- It's time to start thinking of Instagram stories
as a way to increase your follower count.
Instagram reports
that there are half a billion daily users of Stories,
that is a lot.
So if you're not already using Stories
to their full potential, now is the time to start doing so.
So in this video, you're gonna learn
how to create Stories that increase your reach,
boost engagement, and get you more followers.
Hey guys, what's up?
My name is Michelle Bali.
I'm a creative strategist
and I'm gonna be walking you through today's video.
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welcome.
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So, unless you've been living under a rock,
you probably know what an Instagram Story is.
It is a disappearing post on your profile.
It's gonna appear as a bright circle
around your profile photo.
It's gonna stay there for 24 hours,
unless you decide to add it to your highlights.
Apart from the massive growth potential,
Instagram Stories are a super easy way to create,
offer an authentic way to connect with your audience,
and the fact that Stories are temporary
make them the perfect testing ground for new ideas.
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To post an Instagram Story,
you're gonna wanna follow these steps.
First, tap the plus icon
at the top right corner of your screen.
This is gonna be next to your notifications and messages,
or you can swipe your screen to the right.
Select Story from the options of what you wanna create.
Take a photo or record a video,
or you can swipe to access your camera roll
to upload a photo, graphic, video, or Boomerang
that you've already made, but just remember
that they do have to be in a vertical format.
Edit your photo or video
using Instagram's various editing options.
Tap the Your Stories button to post your public Story
or the Close Friends button to send
only to a specific group if you do have this setup,
and that is it.
So that's the easy part.
Now the hard part is creating content
that people are gonna wanna keep coming back for.
But don't worry, we've got you covered.
Here are some pro tips
to help you blow up your Instagram following.
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Use highlights.
So when a new customer comes across your profile,
having highlights is a really great way
to showcase who you are and what you are about.
So whether you're running a business
or maybe you're a content creator,
you can actually use highlights
to quickly give your audience an overall picture
of who you are and what you do.
So, for my business people, you might wanna include FAQs
or maybe you wanna include testimonials
and maybe some other how-to content.
For my content creators,
you might wanna include categorical highlights
like outfit inspo, and you might also wanna include
behind the scenes highlights
so that your audience can actually know you
on a personal level.
Sharing highlight content that's useful and entertaining
is a really great way to turn a viewer into a follower.
Do takeovers.
So you can collaborate with other brands
and other content creators to do a Story takeover.
A Story takeover is when you appear in others' Stories.
So you can do this by paying for those Story slots.
You can do this by exchanging Stories,
as long as you do have a very similar follower count.
So the way that this works
is you would produce exclusive content,
send the videos over to your partner,
and then they would post it.
But you wanna make sure that you are including
a call to action and that your handle is there
so that your followers know where to find you.
This tactic actually used to be
a lot more trendy a few years ago,
but nonetheless, it's still works
and it's still a really great tool
to connect with other brands and other content creators,
and it's really great to start those relationships,
and of course, this is gonna help you
boost your follower count.
Create shareable content.
So you're gonna wanna make your stories go viral.
The more shareable your content is,
the more people you reach
and the more followers you are gonna gain.
So how do you actually make shareable
and more viral content?
What you're gonna wanna do
is you're gonna wanna ask yourself, what is the job
that the content is gonna do for my followers?
Is it gonna inspire them?
Is it gonna make them laugh,
teach them something,
impress them with something interesting?
Or you can think about it this way.
What would you share with your friends?
If I look back at my own DMs
and see what I've shared with my sister, for example,
it's always something that's relatable
and usually something that's hilarious,
and it's definitely something that I've never seen before.
So try not to simply repost other people's content
if you really do wanna gain a loyal
and an engaged following.
Try to start off with a hook that captures curiosity
or generates an emotional response,
because people go through Stories so quickly,
so you definitely need to create something
that jumps out right away.
If you don't wanna stress every day
over what you're gonna be posting,
consider treating your Instagram Stories like a TV network.
So you can make scheduled programming for the week
or even reoccurring episodes that happen on certain days.
Planning themes in advance is gonna help you
create more addictive content for your viewers.
