Most Instagram users focus their uploading point on the story section as the Instagram algorithm frequently takes a toll on user’s engagement. Just read the number counts. According to a recent study, the story section on Instagram has over 500 million active users every day, which is double the count of Snapchat.
Moreover, Instagram stories are a great way to gain more followers on Instagram. Uploading Instagram stories regularly brings an impact on how your contents perform in the algorithm of Instagram.
The Instagram algorithm takes every interaction you get on your stories into the account, which means that if users interact more with your stories on Instagram, the more chance to show up your content in their profile feed.
Here we delivered multiple ways you could use the story feature on Instagram to outsmart its algorithm, develop your reach, and spend extended time on your audience’s screens.
Instagram Algorithm
While Instagram opened the statement that contents will return to the chronological order in the user’s feed soon, it doesn’t mean it is back. Naturally, Instagram is updating its algorithm, so the time you upload your post is more crucial than before.
In simple terms, the algorithm for the feed is still the same, but the weight of some metrics impacts the platform’s algorithm has slightly shifted.
Because of these small changes, users on Instagram want to get perfect ways to develop their engagement rate and reach their target audience. That’s the Instagram stories.
Instagram Stories
The story section on Instagram becomes a necessary part of your marketing strategy and continues its dominance over Snapchat. In simple words, stories on Instagram quickly become the best feature to develop brand awareness, make more e-commerce sales, drive massive engagements, and drive enormous traffic.
Here are the perfect tools and features you could use in Instagram stories to stand in front of the Instagram algorithm:
Use Every Story Features On Instagram
The algorithm of Instagram spends more time viewing your post to determine its popularity. Thus, how will you stop your fans from scrolling through your stories on Instagram? The great news is that the platform brings out new techniques for story sections on Instagram every week or even months, providing users a perfect way to engage with their target audiences.
You could get many features by selecting the sticker option at the top right corner while adding your story content on the platform. Every feature will appear once you have clicked the sticker icon.
Try to work with hashtags, locations, GIFs, stickers regularly, and also don’t use them too much. By utilizing every feature, you will have a great chance to keep your people engaged and provide them with a solid reason to spend an extended time viewing your story section on Instagram.
The platform recently launched the “Type” mode where it helps people share whatever in text format with creative backgrounds and text styles. You want to open the camera on the Instagram story section and click the “Tap” option at the screen bottom to get the Type mode. You would get it under the record icon along with your camera options next to “Live.”
If you are using Type mode in the story section to upload your liked song lyric, come out with a question to your followers, or let the audience know what is on your mind. This feature is a great way to build personality to your stories on the platform and keep every person engaged with it.
Encourage The Audience Interaction
The algorithm of Instagram takes every interaction that your story post acquires when anyone DMs your Instagram story to another platform user or replies you receive to your story.
You may have a chance to get your post in their feed if an Instagram user interacts more with your story contents on the platform.
Taking advantage of Instagram engagement to your story contents is the perfect way to outsmart your Instagram algorithm, including the polling technique in the story section. The poll sticker’s primary task is asking questions and getting results from your fans as their valid vote.
You could utilize the poll sticker option in the story section in multiple ways to get audience interaction. For instance, you could use sticker polls to get your product feedback, unknown ideas, or entertain your fans.
Encouraging these interactions won’t help you develop only an in-depth connection with your target audience but also allow you to build your reach.
Every influencer’s great trick to bring more engagement is to reach out to their fans to “DM me to get this direct product link!” It is a perfect way to get more people to your text area, develop good relationships with your fans, and increase the chance of showing up your posts in their profile feed.
The algorithm of Instagram does the great work of story content on Instagram that appears on your feed top. Naturally, the Instagram stories that appear at the starting of the row are the user accounts you primarily engaged with(user stories or posts).
Keep Your Brand More Aesthetic
It is not only more crucial to your brand aesthetic on your profile feed, but it’s also more important to your Instagram stories. Without seeing your name on your follower screen’s corner, they need to know the story is yours when they watch story content on Instagram.
To brand your story content on Instagram, there are numerous ways within the platform, including various stickers, brush options, and fonts. Utilizing these useful options effectively could bring more personality to your Instagram stories and helps in developing your brand aesthetic.
And also, there is various flexibility in these valuable options. For instance, you could change the brush strokes and text colors by selecting new colors at the screen’s bottom. Select the color pattern from the bottom line track to apply for your particular content.
You could also directly pick a color from your Instagram story using the eyedropper tool on the color palette’s left side. It helps in keeping your Instagram story elements more cohesive and branded.
