How to Use Instagram Stories for your Maker Biz
There’s no doubt - Instagram stories are one of the number one ways to grow engagement with your brand.
They’re right at the top of the home feed, unwatched stories move to the front, and if you’re feeling especially mindless and non-swipey, Instagram will thoughtfully show you every. story. in the. lineup.
You might be wondering “okay great, I’m glad this is such a great way to boost engagement, but what do I DO?” As a maker myself, I’ve got some tips for you that I’ve used in the past and have seen others use to great advantage as well!
Read on for 6 ways to boost your stories’ engagement, and have fun!
NO. 1 // Run a fun mini-promotion that pertains to something you do on the regular.
A great example of this is Set Apart Studio - when she picks up supplies from Lowe’s, she puts out a question box in her Stories letting people guess the amount on her receipt. Closest guess gets a coupon to her shop! This is a great way to get people interacting with you, and encourages people to buy.
NO. 2 // Create a time lapse of a work-in-progress.
Whether it’s showing you making an entire item from start to finish, part of the process, or even just the prep work for a product, people love time lapses. It’s a fun way to show a little glimpse behind-the-scenes of what you do.
NO. 3 // Come up with a fun Stories challenge that you can include with your orders!
Challenge your customers to showcase their items from you in a unique way, and reshare to your own Story - you can even offer free shipping on their next order if they participate!
NO. 4 // Make use of the polls and quizzes features in Stories!
These are a really fun way to get your viewers engaging and interacting with you. Whether it’s getting an opinion on color options or quizzing your audience on two truths & a lie, you can’t go wrong with a poll or a quiz. You might even be surprised at the results you get!
NO. 5 // Go live!
While this idea is a little scarier than the others, this is a great way to interact with your audience in real time. Emily Nicolaides and Big Blue Tang both make use of this feature with great success - simply create a graphic with a schedule counting down, OR remind your audience that you go live at a certain time each week. Take your audience along with you as you work on a product, or simply be available to answer questions & interact as you work.
BONUS: NO. 6 // Smash that link button!
As far as I know, most people now have the Link button in their Stories. Simply open your Stories Editor, add your image, then swipe up and tap Link from the (multitude) of options. Copy & paste the link you want into the box, and VOILA. You can now link directly to a blog post, a product, a shop page, or literally… anything. Use it!
Try one of these Story ideas today and don’t forget to have fun with them!
