5 Effective Tactics for Using Instagram Stories for Your Business
Instagram recently launched Instagram Stories – a new way for people & businesses to share photos or videos, in an auto-play slideshow format, that disappears after 24 hours.
Instagram users have embraced this integrated Snapchat-cloning feature, that boasts 100 million views per day.
“Stories” seems to be a real game-changer, not only for the everyday user but also for brands.
Instagram’s new functionality can help your business drive sales, enhance your company’s reputation and engage with potential customers, by showing another side of your brand’s personality and giving additional context to better connect with your target audience.
Don’t know where to start? Here are 5 effective tactics you can use to your company’s benefit.
1. SALES PROMOTION
You can use Instagram “Stories” to highlight a limited-time promotion of any of your products or services. “Stories” will allow you to extend the marketing message in a less Instagram-centric and more interactive way that’ll help you draw your audience’s attention, as the content will appear at the top of their feeds. You can also offer a discount code that will make your followers feel special, as it’s just available for them. The best way would be to share an image or video of the product, talk about why it’s so awesome, and then add the discount code on top.
2. SHOWCASE A ‘REAL’ CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
An effective technique for retail brands is to showcase an authentic customer experience on “Stories”.
For example, a young woman testing her newly acquired yoga pants by working out.
This will enable your brand to get followers so close to your product they can feel it breathe and can connect to it more deeply. It will come across as an organic product review by a customer backing up your brand.
3. SNEAK PEEKS & BEHIND THE SCENES
If you’re currently working on an upcoming product launch or working through something step-by-step, you can add to your Instagram story as you go. Share the process of designing, cooking or editing.
Don’t keep the behind the scenes for yourself, they could help harness excitement for your work-in-progress and create hype around your launch. People love to see and comment on the process of a product, as much as they love to see the end result. Once your product is ready, we suggest doing a quick walk-through of what you’ve created along with info on where to buy.
4. IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS OR EVENTS
We strongly suggest using “Stories” to announce important news, rather than just posting it on your Instagram feed. The fact that the “Stories” slider is positioned at the top of your feed makes it more likely to be seen by users. It’s a great opportunity to let your followers know that you’re about to broadcast on Facebook Live, just published a new blog post or will be hosting a cool event next week. Don’t forget to include a short link to the website you want your followers to check out. Mentioning incentives such as a giveaways will always increase engagement.
5. QUICK TIPS OR ADVICE
Many lifestyle brands have started using “Stories” to talk directly to their audience and show off their personal voice on social. Help your customers with styling tips or offer a quick webinar related to your product or service. Starting a dialogue by sharing tips or advice will show your followers that you care about them. It’s recommended to turn on the message feature or point them to your latest Instagram post to allow your audience to respond or ask questions. Building a positive emotional relationship with your followers will increase your brand’s credibility and value.
Now that we’ve got you covered with the tactics, it’s up to you to come up with your brand’s first Insta Story!
