Instagram Stories has turned one!
And as a gift to its users, Instagram has rolled-out a bunch of new birthday and celebration stickers, along with some juicy Stories-related data.
Instagram’s worldwide audience boasts an impressive 700 million users, 250 million of whom are daily users of the Stories feature.
Among that crowd, 50% of businesses on the platform created a story, with one in five organic stories from businesses receiving a direct message.
The evolution of Stories
In the short time of Instagram Stories existence, the social media giant has rolled out over 20 new in-app features complete with live video support, DM capabilities (which like Snapchat’s, disappear once the recipient has seen them), face filters, a variety of stickers, custom geotags, its Boomerang feature, video rewind and hands-free.
So, while social media rival Snapchat did stories first, it seems as though Instagram is doing it better.
How to use Instagram Stories
Tap the plus button located on the top left of your home screen or swipe left in your news feed.
Tap the circle button at the bottom of the screen to take a photo, hold to record a video, swipe left to start a live video, or swipe right to do a boomerang, rewind or hands-free.
To edit your photos or video, tap either of the two icons in the top right-hand corner of your screen.
- A
- B
- C
- A
Once you’ve finished editing, simply tap done to save
Then tap the + sign to share to your story
Tip: save your story by tapping the downward arrow icon in the top centre of your image.
Once your story is uploaded, a colourful circle will appear around your profile picture and your profile photo will also appear above the feeds of your followers.
Your followers will tap on your profile pic to view your story. If you wish to remove your story, tap on the three dots at the bottom right of the photo that you would like to delete and press ‘delete’ to confirm.
Instagram for business
Instagram (and Snapchat) stories continue to change the way we engage with our customers.
Brands are moving past staged and airbrushed representations of their businesses and revealing a more authentic and honest reflection of their business.
Is your social media presence authentic?
Let’s talk.
See you next week,
Darnelle
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