I listened to a podcast the other day that broke it down pretty plainly...users are using stories on Instagram and Facebook, but businesses are not! If there is any urgent info a business or non-profit organization wants to get out there, they NEED to use stories. A lot of businesses think that because stories disappear after 24 hours that they aren’t worth the time or effort, but I’m here to tell you that using stories is a great way for businesses to increase engagement and brand awareness!

Key Reasons to Use Stories

• Using stories helps you maintain a high-quality business page/profile. When you post photos and videos on Facebook or Instagram normally, they stay there unless you delete them. You want those to be as polished and professional as possible because they represent your brand. Those posts are like your portfolio. They are what users see when they hit your page and decide whether or not to do business with you. Stories, on the other hand, disappear after 24 hours, which means you can have more fun with them!
• Using stories allows you to post content more frequently. Because stories go away after 24 hours, they don’t have to be perfect (in fact, users really like that they aren’t). They allow you more freedom, save you time, and can be a ton of fun with cool interactive features you can add like quizzes, polls, countdowns, and stickers (great for low-effort engagement).
• Using stories uses FOMO (fear of missing out) to your advantage! Knowing that your story will disappear in 24 hours will make people want to check it out, especially if you drop lunch specials, discount codes, or something fun into it every now and then! This use of “real-time marketing” will get your followers in the habit of tuning in to see what you’re up to, especially if they know you’re usually up to something.
• Wait! There’s more!...Facebook and Instagram will actually notify your followers when you post to your story for the first time, and sometimes even after that! For free! This never happens with regular timeline posts. Those notifications are gold!

Share Your Journey!

Using stories helps you create authentic connections with your followers. Tell stories about your products and services. Share your ideas with your community and help them solve problems. Document your journey in a fun and creative way!

Want to know HOW to do stories? Let's tak about it on our next Brown Bag Marketing Live. Join us on June 3rd at Noon via Facebook Live. I will be going live from my Elizabeth Collins Facebook account, and sharing with the Brown Bag Marketing Group.