4 Ways To Push Past Your Instagram Stories Blocks
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Instagram Stories are the single most important part of your Instagram strategy. With at least half of all Instagram users on Stories (that’s 500 million people), it’s one of the best ways to build your brand online.
You know that you should be using Stories, but there’s are a few common blocks holding brands back from fulling utilizing this part of Instagram. In this bonus episode, I’m answering some of your biggest questions about how to show up on Stories and not feel completely overwhelmed. Here’s a recap of the ways you can kick your Instagram Stories fears to the curb.
“Do people even care?”
You’re not the only one feeling this way. Heck, I’ve even felt this way. YES – people care! Your feed should be on brand and curated beautifully, while Stories are more personal and behind the scenes. The most boring thing you think about posting on Stories is probably the thing people will connect with the most. My chatty or silly Stories are the ones that get the most engagement. The everyday, mundane parts of life – what you’re eating, your routines, behind the scenes of your spaces – those are what people relate to. Building those connections are what can lead to trust and eventually a sale. The more you practice your Stories muscle by showing up on videos, the more confident you will become in your strategy. Your Instagram Stories content should have a natural flow and feel authentic to you.
“How do I know if I’m using stories the wrong way?”
Think about the Stories of your favorite accounts. More likely than not, they’re not planning every single story. For the most part, personal brands and solopreneurs are using their Stories strategy off the cusp. The reason why they make look planned is because they’re likely using things like templates, branded elements, GIFs, and AR filters within the native editor.
Don’t let your fear get in the way of the impact you could have on others! A lot of our concerns around showing up on Stories are internal:
“I’m worried about what they’ll think of me”
“No one will watch”
“I don’t think I look good enough”
Instead of thinking about yourself, shift your mindset to your viewers and how you can serve them. Come from a place of service, and then showing up will become so much easier.
“What if I don’t have relevant content? How do I know what to talk about?”
One of the biggest struggles for users is the posting frequency for Stories. Instagram Stories should be used daily and more than once throughout the day. Timeliness plays a major role in the Stories algorithm which is why frequent posting encouraged in contrast to your feed. No wonder it can seem so overwhelming! So how do you find enough topics for Stories each day.
First things first, you need content pillars. These are categories that you use to create content for your feed. These same 3-5 pillars they should apply to your Stories strategy, too. Let your pillars be your guide! If you don’t know what to post, you need to establish your pillars first.
Don’t be afraid to post a lot of behind the scenes on Instagram Stories. These pieces of content can be quick and short pieces of your brand. For launches, prerecording and batching graphics can ensure your content is strategically driving sales. When you have content that is ready to go, you’re more likely to show up during the launch period.
When you get in the habit of storing topics, ideas, and questions you’re getting, you’ll never be at a loss for what to post. When in doubt, talking about the post on your feed for the day is a great option. You can summarize your post in your Story and then share the post. It’s a great way to cross-promote and grab followers that aren’t seeing your feed.
Another great option is doing a reoccurring series for your Stories. This tactic helps you know what you’ll be posting about and people love knowing they can expect something from you.
Lastly, repurpose what you’ve posted on your blog, Facebook, emails, or other things you’ve posted on Instagram that have performed really well. We’re often so tired of creating because we’re not going back to see what worked and repackaging that.
“What are ways to show up on your off days or when you don’t feel camera ready?”
There is a difference between needing a break and needing to push yourself out of your comfort zone.
If you’re needing a break because your mental health is in a funky space or you’re dealing with burn out, take the time you need to take care of yourself. You can always come back and share a lesson if you’d like later on, but you don’t have to share exactly what you’re going through if you need to take a step back. I think it’s incredibly important to take breaks often, especially as creatives. If you’re feeling like you’re forcing yourself to show up or don’t feel excited about your content, people can sense that. There’s no point in trying to push past it. Honor your energy and take breaks – no need for an explanation or apology. Take the time you need and come back re-energized!
On the other side of things, maybe you don’t feel camera ready because your hair is a mess, your office is a mess… or you just feel a mess! To grow on Instagram Stories, you have to get uncomfortable.
People really want to see the unpolished moments - don’t hide them or mask them with filters. Even if you don’t feel camera ready, you are! People connect with you when you’re showing up imperfectly and as your true self. I saw the biggest growth in my business when I got really honest with myself and realized I was trying to fit a mold of what I thought I was supposed to look like instead of showing up as myself. Once I started embracing who I really am instead, that’s when my community started to grow.
All in all, you have to take action to build confidence on Stories. We don’t come out of the womb knowing how to do these things. You have to take action, start practicing, and just show up!
If any of this rang true to you and/or you admire the things I’ve been able to achieve, go check out my new course, Shine On Insta Stories.
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