If you’re not using Instagram Stories CONSISTENTLY, you’re going to be left behind in 2019. I have more people watch my stories now than the number of interactions with my actual posts. And like with anything social media, a strategy ALWAYS helps!
Moving into 2019 is the BEST time to review your current Instagram Story strategy and ramp things up to the next level. You want to GET IN PEOPLE’S FACES! Every damn day, and Instagram Stories makes it SO easy to do that.
Here are 13 strategies you NEED to help grow your business using Instagram Stories in 2019:
#1 Show Up, every day!
Whether that’s you getting on camera, sharing your new service, sharing someone else’s post, make yourself visible to your audience EVERY DAY!
You know those days when you just don’t have anything to say on your feed? Well, I’d highly recommend to still show up on stories! This way you’re still getting in front of your community and your dream clients and you’re being CONSISTENT!
#2 Don’t Chat For Too Long!
If you’re doing a story where it’s you talking to the camera, I’d recommend keeping it to around 3-4 stories long. I’ve noticed anything more than that and people start to drop off. Don’t waffle on too much, you still want to ensure you’re providing as much value as possible with each story.
Sure, sometimes we can’t help but go over (we all love a good rant), but for attention’s sake, try and keep it short and sweet.
#3 Add Subtitles To Your Stories
When I’m talking on stories, I will literally write out what I’m saying word for word! This is because I know a lot of people watch stories when they can’t turn on the sound. SO, if you want to OPTIMISE your engagement on these kinds of stories, I highly recommend adding subtitles.
Sure, this takes a little longer to get them up, but if this means you can still reach your potential clients without them exiting out because they have no idea what you’re saying, the extra time it takes to write subtitles is SO worth it!
#4 Show Your Work and Behind The Scenes
This is the PERFECT way to position yourself as an authority figure in your industry. People love watching how you do your job, They WANT the inside scoop! And sometimes it’s so much easier to show someone how you do something using video on stories than it is to write about it on your feed.
I’m able to show people how I edit, more tips and tricks when it comes to photography and Instagram and this helps me elevate my authority in the industry.
#5 If you’re product based, use the shopping feature!
Hey, even if you’re service based and you offer digital products, the shopping feature is an amazing way to link to your products! Because seriously, more people are watching stories now than interacting with their feeds. So, if you can get this in front of their faces on stories, even better!
#6 Share Other People’s Posts To your Stories
Not only is this a great way to get noticed by others, but it’s an amazing way to share part of your brand personality. It could be something you just find funny, something you find inspiring, or giving your community value by pointing them towards a really valuable post.
#7 Use GIFS and Emojis
Again, this is a great way to add some fun and personality to your brand. We are all vying for people’s attention in this online world! And if you can add a little bit of extra sparkle or fun just by using a GIF or an emoji, do it!
#8 Promote Your Offerings and drive people to your email list or website
USE Instagram Stories to promote! I don’t know about you but I find it SO much easier to promote and sell in my Instagram stories than I do on my feed. If I’m selling something, I can jump on and have a genuine chat about WHY my offering is helpful. Instead of hiding behind a sales post. I can more easily connect with my audience, and they can more easily connect with me!
I also use it a lot to point people towards my email list. I’ll often say to my community, ‘hey, I’m sending this email out tonight to all my subscribers, if you want to see what it’s all about, get on the list now! Link in bio’. Or something along those lines. It make it easy for me to quickly promote it without having to do up a whole post on it.
#9 List the Features and Benefits of Your Product Or Service
Why would someone buy something from you if they have no idea HOW it’s going to benefit them?! Stories gives you the PERFECT opportunity to use imagery, music, GIFS, emojis etc to create an impactful story that allows your ideal customer to think ‘oh yea, I could really use this in my life, or oh ok, those are the benefits of that product, yep, I totally need it’.
#10 Use Location Tags and Hashtags To Optimise Reach
Again, these little touches take a bit longer to do BUT if it means you can reach a wider audience using these features then why not take advantage of them? I find location to be a lot more optimised than hashtags, but GIVE yourself the opportunity to be seen. Side note, you can use up to 10 hashtags in a story.
#11 Make it interesting by using templates
There are HEAPS of apps out there that will help you make your stories so much more pretty, or should I say interesting. My favourite app for this is Over! Their free version gives you plenty of gorgeous templates to use (but I’m hanging out for the day when I can afford to throw money at the pro version as some of templates are INSANELY GORGEOUS!).
#12 Use Instagram’s Interactive Features
I’m talking about the poll, the question, the countdown, the mention, music etc. These are amazing ways to get your audience interacting with your content AND better yet, do some market research!
It’s also a great way to determine how engaged your audience is when they watch stories, and what kind of content resonates most with them. Don’t be afraid to use these features!
#13 Use Imagery
I like to have a little library of images in my phone I can just immediately go to and pop up on stories, instead of using a plain background. A picture can help to deepen that connection with your audience and make them feel what you’re feeling. It can also help to enhance the message you’re writing about in your stories. It’s something so simple, but using imagery where it fills up the entire screen of the story can really make an impact.
Your Takeaway
Instagram Stories are just going to get bigger in 2019, and if it means we can get in front of people’s faces more often, we want to be using DAILY!
Keep it interesting, keep it fun, keep it inspiring, whatever YOU think will grab the attention of your dream clients.
If you want more Instagram tips like this on the weekly, I share exclusive insights with my subscribers here.
Talk soon babe,
Amanda xx
