Leveraging Instagram Stories is a powerful way to get the most engagement out of your existing Instagram audience, but many people don’t pay enough attention to them.
These Stories are a great place to promote your blog, direct people to your new products, or get people to send you DMs.
While growing with stories is an attractive strategy, breaking through the competition can be challenging. I’m here to help you navigate that challenge and increase your Story views.
Maximize Your Instagram Story Views: Five Effective Strategies
Five proven methods for increasing your Instagram Stories views:
- Incorporate Engaging Stickers into Your First Story
- Post an Additional Story at Day’s End
- Offer Exclusive Content through Stories
- Utilize Instagram’s Close Friends Feature
- Link To Your Articles + News in Stories
Strategy #1: Kick Off with Engaging Stickers in Your First Story
An effective way to enhance your Stories’ visibility is to include engaging stickers like polls, emoji sliders, or quizzes in your first Story.
This immediate engagement can boost your content’s visibility, signaling the Instagram algorithm to prioritize your Stories.
Strategy #2: End the Day with an Extra Story
Posting a new Story 22-23 hours after your initial post can significantly boost views on all your Stories.
There’s no exact reason I can point to in order to explain why that happens, but those stories always tend to do well.
Scheduling Instagram Stories with social media tools can make this easier for you and help you capitalize on peak engagement times.
Strategy #3: Entice Viewers with Secret Content/Discounts in Stories
Offering exclusive content is a proven way to attract more views, particularly if it is relevant and interesting to your audience.
For brands, this could mean a limited-time discount code, while creators or influencers might share personal anecdotes, tutorials, or unique insights.
Pairing Stories with a feed post caption directing users to the exclusive content can generate even more interest.
Strategy #4: Leverage Instagram’s Close Friends Feature
This lesser-known hack can significantly impact Instagram Story views.
When added to someone’s Close Friends list, their Stories will appear prominently in your feed with a bright green border.
This is because Instagram prioritizes content from “close connections.”
Although adding all of your followers to a Close Friends list may not be feasible, it’s an excellent way to ensure vital information reaches your most engaged community members.
For brands, this could include brand ambassadors, influencers, and loyal customers.
For influencers and creators, this might encompass dedicated followers and industry colleagues.
Strategy #5: Link To Your Articles + News in Stories
If you have your own website where you sell your own products or have blog posts you want people to read, then make sure that you are constantly directing your followers to your instagram stories in order to follow the link to your site.
Until links are eventually added to regular posts, stories are the best place to promote your links and also see the analytics that go with them.
If your followers truly enjoy your content they will make sure to visit your stories often.
By implementing these five tactics, you can boost engagement, increase visibility, and strengthen your Instagram Stories strategy.
It’s time to transform your content and make your Stories stand out.
