Getting Your Story Straight – Our Top Reasons (and some tips) to start using Instagram Stories today.
In today’s marketing landscape, social media isn’t just an add-on, it’s the heart and soul of many a marketing strategy.
When it comes to captivating your audience, Instagram Stories can be your secret weapon. They’re not just fun and trendy (although they definitely are! 😎) they’re a powerhouse for dynamic, interactive engagement.
Here are our top reasons (and some tips) to start using Instagram Stories today…
Huge amount of users
Boasting 2 billion active monthly users, Instagram is the 4th largest social media network. Of those, more than 500 million are active daily users and 70% watch Instagram Stories daily.
In Australia alone, Instagram has 13.95 million users as of early 2024. This means there is a huge, potential market of eager beavers ready and waiting for you to post on your story.
Your Instagram Story lasts for 24 hours, which is a great opportunity to give your followers a snapshot into your brand or services.
Hashtags Feeds that Count
Take your Instagram stories to the next level by adding well researched hashtags.
Hashtags are a powerful tool with 40% of Instagram users likely to engage with brands who give them greater value by utilising informative posts and hashtags.
Don’t forget your brand… research shows that Branded hashtags work 45% better than generic ones. Incorporating them will help to place you at the top of the hashtag feed, significantly boosting your chances of being discovered.
Exclusivity and Personalisation
Take your followers behind the scenes of your creative process, offering sneak peeks into what you’re currently working on. This insider access creates a sense of exclusivity and builds anticipation for upcoming campaigns and collaborations.
People love to know what’s going on with other people. So posting pics of BTS at work helps people to relate to your story. For businesses, it demonstrates the passion behind your brand, why you love the industry and helps to create long-term fans.
Get Story-time right
Stories are visible for 24 hours which offers flexibility in timing and content creation. Optimal times to post can vary between industries, but if you are looking to build maximum engagement the best time to post on your Instagram story is weekdays during lunch breaks (11am – 2pm).
Enhance Engagement
Using polls, countdowns, scale sliders, and questions on Instagram Stories can significantly boost audience engagement.
Polls can gather opinions and create interactive quizzes, while countdowns build anticipation for events and limited-time offers. Scale sliders help gauge opinions and collect feedback and questions facilitate Q&A sessions, user-generated content and feedback collection.
By incorporating these features strategically, you can foster meaningful interaction and keep your audience engaged.
Leveraging Data and Insights
Instagram Stories offer a range of insights and analytics, allowing businesses to track metrics such as reach, impressions, and engagement.
These valuable data points provide businesses with actionable insights into the performance of their Stories, helping them refine their content strategy and maximise impact.
Consistency is king
The Golden Rule – Post Regularly.
Posting to your story regularly, reinforces your brand’s presence and keeps you fresh in the minds of your followers.
Whether it is daily or a few times a week, there is no perfect number of story uploads. Find the manageable sweet spot for you and go from there!
Sources: statista, socialpilot, datareportal, statista, socialpilot, datareportal, wifitalents, buffer.