Instagram Stories: What they are and how to use them for your company

by Moises Hamui April 29, 2024

Instagram is one of the most popular and fastest growing social networks in the world, with more than 1 billion active users per month.

Within Instagram, there is a feature that stands out for its dynamism, creativity and interaction: Instagram Stories. This is an ephemeral content format that disappears after 24 hours and allows you to share photos, videos, texts, stickers, filters and other elements with your followers.

Instagram Stories are an opportunity to show the most human and personal side of your company, generate trust and loyalty , and increase your visibility and reach.

Instagram Stories: What are they and what are they for?

Instagram Stories are a feature that allows you to share temporary content with your followers, which will only be available for 24 hours.

You can create one or more stories per day, each of which is made up of one or more slides, which can be photos or videos of up to 15 seconds. Instagram stories are displayed at the top of the app's main screen, and can also be viewed from each user's profile.

To view stories from users you follow, simply click on their icons, which appear with a colored circle around them. To view stories from your own business, simply click on your icon, which appears with a plus sign. Instagram stories serve a variety of purposes, but most notably to:

Show the day-to-day life of your company, the most informal, fun or curious moments, and create an emotional connection with your audience.
Offer exclusive, novel or valuable content that encourages your followers to pay attention to your stories and interact with them.
Promote your products or services, show their benefits , features or uses, and generate interest or demand among your potential customers.
Generate traffic to your website , blog, online store or Instagram profile, by using links, tags or calls to action.
Get feedback, opinions or suggestions from your followers, by using surveys, questions, questionnaires or sliding emojis.
Increase your reach and visibility by using hashtags , locations or mentions, which allow you to appear in other users' searches or explorations.

Instagram Stories: How do they work and how to use them?

Instagram Stories are very easy to use, but they also have many options and tools that you can take advantage of to create engaging and original content.

To use Instagram stories, you must follow these steps:

Go to the Instagram app and click the camera icon in the top left corner of the screen, or swipe right from the main screen.
Choose the type of content you want to create: a photo, video, boomerang, superzoom, rewind, live video, text, or a photo or video from your gallery. You can change the type of content by swiping left or right at the bottom of the screen.
Capture content by pressing the circle button once for a photo, or holding it down for a video. You can use the flash, timer, filters, or the front or rear camera depending on your preference.
Edit the content by adding text, stickers, drawings, filters or effects. You can access these options by clicking on the icons in the top right corner of the screen. You can move, rotate, resize or delete the elements you add as you wish.
Share the content by tapping the “Your Story” button in the bottom left corner of the screen. You can also send the content to some of your followers by tapping the “Send to” button and choosing the recipients. The content will be added to your story and will be available for 24 hours.

Instagram Stories: What tips and best practices should you follow?

Instagram Stories are a very powerful tool for your business, but they also require proper strategy and planning.

Here are some tips and good practices that we recommend you follow:

Define your stories' goals and audience . Think about what you want to achieve with your stories, who you want to reach, and what type of content interests them or provides them with value.
Create an editorial calendar for your stories . Plan ahead for which stories you'll publish, when, and how. Consider seasonality, events, news, or trends that may influence your content.
Be creative and original . Use the different options and tools that Instagram offers you to create stories that attract attention, surprise, entertain or excite your audience.
Be authentic and approachable . Use stories to show the most human and personal side of your company, to tell your story, to share your values or to showcase your corporate culture.
Be interactive and conversational . Use stories to generate engagement, to invite your followers to participate, give their opinion, ask questions or make suggestions. Respond to their comments, messages or reactions, and create a relationship of trust and loyalty.
Be consistent and consistent . Use stories to reinforce your brand image , to convey your message, and to maintain your tone and style. Post stories regularly, but without overwhelming your audience.

Where can I watch Instagram stories?

Instagram Stories are displayed at the top of the app's main screen, where icons of the users you follow or who follow you appear, with a colored circle around them.

They can also be viewed from each user's profile, where their icon appears with a colored circle if they have active stories.

To see stories from users you follow, simply click on their icons. To see stories from your own company, simply click on your icon, which appears with a plus sign.

What does the order of the people who see your stories mean?

