Instagram Stories
Let’s talk Instagram stories!
Last week I opened my Instagram account and it was as if Snapchat had taken over (except it was WAY more easier to navigate than Snapchat ever was for me!) Instagram just rolled out a new feature that allows you to share videos & photos to your account without having them go into your feed and they only stay live for 24 hours. It is a lot of that Snapchat vibe but in an easy to manage place – our Instagram accounts!
Not everyone is sold yet on Instagram Stories but right now when it is new is the best time to play around with the platform and see how it can work for you and your brand. Here are five ways that you can use Instagram Stories to build your brand and connect with your followers.
Share the “imperfect” in a “perfect” World
This may be my favorite part about it! Instagram gets such a bad rap for being too pretty to be authentic. We want pretty pictures, beautiful images, and encouraging captions but at the same time a bit of us wants the dirty dishes in the sink, the faces without make up, and the everyday normality of life. We follow beautiful feeds, crave people to be authentic, but un-follow accounts that don’t post pretty pictures 😉 Instagram Stories is the answer we have all be waiting for. We can share those imperfect, unedited moments while also creating a beautiful feed filled with our favorite pictures and the things that inspire us! By joining in on Instagram Stories you are opening the doors to connect with your followers authentically while also sharing your art & brand with them!
Share behind the Scenes Moments
When you are working on photo shoots, blog posts, and new projects, give your followers a sneak peek. You can share a quick video of the project you are working on to build hype and just invite your followers into your creative process! The best news is that it doesn’t take a photo shoot, planning, or perfect lighting – you just grab your phone and share something in under 5 minutes. It is a quick way to reach your followers!
Watch other Instagram Stories and interact
There is an option to send a message when you are watching the other people’s stories. Use this to connect with other creatives and friends you follow! Connecting over the Olympics, Stranger Things, or messy kitchens may be the beginning of a great relationship! Also, it shows that you are just a normal person (and not just some big brand)
Keep Posting on your Instagram Feed
Just because you can share all kinds of things instantly on Instagram Stories doesn’t mean you should stop posting on your Instagram. Posting your carefully curated images, connecting with others, and growing your reach should still be on your radar! Now when you grow and connect with new accounts, they can see your “real & raw” story and also see how you share your feed! This will only be beneficial in drawing in new eyes & followers! Here are some tips on upping your Instagram Game!
Have Fun!
If you are an Instagram lover already, just use it as a tool to continue connecting and engaging with your followers! If you love it, feel free to post as much as you want in your story but don’t feel like you need to all the time! Find how scheduled (or random) you want to be with your Instagram Stories and enjoy it!
What are your thoughts on Instagram Stories? Have you made one yet? Make sure to follow me @oakandoats for our Instagram Stories!
XOXO, ELIZABETH
Photo by: Dorien Scheltens Fotografie
I totally agree with you! I’ve been enjoying watching those fun, “imperfect” behind-the-scenes shots, especially from those accounts that either don’t have a snapchat or that I don’t follow. I’ve yet to post on it but I will definitely take your advice when I start tinkering with it! 🙂
YAY! Enjoy it!
I hadn’t ever gotten around to trying Snapchat. A different app plus video just was intimidating. I am loving Stories though! I am having so much fun with it, even if the videos still make me anxious. I’m actually hoping this will help me get used to videos enough to make some more permanent ones.
I did one longer Story series about my weekly meal prep process and it got a good response. I’m looking forward to seeing what other behind the scenes stuff I can do!
My only difficulty: I have two accounts and figuring out what to do on what account is confusing.
Oh yes! That makes sense! But I am so proud of you! You are doing great!
One of my favorite ways to use Instagram stories/Snapchat is to share behind the scene photoshoots for upcoming blog posts as a teaser! Loved reading this post. Ps- the new site looks great!
I really like that too! I should do more of those type of things!
Also thanks SO much!!!
We LOVE instagram stories!!!
We used to be on snapchat as we loved sharing this more “real” & “authentic” (sometimes goofy) side of what we are doing in everyday life! But snapchat was annoying technically speaking, as we couldn’t use it at the same time and it was also quite hard to get any followers there… Now it’s pretty cool to be able to do all this in one app.
It’s so much fun seeing what the people we’ve been following on instagram do behind the scenes, and sharing our own with our own followers as well! We love to follow you too, by the way 🙂 hehe!
Sometimes those styled, curated posts just don’t tell the whole story and I was always afraid that we appeared a bit “cold” on instagram, you know? Now I just love how the curated feed and the spontaneous stories complete each other 🙂 and I agree, such a lovely way to share sneak peeks…! Lately I’ve been having fun sharing my illustration work in progress, something which I would never post in our curated feed as I find it hard to photograph, lol!! Just perfect to be able to use this tool for these reasons 🙂
Okay girl! I agree with like everything about this post! haah! So true!
I HATE HATE HATE Snapchat, and I was starting to get nervous when bloggers started using it. But I was so happy that Instagram come out with “Stories”, because now I can do “Snap-chatty” things without having to download Snapchat. And you are right. It’s way easier!
Yes! Oh girl. I love it so much! Snapchat is really not my jam (sorry snapchat!)