Did you know that 500 million people are using Instagram stories daily worldwide? You could be one of them too, and it is pretty easy to weave your own story. Welcome to the new way of storytelling!
A point to keep in mind, your Instagram story has a short life of just 24 hours. The more compelling it is, the more the reach. Your Instagram story does not appear in your tiled Instagram gallery of photos and videos.
What makes it unique is that it is published separately. It is easy to share your story, though you need to learn how to use the tools built into the app to make your story more original and compelling.
How do Instagram stories work?
You have some exciting images and videos you want to share with your followers. Why not tell it as a story by adding timestamps, small posters or stickers, and scribbling some doodles to make your story more interesting? All of this is possible with your Instagram stories.
Remember, your story is visible to all if you have a public account and only to your followers if it is private. Anyone can respond to your story and DM (Direct Message) you, and, if needed, you can disable it at any time to stop the replies.
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Why Use Instagram Stories?
If you want to have a presence online, Instagram stories are one of the best ways to add value to your story. Whether it is your profile or a brand you want to popularize, there’s no better way than storytelling the Instagram way. Join the 500 million strong storytellers online; the more, the merrier.
Instagram stories are always fresh as no story lasts for more than a day. Many brands have made it big by telling their stories on Instagram. The likes of Bombas and Doritos are here to stay, thanks to their Instagram stories, which they owe to their presence in the market. You can not only increase your brand awareness but have your videos and newsletters go viral within and outside of Instagram.
How long do Instagram Stories remain active?
Although Instagram stories have a lifespan of 24 hours, the videos within your account last for 15 seconds before rolling over to the rest of the content. The good news is that you can use a third-party app that condenses longer videos to 15-second clips that you can add to your story.
You can add lengthy videos to your story, but always remember that all individual videos roll for just 15 seconds. People use their ingenuity and split their videos into 15-second clips to beat the 15-second runtime limit rule.
You may want to try apps like Continual or Story Cutter, which, as the name signifies, helps split your videos to conform to the blanket rule. While these are for iOS, you can try Story Cutter (Android) for Android.
Suggested read: Ideas to gain more followers on Instagram
How do you make your Instagram Story?
Here are quick and easy steps to storytelling on Instagram:
- Access the Instagram app and open the camera by swiping right
- Select any filter from the bottom (swipe to the right to view the filters)
- Use the camera to take a snap or make a video
- You may also choose a photo/video by browsing your gallery
- Add posters, GIFs, and timestamps to your Instagram story
- Tap on Your Story to share your Instagram story with all, or only your followers
Here’s how you share your Instagram story:
To post your story, first, open the app and hit your profile image. You may swipe to the right, or clicking on the plus sign on the top right does the trick.
Here are some options you’ll see on the left side of the screen:
- Normal: Normal is when you don’t choose any of the options listed. Go ahead and tap on the camera button to take a photo. Holding the button down will start recording a video. Make sure the video is within the 15-second time limit.
- Create: This mode lets you create your Instagram story. Here’s where you pick your stickers, add GIFs and write supporting text for the video.
- Boomerang: This mode is for creating films that loop GIFs for no more than three seconds.
- Layout: The Layout mode lets you get four photos, and you can change the grid’s style to suit your needs.
- Multi-Capture: As the name suggests, you can capture photos and videos and post your story with both or either of them.
- Hands-Free: This mode offers you the freedom to use your camera to shoot a video. For this, you will need to set up your camera on a tripod before recording.
- Level: True to its name, this mode lets you align objects in a straight line by overlaying a grid over the camera.
It is easy to shoot your video and create content for your Instagram story. All it takes is holding the button down to record and tapping once it captures the image. Once you edit your video and hit ‘Your Story’, you’re all set. You can also save the video and photo to your gallery by clicking the ‘Download’ icon.
Using your Instagram stories for business
Here are some ways you can use Instagram stories to promote your brand or business:
- Posting clippings of an office event is a great way to tell your story on Instagram. Be it an award function, office party, or inviting new employees onboard, you can narrate with videos and pictures.
- The latest breakthrough in your industry can be shared as an Instagram story, just as you would with a blog or white paper. Instagram stories are a great way to publish breaking news. Your followers and other users will stay tuned to your posts. What’s more, you can interact with your followers to find out what they think of your story and get helpful feedback to use in the future.
- Product demos are the next cool thing you can do with Instagram stories and show your potential customers how to use your product. If 15 seconds are not enough, you can make segmented 15 second videos and post an entire demo via your Instagram story.
We are certain these tips will help make you a fantastic storyteller on Instagram. Once you get to convert your audience, you will have followers eating out of your palms.
Happy storytelling!
