If all you want is a better organic reach, the chances are that you’re trying to figure out how to make your Instagram stories more attractive. You want them to grab your followers’ attention and to motivate people to follow you on Instagram. More and more marketers focus their efforts on stories because this type of content is extremely engaging.

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Photo by Nong Vang on Unsplash

The stories format encourages Instagram users to post spontaneous content and creates a sense of urgency. According to statistics, 500 million people use Instagram stories every day. The fear of missing out is a reason why brands can use stories to boost their engagement rates. Stories are also important for the success of your account because their performance affects the performance of your posts.

Using Instagram Stories to Outsmart the Algorithm

In 2019, the Instagram algorithm takes into account numerous factors, showing users content based not on who they follow but on what and who they actually like. Many businesses noticed a significant drop in engagement after the 2019 algorithm update. Some marketers even reported that now only 7% of their followers are able to see their posts so it’s especially important to do whatever you can to increase the engagement rates.

The latest version of the algorithm displays posts in a more chronological order. Instagram, however, isn’t going to return to the chronological feed. What does matter is that the success of your posts to a large extent depends on the time when you post them. For example, your followers will want to watch you unwrap gifts if you post such a story on Sunday morning. Stories can also help you show your posts to more people. The easiest thing you can do is to post stories with links to your posts so that followers who’ve seen a story at the right time can like the post, letting the algorithm know that it’s worth showing it to others.

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How to make Your Insta Stories More Engaging

  1. Encourage interactions
    The Instagram algorithm takes into account not only the number of views but also replies and other interactions. The more interactions you get from your followers, the more people will see your stories on the Discover page, and the more likely your posts will appear in your followers’ feed. Fortunately, Instagram gives you many opportunities to encourage your followers to interact with your stories. For example, you can use stickers with interactive polls, or you can let your audience ask questions and provide answers in the subsequent stories. Ask your followers what they love about your style and let them leave their comments. After this, you can post the best answers in the subsequent stories. You can also use the Swipe Meter to help your audience demonstrate how much they like your products. Simple interactions will not only help you build a stronger connection with your followers but also increase your reach.

  2. Use the Swipe Up feature
    We’ve already mentioned the fact that stories can help you make your regular posts more visible. However, you can also use stories to draw attention to your website or IGTV videos. Swipe Up allows users to learn more about anything that you capture or mention in your stories. This way, you can not only promote your new products or services but also announce new blog articles or tease content that is too long for the stories format, such as tutorials and webinars. No matter where your Swipe Up links lead, they will certainly make your stories more effective while also encouraging people to interact with them.

  3. Post stories every day
    When you post stories, they only live for 24 hours. Therefore, Instagram stories encourage you to constantly create fresh content. However, it doesn’t mean that content that you post as stories must disappear forever. You can use Highlights to show your stories from the past. For example, you can create Highlights every Christmas so that your followers can see how you’ve celebrated it last year or a few years ago. No matter whether or not you want to highlight your stories or use them again on other platforms, the main thing is to be consistent. We recommend that you post Insta stories every day so that your profile will always stay at the top with a red circle around, making your followers want to tap on it.

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  1. Use the Type mode
    An interesting thing about Insta stories is that you can post not only photos and videos but also short text, as well. All you have to do is activate the Type mode. Open your camera and tap the Type button. This simple approach will help you wish your followers a merry Christmas in a more personal way than when writing a caption for a regular post. If you have followers from different countries, you can use this feature to speak to them in their language. In this case, we recommend that you use a reliable translation service, such as The Word Point.

  2. Use hashtags
    Hashtags work not only with regular posts but also with stories. Stories allow you to use broader and more trending hashtags so that you can increase your chances of appearing on someone’s Discover page. The main thing is to make sure that your hashtags are relevant. We suggest that you experiment with different hashtags and see how they affect your views.

  3. Use different types of video
    Of course, Instagram is all about photo content. However, the popularity of videos grows all the time. Videos are more engaging than photos. Videos immediately grab attention and people are more likely to share them with friends. Insta stories allow you to use different types of videos. For example, you can create a short Boomerang video that moves backward and forward. You can also use face filters to create fun videos that will entertain your audience, or you can use GIFs. For example, to find a GIF about funny cats, you can simply type “funny cats” in the Stories sticker box. Although stories are 15 seconds long, you can also post longer videos if you create a series of short videos — stories of this kind are especially engaging.

  4. Go live
    Instagram stories also allow you to stream live videos so that your followers can engage with you in real-time. Live videos are great if you want to announce a new product or to answer questions from your followers. Live videos also allow you to interact with your audience and receive immediate feedback. Viewers can interact with a live video by posting their emojis or comments, and you can react to them immediately. If you want to get closer to your followers and build trustful relationships with them, live videos are a great tool because they are not scripted so people can interact with you in the most natural way possible. You can go live on Christmas so that your followers can celebrate it with you in real-time. When the live stream is over, you can upload your live video to stories so that everyone can catch it later.

Final Thoughts

Instagram stories are extremely popular. Not only should you use them to entertain your followers with short videos and photos from your everyday life, but you should also use them to improve the visibility of your regular posts because the algorithm considers the popularity of your stories when recommending your content. Make sure to post stories consistently and use different types of content. Go live, record videos, or simply write short texts to let your followers know what you’re thinking about. Stories are a powerful tool that increases engagement and attracts more followers, which is exactly what you need when you want to grow your organic reach. Follow our tips, and this year, Santa will bring you new followers and more attention from the existing audience.

Written by Caitlin Morton