{"id":939,"date":"2020-05-26T11:11:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-26T09:11:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kwettr.com\/?p=939"},"modified":"2023-08-07T15:30:33","modified_gmt":"2023-08-07T13:30:33","slug":"instagram-blog-part-4-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-your-instagram-stories","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kwettr.com\/blog\/instagram-blog-part-4-how-to-get-the-most-out-of-your-instagram-stories\/","title":{"rendered":"Instagram blog part 4: how to get the most out of your Instagram stories"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Instagram blog part 4: how to get the most out of your Instagram stories<\/h1>\n\n\n

Managing social media accounts requires a well thought out strategy and a good knowledge of your marketing goals. One of the most important social media channels is Instagram, a medium perfectly fit for artists and record labels. Learning all there is to know about Instagram is not as easy as it seems; constantly changing rules by Facebook \/ Instagram and continuous developments on the technical side make this a challenge, to say the least.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is why we have made this weekly recurring blog: to help artists and labels improve their Instagram marketing activities.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week we spoke about\u00a0how to write the perfect bio<\/a>. This week we will provide everything you need to know how to get the most out of your Instagram stories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to increase interaction<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In the past couple of years, Instagram introduced more engagement-enhancing features. These are a great way to start a conversation with your followers, humanizing your brand and for asking feedback. Some of these features include the Poll-, Emoji Slider-, Quiz- and Question stickers in Instagram stories. Increasing interaction with followers is not only important to build a relationship with your audience, but also gives you an advantage in the Instagram algorithm!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Poll sticker<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If you want more engagement on your Instagram profile or feedback from your audience, making a Poll in your Instagram stories can be a good way to draw the attention of your audience and communicate with them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ideas for using the Poll sticker<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Get feedback<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Use the Poll sticker to find out if you\u2019re doing something your audiences loves. For example, ask them if they like your new release or not. Are you planning to launch some new merch? Ask if they prefer hoodies or shirts!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Emoji Slider sticker<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Another quick way to engage your community is to use the Emoji Slider sticker. With this slider, you could do a quick survey where people can easily slide the emoji along the slider to react. This helps to measure the emotion of your audience and gives them a playful, easy way to communicate with you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ideas for using the Emoji Slider sticker<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Ask your audience how much they like something<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Share a new release or a photo of upcoming merch and ask your audience what they think of it by adding the emoji slider. Most importantly, you\u2019ll gain insight into how much your followers love something, not just whether they like it or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ask a quick research question<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Use the emoji slider to do some market research. The question doesn\u2019t necessarily have to be about how much your audience likes something. For example, you could share 2 examples of a shirt and ask which one they like the most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Place the slider on an image with a scale<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

It can sometimes be difficult to get a clear meaning from a score if there is no scale. Let your audience judge something on a scale of 1 \u2013 5. You could even make it a multiple choice question by making a scale with 4 -5 answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tip: you can also place the slider vertically to provoke a different kind of answer.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Quiz sticker<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

With the Quiz sticker you can share Trivia-style multiple choice questions with your audience and follow the results. When someone \u2018votes\u2019 on an answer, they can instantly see if they answered right; which causes most people to respond because they are curious about the right answer. In addition, you can see for yourself how many votes each option received and how each person voted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ideas for using the Quiz sticker<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Get to know how much your audience knows about you<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Use the Quiz sticker to find out how much your audience knows about you by asking with which artist you have to most collabs or how many singles you\u2019ve released so far.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Drive traffic to a website<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Ask some questions with answers that can be found on your website. Encourage followers to answer the questions correctly by running a contest. For example, announce in your first story that fans can win a prize if they have all the answers right and then post a number of stories with different questions. This way you not only generate more traffic to your website, but your audience also finds out what you have to offer!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Question sticker<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The question sticker is a good way to talk and interact with your audience. Find out what they find important, ask for advice and give them a chance to discuss their thoughts. This is a good way to show that you are approachable and that there is a real person behind your account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ideas for using the Question sticker<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Do a Q&A<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

A Q&A (Question & Answer) is perhaps one of the most obvious ways to use the Question sticker. There are several ways to do this. First, decide the topic you want to do the Q&A about. For example, you can keep it very broad by asking an \u2018AMA\u2019 (Ask Me Anything) question. You can also choose to do it on a specific topic such as performances, productions or family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Host a takeover<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Usually, during a takeover, the Instagram account is \u2018taken over\u2019 by someone else in order to give the audience a peek from a different perspective. Using the Question sticker you can, for example, have your audience ask questions to your management team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ask for feedback<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

What is a better way to get feedback on, for example, a song you are working on than going directly to the source? Post a part of the song in your story and ask your fans what they think of it. Then share a few reactions and give them a personalized answer. This way you also let your audience know that you are really listening to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Start a conversation with your audience<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Ask your audience what their all-time favourite set of yours is or ask them which upcoming performances are on their agenda. It is now more important than ever to build a relationship with fans and this is the perfect way to do so. The more you interact with fans, the more likely they are to feel a personal connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Show your expertise<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Let your audience ask questions about, for example, certain techniques you use while producing. They will appreciate the free advice and you have a chance to show what you have to offer. It is also a good way to build reciprocity with your audience. Usually the more generous you are, the more likely they are to get involved and follow you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Run a contest<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Contests are a great way to create excitement among your audience. Make sure the rules for the contest are clear, then place the question sticker and wait for the answers to come in. When the contest is over, you can share the correct answers and tag the winners in your story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also promote the contest in advance via your Instagram feed by sharing a date or time when your contest goes live to your story. You could even take this a step further by requiring participants to tag a friend under your post. This will give you more attention to your story and maybe even more followers!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How to increase reach<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are a couple of ways to increase reach with your Instagram stories. Some of them include the Location-, Mention-, and Hashtag stickers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Location sticker<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The Location sticker automatically shows your current location, but you can also enter a location yourself. Followers can tap on this sticker and then see other posts and stories that have tagged the same location. The advantage is that other users can also end up on your story which means an increase in reach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mention sticker<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Using the Mention sticker you can tag other users in your story. Followers can tap on it and will be taken to that user\u2019s profile. The users you tagged will be notified and can share it to their own story as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hashtag sticker<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The Hashtag sticker is similar to the Location sticker. The additional advantage of the Hashtag sticker is that users can follow a hashtag. The stories with the followed hashtags appear at the top of the feed of the follower, which can mean extra reach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to hide these stickers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Do you have the perfect photo or video, but don\u2019t want these stickers to be visible? There are 2 ways to hide them. First, just add the stickers like you\u2019re used to and squeeze them to make them small. Now put a GIF or sticker over it and done! Another way is by just typing the hashtag or @handle from the person you\u2019d like to tag. Squeeze it to make the text smaller and use the pipette to select the colour of your background.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to drive more sales<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Have some big news coming up? Post something on your story the day before to make sure everyone will know about this on time. Reinforce this by using the engagement-enhancing stickers like mentioned above. When your followers respond to this story, Instagram will see again that you\u2019re important to them, and your big announcement will be at the front of their story series tomorrow! Another great way to remind followers about your big announcement is to use the Countdown sticker, more about that below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Use the Shoppable sticker to boost sales of, for example, new merchandise or an album directly from your story. More about the Shoppable sticker below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Countdown sticker<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You can use the Countdown sticker to count down to an event. Followers can set a reminder to notify them when the countdown is over. Some ideas for using this sticker to countdown to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n