The order of the people who see your stories is not random, but is based on an algorithm that takes into account several factors, such as how often you interact with those people, how much time you spend viewing their stories or posts, or the level of interest they show in your content.

So, the people who appear first on the list are those who have the greatest affinity with you, and those who appear last are those who have the least affinity.

This can help you find out who your most loyal, most active, or most interested followers are in your company.

How to make recent stories appear on Instagram?

If you want to see recent stories on Instagram, i.e. those that have been posted recently, you need to update the app and activate the “Recent Stories” option in the settings.

To do this, follow these steps:

Open the Instagram app and click on your profile icon in the bottom right corner of the screen.
Click the three horizontal stripes icon in the top right corner of the screen, then click “Settings.”
Click on “Stories” and then “Recent Stories.”
Turn on the switch that says “Show recent stories at the top of the home screen.”
Close the settings and return to the main screen of the application.

How to view other users' Instagram stories without them knowing

Instagram Stories are a way to share ephemeral and dynamic content with your followers, but also with any user who visits your profile, as long as it is public.

When you view other users' stories, they can tell you've done so because you appear on the list of people who have viewed their stories. However, there may be times when you want to view other users' stories without them knowing, out of curiosity, privacy, or any other reason.

In that case, there are a few ways to do it anonymously, without your username appearing on the viewers list.

Here are some of the options you have:

Using an alternate or fake account

This is the easiest and safest way to view other users' stories without them knowing, as you won't have to use your real account or any third-party tools.

Simply create a new Instagram account with a name, photo, and bio that doesn't reveal your identity, and follow the users whose stories you want to see. That way, you'll be able to see their stories from that account, and they won't know it's you.

Keep in mind, however, that this option only works with public profiles, as private profiles will have to accept your follow request in order for you to see their stories.

Using a third-party website or application

There are some websites or apps that allow you to view other users' stories without them knowing, without having to use your Instagram account or create a new one.

These tools usually work in a similar way: you just have to enter the username of the profile you want to view, and they will show you their stories anonymously. Additionally, some of these tools also allow you to download the stories, view featured stories, or view regular posts.

Some of the most popular websites or applications to view other users' Instagram stories without them knowing are:

Instanavigation : A website where you type in a profile name and you can anonymously view their stories and other posts. All of this without registering anywhere and being able to download the content. Link: instanavigation.com.
InstaStoriesViewer : Another website very similar to the previous one. You don't need to register, just use their search engine to find the user you want and you can access their stories anonymously. Link: insta-stories-viewer.com.
InstaSaved : A Russian website where you can download the content of any Instagram account you want to view offline and anonymously. You can access stories, but also photos and even the profile picture. Link: instasaved.net.
StorySpy : A website that allows you to view and download stories from any public account anonymously and for free. Link: storyspy.io.
Ingramer : An Instagram analytics platform that offers a story viewer where you can view and download the content of any account's stories. The difference with the previous ones is that Ingramer only lets you view the stories of one profile each day, unless you create an account on the site. If you choose to pay, they even offer to automatically save every new story from any public profile so you don't have to manually check all the time. Link: ingramer.com.
Instalker : A website that offers the same thing as the previous ones: the option to view and download the stories of any public account anonymously and for free. Like Ingramer, it offers paid monitoring features to download for you. Link: instalker.org.
Twitly : An app that has versions for both Android and iPhone and offers the option to view and download stories directly to smartphones. Link: twitly.net.

These are some of the options you have to see other users' Instagram stories without them knowing, but keep in mind that these tools may have some risks or drawbacks, such as:

They are not official or authorized by Instagram, so they can disappear, stop working, or be blocked at any time.
They may have security, privacy or legal issues, as they may access your personal data, violate copyright or breach Instagram's rules of use.
They may be of lower quality or performance than the official Instagram app, as they may have bugs, delays, or limitations in their features or services.

Written by Moises Hamui Abadi : I am an entrepreneur, founding partner of Viceversa and SoyMacho. After leading several digital businesses and advising several other businesses, I decided to form MHA Consulting, a digital marketing consultancy dedicated to growing and empowering digital businesses in more than 7 countries and generating more than 1,500 million pesos.