Run a giveaway via Stories.
Offer your audience a prize
in exchange for them sharing your content.
Also, make sure that in order to enter the giveaway,
they must be following you,
and this is gonna be a really great way to grow
because your audience essentially acts
as your own team of marketers.
Them sharing your content helps you reach a new audience
that you didn't have access to before,
and this can really grow
your follower count exponentially.
Now, if you're wondering, what can I give away,
you've got tons of options.
If you're a business, you can give away a physical product.
You can issue a coupon code.
If you're an influencer, maybe try teaming up
with a brand to give away some products.
Lots of brands are looking for influencers
to market them on their behalf,
so this would be equally beneficial for both of you.
Use Instagram Story features.
You can increase your exposure and your engagement
by strategically using features like Instagram Stickers.
Use question stickers to talk directly to your audience,
and you can overlay a question sticker
onto your photo or your video.
You can just ask your audience for their opinion
or maybe you can let them ask you
if they have any questions.
GIF stickers and music stickers
are another way to spice up your Instagram Stories.
And honestly, don't take yourself too seriously.
Just have fun with your audience
and that should help increase some engagement.
Now, if you're trying to reach more people locally,
you can use geotags.
By regularly tagging your location in your Story
when it is relevant, Instagram will show it to people
who are checking in on that particular spot.
Be present.
So don't be afraid to get in front of the camera.
You know, your audience really does wanna see you
and they wanna see the people that run your business.
Now, if you're able, try talking to them
like you would a friend,
because if someone happens upon your profile,
they might feel connected to you
and then they might wanna follow you.
Cheekbone Beauty, their founder
gets on Stories, Reels, and feed posts,
and not only is being present in front of the camera
a really great way to gain more followers,
it's also a really good way to retain your followers
and then turn them into paying customers.
Post consistently.
So posting consistently is gonna be key
to growing on literally any social media platform.
Instagram rewards you
for keeping people on their platform longer.
When it comes to how many Stories you should post,
try planning for one to seven times per day.
Any more than that, and your engagement will fall off.
Now, if that sounds like a lot to you, don't worry.
No one expects you to invest half an hour on a post
that's not gonna be around after tomorrow,
so forget about perfect lighting
and just keep things authentic.
But the more that you post,
the more your audience is gonna interact with your Stories
and the higher up you will actually appear
on the Stories feed.
So make sure to put those reps in,
'cause consistency is key here.
Run Instagram Story Ads.
If you're looking to bring even more attention
to your Instagram account, try running a little paid spend
behind your highest performing Stories.
If it already has high engagement with your followers,
you can bet that it will likely resonate
with people in a similar niche.
A Story Ad, if you're not already aware,
is gonna appear between users' organic stories.
So while you can use your Stories for anything,
since you're paying money to promote your Story ads,
you should be creating them with a specific goal in mind.
So run content that will increase followers
or maybe make a sale.
(cash register chimes) Speaking of sales,
Instagram Stories also offers a massive opportunity
to drive traffic to your online store.
So if you have an Instagram Shop,
you can link to products from your Stories,
and this is a really great way to make it easy
for your customers to make a purchase with you.
You can even take advantage of Instagram's latest feature,
shopping on Explore.
This makes reaching new customers
so much simpler than before.
And if you wanna grow your business with Instagram,
manage your store effortlessly,
and offer a seamless shopping experience
for your audience, then I do recommend
that you sign up for a free trial with Shopify.
You can use the link in the description box
for that free trial and to get started
on building your Shopify store.
Are you using Stories as a part of your Instagram strategy?
Do you guys have any tips that I haven't already shared?
Make sure that you're sharing them
in the comment section below.
And yeah, thank you so much for tuning into this episode.
If you are new here, don't forget to subscribe
because we are a channel that's gonna help you start,
run, and grow an online business.
My name is Michelle Bali.
If you do wanna see any more content just like this,
hit that subscribe button, hit that notification bell,
give me a thumbs up because that helps the channel,
that helps this video do well.
And guys, I will see you in the next one.
Bye.
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