A quick post to remind you that your Instagram Stories should definitely not be discarded as an afterthought! They may be short-term, but they are the best place for building deeper connection to your community, and for making sales.
These are your 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙙 people...
AND you get to include a 𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙠.
I've put together a list of things that are best suited to the 'Story' section of Instagram, just like I did similar lists for Carousels and Single Posts. Here they are below:
Polls - ask for simple, easy engagement, and gain real market feedback from your engaged community!
Show Your Face - informal, unpolished, personal pictures or videos are great here. Talk, take a selfie, or share a photo taken by someone else. Whatever you can do comfortably will always help people get to know you as a person and build trust and connection.
Tag Where You Are - capture photos or videos and tag local cafes, events, studios, shops, restaurants, gyms, theatres, etc. Often they get re-shared so will be seen by a whole new audience who might click and be guided to you.
Behind The Scenes - show some reality of what your day looks like, as long as this isn't too repetitive! Find a different angle each time...
Lovely Things You See - beautiful aesthetics are still great for engagement, just make sure that you are capturing it yourself rather than using stock imagery in your stories!
Point To A Link - Stories are the BEST place to make sales and bookings, or get direct enquiries. Make it as easy as possible for people to get all the information they need.
Re-Share A Post - If you see something you love that's relevant (quote, aesthetic reel, relatable meme) this helps your community see what you're into, and then work out of they're into the same things as you!
Show How You Relax - Create variety by showing what you do when not working, especially when it aligns with your business values (eg. slow living/self-care/outdoorsy/fitness...)
Invite Questions - Show your openness, but sometimes this works better if you give people a theme to ask around. 'Ask Me About .....'
Tag A Product - Just like locations, this often results in re-shares, extending your audience!
Share A Podcast - If something is valuable and interesting, share it with your community and become a trusted source of recommendations!
Throwback - These can be fun, and a great way of revisiting highlights or big moments. May also be pure comedy value!
𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙨𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙩𝙤 𝙞𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣. 𝘼𝙡𝙨𝙤, 𝙠𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝙮𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚'𝙨 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚...
Any questions, just DM me or comment on this post and ask. Someone else is probably thinking the same thing and will be grateful you did!
Happy Storytelling!
Em x