We all know the basics of Instagram Stories. But what are some little-known tips? That’s what we’re sharing today – Instagram Stories hacks and tricks that are going to give you that creative edge!
Have you ever watched Instagram Stories and thought, how do they do that? Today, we’re going to help you learn exactly how to create the kind of stories that leave others wondering the same thing. And if you stay until the end, we’re also going to show you how you can add a photo or a custom GIF onto an existing story!
1. Upload Instagram Stories From Your Camera Roll
This first hack is short and simple, and it’s a way for you to add more context and put a little bit more thought energy and effort into your stories. And the hack is to not post in the moment. So what we’re asking you to do is take your photo or video and then save it to your camera roll before uploading it. Later, when you have some extra space and time, find the image or video that you took previously. Select it to add it to your Instagram story, and this time you actually have the time to add text or a border to make sure that it’s going to be as engaging as possible.
The benefits of this are twofold. Firstly, it’s going to allow you to be more intentional with what it is that you’re posting. And secondly, it’s going to allow you to be more present so that you’re not buried in your phone during special moments!
2. Use the Questions Sticker for a Live Q&A on Instagram Stories
The second hack is really cool because it allows you to use the question sticker in your Instagram Live within 24 hours of posting it!
First, you can either record a video of yourself asking your followers a question, or put up a photo or background. Once you’ve done that, you’re going to tap on the Sticker icon at the top right hand corner. From there, you are going to tap on the Questions icon and change the text to whatever question you want it to be. From there, you can change the colour of your question box, make it bigger, smaller, or drag it anywhere you want.
You can also decorate your stories, for example add a quick border with the Brush tool. You always want to try to make your stories branded so people see that story and know that it’s you. So adding a quick border or background that’s the colour of your brand is going to be a really easy way to do that.
Now what you’re gonna do is leave it for a couple of hours, let some questions run in and then use those questions when you are on an Instagram Story Live to be able to answer the questions as stickers.
When you go Live, the first thing to do is to press the little question box at the bottom right hand side of your Live. It’s going to bring up all of the different responses that people had to your Question sticker. From there, you’re going to select the question that you want to show up on your Instagram Live.
And essentially what you’re going to do is to use this opportunity to connect with your audience and answer the questions that you’ve picked. And if anyone pops into your Live randomly, they know exactly what you’re talking about. It also shows your audience that you are engaged and participating with them, and that you want to hear from them!
One last thing to note: while you’re answering questions on your Live and as you select different questions, it will actually fade that question so that you don’t pick it again!
3. Add Multiple Responses from a Questions Sticker to One Instagram Story
So this is a really great way to communicate and create that sense of community with your audience. What we suggest is to use the Question sticker and ask a question where it would be interesting to see the answers of a variety of different people. The point is to use this in a way where you’re actually engaging in conversation.
So the first thing you’re going to do is to find the question in your story, and then tap at the very bottom where it says how many people have seen that story. It’s going to say Responses, See All, right? So you’re going to tap on See All, and it’s going to bring up all of the different responses. You’re then going to tap on the response that you want and press Share Response.
From there, it’s going to bring up the camera screen, you’re just going to tap it, put a picture in the back if you want or keep the background one color. Then you can drag and drop, you can adjust the size, shift it, rotate it, do whatever you want. Then you’re going to save the photo.
From there, you’re going to X out, discard, bringing you back to the page where you have all of your responses. And then, you’re going to pick another response. And instead of taking a picture this time, you’re going to swipe up, select what you previously saved. Then drag and drop the second response around to be wherever you want. Once it’s there, you’re going to press Save again.
As you can see, you’re just going to repeat this process until you have four or five different responses. And then you’ll be ready to share that to your Story!
4. Save Instagram Stories Camera Effects Filters for Quick Access
The fourth hack is a really exciting one and the first thing you’re going to do is open up the camera within Instagram Stories.
Slide all the way to the right-hand side until you see an icon that says Browse Effects. And that’s going to open up an Effects gallery. You can select them, play with them and try it out.
At the bottom of the screen, you’re going to see that there’s a variety of different filters. You can just scroll through one by one, browsing the different effects they have. When you see one that you like, you can tap on the name and press Save effect.
All of your saved filters are on the left-hand side of your record button. And filters can really make your story stand out and really give you that extra edge to catch people’s attention.
5. Add a Photo or Custom GIF to One Instagram Story
Typically, Instagram Stories will only allow you to upload one video or image in a single story. So what we’re going to do is show you how to copy-paste an image into an existing story. This is a great way to actually tell your audience, like hey guys, today I’m going to be talking about so-and-so, and then have a picture of it right there on your story. We do recommend making a video about whatever it is that you’re going to share, but you can also take a photo, it’s not a big deal.
So after you have your photo or video you’re going to go into your Photos app and select the image that you want to add to your story. From there, you’re going to press the little arrow pointing up and out and select Copy Photo.
Once you’ve copied your photo, go back into your Instagram story and you’re going to see a little pop-up that says Add Sticker. If it doesn’t come up, you can select the Text tool, tap on the cursor and press Paste. And that is how to add an extra image into your Instagram story!
Not only can you add one image, you can add multiple images, and you can also add GIFs. This is so powerful because it allows you to add your own on-brand photos and custom GIFs that may not be available in the GIF library!
One extra tip for you is that if you want to draw on top of these images or add text on top of these images, place them where you want them to be, save them and then re-upload them. And then Instagram Stories will allow you to add whatever you want on top of those custom GIFs and images.
So these are some Instagram Stories hacks that will give you a creative edge! For more like these, make sure to check out our posts on Instagram for Business.
