgency, which can boost conversions by making the offer seem like a time-limited opportunity your audience might miss out on if they don’t act fast enough.
Whether you’re hosting an event, launching a new product, or opening a new storefront, use Stories to promote it. Countdown stickers create a sense of anticipation and allow viewers to mark their calendars to remind them when to check back. Collaborating with other accounts is also an effective way to increase the reach of your Stories, introducing you to new followers and potential leads.
Final Words
Instagram Stories is a great tool for businesses to share content with their audience in real-time. With features like emoji stickers, music, polls, and tagging, it’s easy to connect with your audience and grow brand awareness. To boost discoverability on Instagram’s Explore tab, try tagging your Stories with relevant hashtags and locations. You can even include links to your website or other social media channels. And with post and account analytics, you can monitor your engagement to inform future campaigns. If you have a business account, you can also use the Questions sticker to tap into your audience’s natural answering reflex and conduct surveys.
Instagram’s shopping feature lets businesses highlight products in their Stories and link to their purchase pages. You can also leverage Stories’ countdown stickers to build excitement around product launches or events. Additionally, Instagram recently announced that users can shop directly from the Explore tab, which will expand the reach of your Stories to non-followers. Instagram’s Poll sticker makes it easy to let your audience share their opinions with you, which can be helpful for gathering data about your customers’ preferences. You can also add links and music to your Stories, which gives you more creative ways to engage your audience.
