Are you ready to crush your Instagram Stories?
We know that social media is the best place to get the word out about your business, but sometimes it can get a little tricky. So I wanted to dive into Instagram Stories specifically today, because at least for me, this is the number one way I am able to convert buyers and sellers off of Instagram with no cost investment, and a little time.
If you aren’t using Instagram Stories yet, it is TIME to get on board, and if you are, dive in to these quick tips to make sure that you are making the most of your time and effort.
Stories are far more engaging and studies show that users on Instagram prefer and spend more time in the stories than just the feed.
Now Instagram stories are a little different from posts to the feed, which is what you see by default when logging into the app. Stories are in a seperate feed of photos and videos, up to 15 seconds long, that disappear from the app after 24 hours. The great thing about Stories is that they are a bit more personal, they can be more casual, and they can consist of everything that doesn’t quite fit in your Instagram feed.
This is where you’re inviting your instagram followers in to get to know you better. You’re sharing live, real life moments, fun or entertaining clips, and behind the scenes snippits of your days. Stories are kind of like a vlog, where you’re just documenting your day instead of creating original content. You still want to provide value here in terms of entertainment, inspiration, and motivation, so let’s dive in to how we’re going to accomplish that.
Tip 1: Get confident!
My first tip is meant to help you ease in to Instagram Stories because, I get it, it’s not always fun being right up in the camera. However, in-the-moment video is highly engaging so to make the most of Instagram stories, you should be doing lots of videos!
Luckily, there are a few easy things you can do to show up with confidence. I always suggest standing near a window to get natural light. Shadows or poor lighting might not be the best aesthetically, so make sure you are letting your camera do it’s thing by giving it unobstructed natural light. I also suggest staying away from too many filters - you should maintain a branded experience on Instagram Stories, so choose one or two basic filters that you will commit to using each time. My favorite is the Subtle filter from Instagram, because it subtly makes everything look cleaner and smoother.
And, of course, have an idea of what you’re going to say. I’m not saying script your Stories, but give yourself the confidence in having clarity on the message you want to convey once you start recording. Then, find yourself a quiet space to flop a few times, and I promise, it will get easier the more you do it!
Tip 2. Show Behind-the-scenes.
This is an important tip - one of the greatest parts of Instagram stories is that it’s in the moment, and then it disappears after 24 hours. So feel free to pull back the curtain and share those interesting, funny or awkward real life moments with your followers! Users on social media crave the authentic moments and feel more connected to you when you bring them in.
This is really important when trying to build trust and connection that leads to conversion. For me, I love sharing funny moments, showing up even if I’m not looking appointment-ready, and bringing them in to the personal moments that others can relate to on a human level.
Tip 3. Engage with your audience by using Stories features.
This tip is a biggy - instagram stories offers a lot of fun features that can help you engage more with your audience as well as increase your reach. One statistic has showed that 1 in 4 stories results in a direct message, but I argue you can do even better by gleaning more information from your audience using the Poll and Questions stickers.
The poll sticker allows you to do a two point poll, and this is a really easy way to elicit responses from your followers. Bonus, when one of your followers responds to a poll, you can see the results and even reach out to them directly through the DM’s. This is a no-brainer way to start conversations that can then be moved off the app, and to the closing table.
The questions sticker is also great: Prompt your followers with a quesion, or an invitiation to ask you anything, whether it’s about you personally, buying a new construction home, questions about selling in the spring - just to throw out a few ideas. The list goes on! This also will help you suss out potential interested buyers and sellers, so be sure to respond to every individual.
4. Utilize tags to get seen by new people.
Yes, you can add hashtags in your stories to get found by people searching for those keywords on Instagram! You can use up to 10 hashtags on a post, but be careful not to get spammy here. I suggest including 1-3 very relevant hashtags to get in front of the right viewers.
Similarly, you can geotag your location so anyone searching for new stories on Instagram with that location will find your content. I try to stick with geo tagging the main city I’m in just to cast a wider net, but sometimes if I am at an event or a well known establishment, I’ll tag my location there instead.
5. Last but not least, post OFTEN!
While I might post to my feed about once a day, every day, I’m posting to my stories 7-10 times during each day. In real estate, we know it’s important to stay top of mind, and instagram stories is an easy way to do that every day by showing up in a place where your potential clients are already logging into multiple times a day!
Plus, the more you post to your stories and engage with your audience, the algorithm will recognize you as an account with valuable content and assure that more people will see your profile.
There you have it, five simple tips to start implementing this week with your Instagram Stories!
I mean it when I say that Stories are a total game changer, and provide a deeper, more unique human connection that you simply cannot replace. It’s the best way to establish that know like and trust factor on Instagram that will lead to more referrals, repeat business, and new clients right from the app!
And finally it’s time for the question of the day - what is one tip that you are excited to try out today? Leave a comment, I can’t wait to hear from you!
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We’re Bryce & Stefanie Lugo, award-winning husband and wife real estate duo in Phoenix, AZ. We are so glad you found us!
