Online Marketing Trends: Instagram Stories
In a very short time span, social media has changed the landscape of marketing. One click and you can find nearly every product or service imaginable. By 2025, estimates place social commerce reaching 1.2 trillion globally! At Curis Digital of PA and FL, we are doing our due diligence research about online marketing trends. The goal is to be proactive and forward-thinking with marketing strategies, including branding, based on this growth. So far, our studies show Instagram making enormous leaps in shopping, using their app.
Instagram: A Closer Look
So what will it take to become the next great Instagram story? Where you might have had one shop photograph in your store, now you need several along with rich verbiage using SEO best practices. Instagram also offers video platforms, reels, stores, and live feeds. This makes Instagram an excellent option for growing your company. Let’s look specifically at Instagram Stories.
What are Instagram Stories?
Think of this like short attention span theatre. An Instagram story is 15 seconds total, and after 24 hours it disappears. Stories have a casual feel and unusual content. They may be product demonstrations, a narrative, humorous tidbits, trivia, news, and observations, just to name a few. When you create a series of stories, you keep people coming back for more.
There is no limit to how many stories you can post. You can add text, stickers, and emojis to any story, too. Because this is a type of ephemeral marketing, people want to make sure they see your spot before it goes away. You know you’re on to something good when a firm like The Economist uses Instagram Stories in the form of quizzes posted daily alongside visuals, creating interactive stories.
Instagram Stories
Steps to Instagram Story Success
While you’re working with a slightly different platform, there are some marketing strategies that are timeless:
- Know your audience and build a relationship with them.
- Think about your brand and how you can bring the most interesting elements of it to life for followers.
- Reach out to your audience. Engage them somehow.
- Make sure the product(s) you’re marketing appear in the story. If they’re actionable, all the better.
Tip: Instagram has been testing 60-second stories. See if this might be a good fit for your product or service.
Use Social Media for Professional Insights
Instagram and other forms of social media have become the main way brands reach consumers. They want to be “in” on the bottom line, exciting new releases, tips, tricks, etc. But sometimes you may find yourself at a loss as to how to use an Instagram video story in creative ways that expand engagement.
Generate Ongoing Interest
You need interactive marketing that grabs and keeps your target audience’s attention. Things like quizzes, polls, riddles, teasers, and questionnaires are all solid choices. But take a look at your competition. What are they doing? How can you create your story differently (read BETTER) than theirs?
Instagram Story Stickers
In October 2021, Instagram made link stickers available to all users. So now you have your story AND a way of bringing people to whatever web page you wish with an easy click. If you utilize stickers, try and use a consistent appearance so surfers know exactly what it looks like.
A Professional Edge
At Curis Digital we recognize how much time it takes to enact an effective ongoing Instagram Story. If you’d like to talk to one of our experts about implementation and options, you can use our online contact form HERE. Or call one of our two offices: Huntingdon Valley, PA 215l-396-3307 and Boca Raton FL 561-464-6689.
