Do you know this feeling? Have you spent so much time recording and editing your stories but few people watch them? Here are some ideas on how to increase views on your Instagram Stories so that your efforts produce the desired results for your brand and business.
Why are my Instagram stories getting so few views?
Many Instagram creators ask themselves this question - and it's not always beginners who simply create an account and expect big stories right from the start. Even experienced YouTubers can fall into the trap of consistently low view counts, which is difficult to escape.
There can be many reasons including:
- You post stories infrequently and on random days, and the Instagram algorithm pushes you to the end of the story queue, so your followers may not see them at all. Additionally, your followers are not used to seeing your stories and may even forget that they are following you.
- Sometimes you post when your followers aren't on Instagram, so your stories don't get the initial boost they need to stay at the top of the stories list.
- Post content in your stories that your followers don't find interesting or relevant. If you post a series of stories, they might watch one or two but quickly move on to another Instagram account because they aren't interested, especially because the first story doesn't catch their attention.
- First, you don't have an engaged audience. (I sincerely hope you haven't bought followers!) This is a common problem with social media in general: your audience may be large, but engaging them requires constant work, and if you just don't have time during the day, today your stories might fall apart (that is when you finally publish them).
Some people also watch Instagram stories anonymously. From other Instagram accounts or through a third-party Instagram story browser, which makes it even harder to get the right engagement, which in turn can lead to lower reach (due to Instagram's algorithm). (And here's a blog post about how people watch Instagram Stories anonymously if you want to learn more.
How to get more story views on Instagram
Use location tags and hashtags
When you add a location tag to your Instagram Story, it will appear to people who search for your location, even if they aren't already your followers. This is an effective way to easily increase the number of views on your Instagram Stories. All you need to do is add a location sticker when creating your story.
The situation is similar with hashtags (yes, hashtags also work in Instagram Stories). You can add a hashtag sticker to your story or enter the hashtag as text (with the “#” sign in front of it, of course – it works the same way). Both are effective ways to expand your reach beyond your subscribers and increase your views. However, simply using location tags and hashtags isn't enough, especially if you don't post regularly.
Publish your stories regularly
Inconsistencies in social media posts are one of the biggest reasons people and brands don't get the engagement and reach they expect. This is the nature of social media: algorithms value and reward consistent posts with consistent reach. I think that's the calculation of social media.
So plan your Instagram presence, including your Instagram Stories, so that you can post without long periods of silence (when algorithms and followers lose interest in your content).
Even if you can't post every day, try to maintain a consistent frequency, perhaps three times a week, at set times that people can get used to. This way, your followers know when to expect messages from you and the algorithm knows how to display your content. Find the right moment.
Consistency is one thing, but time is also important. Yes, Stories are available 24 hours a day, but if you publish them at a time when your followers aren't on Instagram, they can get lost in all your other content and end up at the bottom of your Stories queue (and we know it ). The). It). People rarely make it to the end of these queues, especially if they follow multiple Instagram accounts.
If you don't know when am I on Instagram (especially if you target an international audience), don't just guess. Instead, check Instagram analytics to see when your Stories (and other content) are driving engagement and use that knowledge to determine your timing strategy.
Publish high-quality, relevant, and engaging content
I know that's easy for me to say. But even good timing won't do you much good if the content on your Instagram Story doesn't match your audience's interests.
One way to combat this problem is to know your target audience well. What do you want to see? What content are you interested in? What content do they love so much that they send it to their friends on Instagram? What do they communicate with on competitors’ profiles?
Again, you should look to Instagram Insights for answers to your questions. Combined with the right timing and frequency, this significantly increases your chances of getting noticed by more people.
Add interactive elements to your stories
The more you can engage your audience with your Instagram Stories, the more the Instagram algorithm will share your stories with others. These are also simple calculations based on social media algorithms.
An easy way to create interaction with your audience is to add interactive stickers, such as:
- Ask questions using the question sticker
- Create surveys and tests
- Add a countdown timer (e.g. for new product launches).
- Add emoji reaction stickers
- Add links (e.g. your website or relevant content)
- Publish exclusive content
Another option you can try in your Instagram content strategy is to encourage your followers to add themselves to your close friends list. You can think of it as an additional community where you post exclusive content that only certain people can see.
I know it may seem counterintuitive: after all, your close friends list limits the number of people who can see your content. But believe me, it can increase people's interest in your content. They increase the number of views and engagement, among other things.
That is how it works:
- Tell others about the exclusive content list in your regular stories.
- Ask them to message you if they want to be added. Then add them and post additional content to your selected follower list.
You can announce the release of exclusive content in your regular Stories to drive demand.
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