Market With Instagram Stories and Highlights

There’s no denying that Instagram is a rapidly growing platform, adapting to the wants and needs of its users. When Instagram Stories and Highlights were introduced in 2016 and 2017 respectively, no one could have predicted their impact. According to Business Insider, over 400 million people use Instagram Stories every day. But what does this mean for businesses? Higher reach, more leads, and more customers! Take notes from these popular brands to find out how to market with Instagram Stories and Highlights like a pro:

Educate Your Audience

Educating your audience about your service or product is a perfect way to market with Instagram Stories. Specifically, highlight what makes your brand unique! Instagram Stories are the ideal way to give your audience an abundance of information without making them feel overwhelmed. The disappearing format means you can give your audience a deep dive without taking up space on your main feed. If your story particularly resonated with your audience, think about saving it to your Story Highlights! Everlane, an online clothing retailer, uses the theme of “Transparency Tuesday” to educate their customers, as well as show them new products. They focus on highlighting their ethical practices and dedicating to making clothing with minimal environmental impact.

Start A Conversation

Another great way to market with Instagram Stories and Highlights is to create an open dialogue. More and more, people are wanting to know the faces behind a product. Interacting with your audience and customers makes your product seem more reliable, authentic, and relatable. A great way to do this is to utilize the “Questions” feature on Instagram Stories. Doing so will allow you to collect answers from your audience. This can be great for generating new content, gathering frequently asked questions from consumers, and more! MeUndies, a popular underwear company, uses these features to start a conversation with their followers! During their an AMA session, the company founder answered questions submitted by users. Doing so built rapport with their audience — enough so that they have grown by 1,583% in three years.

Go Behind the Scenes

While professional photography can really sell a product, it can also alienate the customer if it’s excessively edited. Consumers can have a hard time relating to the brand, which will make them less likely to engage or purchase from said brand. A great way to alleviate these problems is to market with Instagram stories. The impromptu nature of Stories let customers get a real, unedited feel of a business. Nordstrom Rack has a perfect example of successful marketing with Instagram Stories. Knowing that highly edited pictures can push customers away, they gave their followers a behind-the-scenes peek of a photo shoot. This glimpse paired with actual styling tips comes off as genuine and informative!

Create Opportunity for Engagement

One of the best ways to elevate your business is organic marketing. When a customer posts a positive review about your brand, it’s a great idea to share it across your social platforms. Users are more likely to buy a product that their peer likes. In fact, 72% of millennials take product recommendations through Instagram. Glossier, a cosmetic brand, praises users for promoting their products in an Instagram Story series titled “Top 5”. They take their five favorite posts they were tagged in for the week to show the rest of their following! This is an extremely smart way to market with Instagram Stories; they simply repost existing content! Not only does it boost sales, but it encourages users to continue engaging with them on social media.

Introduce New Products

Market your products with Instagram Stories without spamming your feed! Instagram Stories provide the perfect opportunity for you to go in-depth about your new product. Even better, customers won’t need to close the app to search in a new browser! Instagram’s ‘swipe up’ capability lets your followers immediately access a landing page if they’re interested in learning more about or purchasing a product. Popular retailer J. Crew introduced an Instagram Story segment called “Sneakers From Mars”. Mars, the in-house sneaker expert, details the latest sneakers and why they were selected for the collection. By swiping up, the user lands on the men’s shoe selection.

There’s a reason why “social” is part of our name; we’re the experts at social media management and marketing. Take a peek at our work to see our skills in action, or contact Social Fire Media today to tell us about your social media needs!