Bringing templates to your stories on Instagram is the perfect way to get you everything together with an authentic story that sets your brand. Many tools, such as Canva, provide multiple templates that you could use to develop a firm consistency.
The primary fact is that every fan from your account turns into brand advocates if they get high-quality, consistent story content from your Instagram account.
Attach Clickable Links In Your Stories On Instagram
Instagram launched the great source of adding links to story content last year, and it is a pretty move. It is the first time a user on Instagram could attach links on the platform other than bio.
But the link adding a feature is only available for the business profiles on Instagram with over 10K followers. You could add a link in Instagram stories as a “Swipe Up” option if you attain these requirements and drive more traffic to your product pages, web campaigns, blog posts, websites, etc.
When you use the “Swipe Up” feature, you can get massive story views on Instagram and more clicks to your specific landing page. And also the Instagram algorithm rewards you for including in your strategy.
Assume that you have introduced a product, you are using the platform to market it. All you need to do is create a story on Instagram, then link the story content to your site – this is the way to success in your marketing.
Here is why the swipe-up feature on Instagram is an excellent gift to your marketing on Instagram. It helps to increase your website traffic and tremendous potential for your product sales.
Clickable links make it easier for your viewers. Clicking an option to bring a purchase or to get more is easier than driving audiences to land on a different page.
Add Location Stickers And Hashtags To Your Stories On Instagram
Instagram recently enlarged the Search and Explore the page to add location and hashtag of story contents. Other Instagram users can get it if they browse that location or hashtag when you include a location sticker or hashtag to an Instagram story.
In simple words, you acquired the incredible power to get undiscovered and new audiences. If they love your content on story sections, they may follow you in such a way you can increase your follower’s rate.
Tap the location sticker to bring a location and type your story location. Then your story content appears on the search results list for that specific location.
Adding multiple hashtags to your Instagram stories is more accessible. You could type in the hashtag; otherwise, you could utilize the hashtag sticker option to bring hashtags of your own choice.
If audiences search for any hashtags on the platform, they could get every active and recently shared story content on Instagram for that particular hashtag on the search page.
You will get a notification if your story content on Instagram is visible to the location search results. You can get the page name through Instagram insights if someone views your story contents from a location page or hashtag.
Start Creating Ads On Instagram Stories
Recently introduced story ads on Instagram appear between ordinary stories on your feed top. Story ads on Instagram help increase your visibility to undiscovered and new audiences as many Instagram users spend more time scrolling story content.
You could have an option to share video content or photos while creating story ads on Instagram. Bring an attractive intro to your story content to stop users from tapping through their story contents.
Story contents on Instagram feature real-life themes mostly. Graphic video contents break the user experience and won’t get what audiences are getting in other story content. So, graphics content clearly stands out for the ad category.
Your existing audiences wish to engage with your story ads because they have already shown great interest in your content on the platform. So, you can target your people with ads on Instagram who like your Facebook content too.
Instagram story ads provide you with various CTA(Call To Action) options. Bring a perfect CTA that brings the people to click a link to your respective landing page. Add a UTM parameter in ad creator to monitor how audiences are engaging with your story contents.
There are nearly seven goals for which ads on the Instagram story are available, and you could attach CTA links to them.
- Brand Awareness: Raise your brand awareness by getting people more interested in the content.
- Video Views: Grab massive people to get your story content.
- Reach: Show your story ad to numerous people.
- Conversions: Get strike actions to your website or app.
- Lead Generation: Grab more sales leads like contact numbers and email addresses.
- App Installs: Grab massive people to download your application.
- Traffic: Drive numerous people to your site.
You could make story ads on Instagram in Ads manager.
Monitor Your Success With Story Analytics On Instagram
You could also get your Instagram story analytics if you use a business profile on Instagram. Spending time and working with your strategies on Instagram stories to get what’s working and what’s not helps you get a refined approach, strengthening your effort and time.
Go to your profile section and tap the insights option at the right corner to get the Instagram story insights. Then, click the “Get Started” option in the story section.
Then, you have access to reach, impressions, and many metrics relevant to your Instagram stories.
The analytics of Instagram stories provides you a fine view of the users who are grabbing or simply swiping away and ideally helps you optimize your content strategy on Instagram stories.
Additionally, various social analytics tools provide in-depth Instagram story content analytics.
Wrapping Up
As the platform updates its algorithm frequently, use it as a massive opportunity to in-depth connections, bring HQ content, and optimize your strategy on Instagram stories.
Testing every feature of Instagram story content helps you kick the algorithm on Instagram and makes you stand one step above your heavy competition.
Mary Kyle is a content developer and marketing manager who works at Snaphappen. She has written more trending articles on social media and has a handful of experience in delivering engaging content.