Are Your Influencers Using Instagram Stories?

If the influencers you are working with are not using Instagram stories, that’s a big mistake. Feeds aren’t the only place anymore for influencers to market your product. Stories have become increasingly popular, and it’s another place you can get your sponsored content seen by followers.

According to eMarketer, in 2018, 34% of sponsored content worldwide, was viewed on Instagram stories, while 66% was viewed as feed posts. This shouldn’t be a surprise given that users are watching stories more and more. And it’s the perfect opportunity for influencers to create an authentic, immersive, behind-the-scenes connection with their followers. In addition, it allows influencers to create content in a more interesting, more engaging, and casual way.

“We expect to continue to see an increase in Instagram story posts in 2019, especially among micro-influencers who aren’t always getting paid cash for their collaborations and instead receive products, promo codes, gift cards or experiences,” said Mavrck co-founder and CEO Lyle Stevens.

One advantage of stories over feed posts? The ability to link to a website/product page. Feed posts don’t allow influencers to add a link in the caption copy. Instead, they would have to put it in their bio. But with stories, affiliate links can be placed directly in the frame with the swipe-up feature, to take the viewer straight to the page. “The ability to tell a story through multiple frames, as well as the swipe-up function to drive traffic, have made it a great format for marketers to utilize,” said Kamiu Lee, CEO of influencer marketing platform Activate. “For influencers, the ephemeral nature of Stories allows them more freedom.”

Interested in learning how our Tribe of content creators can help curate content for your brand? Click here to let Foodie Tribe help you with your influencer marketing efforts.