To Market We Go | Instagood To Instagreat
Instagram Stories
This past week Instagram began rolling out a new feature - Instagram Stories. In a nutshell, it is just like Snapchat (but without the fun filters). As I previously wrote here, I love Instagram, and I think this new feature will go gang busters. Not everyone has this feature yet. You will know you have it when you see a bar at the top of your feed with the profile pics of the people you follow.
How It Works
You can share your moments throughout the day - photos and videos. Instagram will string them together for you in a slideshow to create your story. There is no limit to how much you want to share.
You can set your creativity on fire with stories. Instagram allows you to draw, add text and emojis to what you capture.
And just like Snapchat, your story disappears after 24 hours. The stories will not be in your profile grid or your feed (unless you choose to share something)
You can control who sees your story. If you have a private account, only your followers will see it. If you have a public account, anyone can view it. But, you do have the option to hide it from anyone you choose. You can view who has watched your story by swiping up while viewing your story. You can also post something from your story to your profile by tapping the 3 light grey buttons at the bottom right of your picture or video.
If people you follow have added new content to their story, you will see a colored ring around their profile picture. Just tap the profile pic and watch the story. You can move forward or backward through a story and skip ahead to the next person’s story.
Instagram does not allow you to like or comment on these stories as you do with the regular feed. However, you can send a private message to people via Instagram Direct.
What My Crystal Ball Says
As I said in the intro, I think this will really take off. Just from what I’ve seen so far, a lot of people, brands and companies I follow have jumped on the bandwagon. For those who don’t use Snapchat to promote their business, because it skews young, I think this is a great option for you and more user-friendly. I can’t wait to see your stories!!
If I can help you weave your story, give me a call 310.748.9128
Image Credit: Molly Taylor
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