We Are All Just Telling Stories (In 15 Second Bursts)

Talking to my phone. I am very much here for it.

I do it every single day. Every day putting a little bit more useless, irrelevant snippets of me out into the world.

And yet you guys kinda like it. Or at least you watch anyway. You may be surprised to know I haven’t always had the confidence to story like I do now and I have definitely, through trial and error have started to work out what is more interesting to people. Do I need to talk about the time I wrote a blog post about a bin again? Its all lessons guys.

For me, more people interact with my stories than visit my main feed. It is an amazing place to form relationships with other accounts as well as brands. If you are a business it will be an amazing tool for behind the scenes or utilising the swipe up function. (Which business accounts have went hey hit 10,00 followers) Stories satisfy peoples need for instant gratification. They are short snippets and if you do it right you can capture an audience in ways a static instagram feed just cant.

Just Start

Don’t worry about what people will think. I know you will but just do it anyway. When I first started my instagram most of my friends made fun of me. I even lost some friends over it as they thought I was being arrogant sharing my life in this way. Not everyone is a fan of social media and unless it brings some joy into your life then I absolutely get that. I have made friends, a career and now have a creative outlet all because of instagram, so I am very much a fan.

Talk to your phone like you would your oldest friend but be mindful of what you are saying. It doesn’t need to be interesting, just engaging and they are very different things. Always just be yourself. This is a rule of thumb with all things instagram. Mimicking what someone else does won’t work. People follow you for you. Simples. (If you have an acquired taste personality like me then the 15 seconds limits how annoying you can be. Thanks Insta)

Use Text/Gifs

Often people watch my stories on silent. Using text helps keep the narrative of what you are saying along with giving them something else to do rather than stare at your face for 15 seconds. It is another opportunity to show your personality and I often use humour in my texts to lighten the mood of what I am talking about.

I get asked a lot how to pin text to an object in a story. Firstly film your footage then write what you are wanting to pin (gifs and emojis work in the same way) push hard on your screen and the pin option will appear.

Pinning On Stories

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Apps

I use unfold to make my stories prettier. It has other uses than just improving the aesthetics of your stories though. You can create 15 second clips that contain both video and images or you can share multiple images too. It is a little extra faff and I cant always be bothered.

Stories For Growth

I believe the more you give instagram the more you receive. Shout about other people’s achievements and expect nothing in return. Make people smile, make them relate and be friends with your followers. Instagram is a social app. If you are not social you won’t grow. There is no magic answer to growth but I think nice guys finish first.

Consistent content is a must. I story everyday because I love it but that doesn’t mean you have to. If you can only commit to stories at the weekend then do that. But always do that. I have had many conversations with people behind large accounts and they post everyday at the same time and attribute a large amount of their success to that. (Along with posting amazing, engaging content obvs)

If you are new to stories then I urge you to give them a go. Think about what you personally enjoy watching and create similar content. Then if all else fails you can watch your own stories back and be happy!

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