Over 500 million people use Instagram stories daily, and it has quickly become one of the most exciting ways to communicate with your audience. This is effective whether you’re a business owner, a brand, or a casual user, as it offers endless opportunities to showcase your creativity with photos, videos, or even text.
Instagram stories also allow interesting features like adding stickers to create a more appealing design. However, you can do more on the app to improve your stories. This article highlights some Instagram story hacks to help you get started and explore more innovative ways to make your stories shine like never before!
Table of Contents
Creative Instagram Story Design Hacks
1. Create Interactive Backdrops
A custom backdrop is a fun way to bring life to your stories and could be a picture or gif rather than a regular, plain, solid color. Set a picture as the background, then tap on the image sticker to select an image you’d like to feature, encouraging users to interact with your content.
2. Add a Translucent Layer
Adding a translucent layer creates depth and visual interest in your story, making it more exciting. Once you’ve uploaded your video or photo, click the “Marker” icon at the top of the screen and select the “Highlighter” icon. Tap on a color at the bottom of the screen, then tap and hold the photo until there’s a semi-transparent layer.
3. Create Progression & Revealing Posts
Progression and revealing posts make your followers look forward to the next thing. Craft a story and click the “Save” option at the top to download it. Then, create a new story by selecting the saved picture from your camera roll and building on top of that first story with additional texts, gifs, and images.
4. Utilize the Erase Tool for Edits
Get creative by using the eraser tool to remove part of your images or texts and add a personalized touch to your Instagram stories. Add a picture to your story, then fill the screen with color. Click on the draw icon and select the eraser brush tool to wipe off some parts and reveal a small part of your picture.
5. Explore Filters and Effects
Filters help you share eye-catching and artistically pleasing stories. Open your camera and swipe to the end, then click on “Browse effects” with a magnifying lens icon to choose a filter. This adds a unique touch to your story, attracting more viewers.
6. Create Custom Stickers
Custom stickers add creativity to your stories, making them more interactive and fun. Go to the sticker section of your story and click on “Cutouts,” then add the picture you want to use as a sticker. You can also click on the “Link” icon to add link and customize it with color to redirect viewers to a different site or use fun accessories like the keyboard symbols.
7. Access a Wider Range of GIFs
GIFs bring life to any conversation, but you need to find gifs that perfectly match your story tone and message. Tap on Stickers, then GIFs, and search for any keyword to give you a variety of options to select from. This adds fun, personality, and a more engaging visual appeal to your Instagram stories.
Eye-Catching Instagram Story Video Hacks
8. Use Instagram’s Dual Feature
Instagram’s dual camera feature allows you to capture and share both front and back views simultaneously. This helps you engage with your audience in real time while providing multiple perspectives. From your IG story camera, select the dual feature from the left-sided bar to get started.
9. Add Time-Lapse and Hyper-Lapse Effects
Time-lapse or hyper-lapse effects help you create visually compelling videos. To create one, open the Instagram camera and tap to record hands-free. Tap again to stop recording and choose a playback speed between 1x and 12x. Then, upload the video to your story or save it to the camera roll.
10. Use the Green Screen Feature
The green screen feature on Instagram helps you transport yourself or objects into various virtual backgrounds. At the bottom of the camera, scroll right to the end and click “Browse effects.” Search “Green screen” and select the filter, then add media from your camera roll to choose your background. You can then make a video with this backdrop in place.
11. Go Live to Interact with Your Audience
Going live on Instagram helps you engage with your audience in real time. Open your Instagram app and swipe left to reveal the camera. Swipe through the content options at the bottom of the screen until you get to “Live.” You can answer questions on the live story or share some behind-the-scenes content.
Innovative Instagram Story Text Hacks
12. Customize Text with Unique Fonts
Instagram allows you to edit fonts, change text alignment, and make your text stand out to reflect your personal or brand style. Once you add media to your story, click on the alphabet “Aa” icon at the top and write your desired text, then swipe through options to select a suitable one.
13. Layer Text to Add a Shadow Effect
To make your text pop, you need to layer it. After typing out your text, highlight all and copy, then paste it into a new text box. Click on the rainbow wheel to reveal the color slider and choose a different color. Shift the text slightly below the original to create a shadow effect.
14. Engage with “Ask Me Anything”
With more Q&A sessions, you can gather feedback, improve interaction with your audiences, and boost engagement. Click on the “Questions” sticker from the IG story sticker tray to have the “Ask me a question” tag pop up. You can have a picture in the background and a sticker on it.
15. Conduct Polls for Feedback
The poll feature allows you to quickly determine what your audience thinks about a subject. From the list of stickers on your Instagram story, select “Polls,” then edit the title to anything you intend to ask. The options are, by default, “Yes” or “No,” but you can edit as you wish.
16. Start a Countdown
Countdowns help build anticipation, keep your audience engaged with upcoming events or launches, and work well for birthday ideas. Click on the “Countdown” sticker from the list and edit the countdown name to reflect your event. Then, set the date and time and add to “Your Story” or “Close Friends” to start the countdown.
17. Share Multiple Answers in One Story
Rather than creating multiple stories for your “Ask Me Anything,” you can record multiple answers in one story for more engagement. Create a story with one of the responses, take a screenshot, and exit. You can then create a new story and use that screenshot as your background. Repeat as necessary.
Appealing Instagram Story Photos Hacks
18. Create Boomerangs from Live Moments
Boomerangs help you capture moments in a unique way by creating a loop. Open the IG camera, and from the left bar on the edit screen, select “Boomerang.” You can create a boomerang with that or select a live photo from your gallery and hold down the photo until the word “Boomerang” pops up. Click on it and share.
19. Create a Multi-Image Story
Using multiple images at once to create a visually appealing story helps you connect with more users in your niche. You can create a grid with the layout feature or tap multi-capture on the side of the story screen to create story collage. This helps you share more details with just a single story.
20. Layer Photos on Video
Layering media on Instagram stories adds depth and visual interest to your content. You can either copy and paste the photos from your camera roll or use the photo sticker to add images to your background video multiple times. You can also change the shape of your image by tapping the sticker multiple times.
21. Hide Hashtags and Mentions
Hide hashtags and mentions to keep your stories clean. Rather than using stickers for this, you can swipe them down to make it more appealing and easier to look at. More importantly, use hashtags wisely and only select relevant ones.
General Instagram Story Hacks
22. Buy Instagram Story Likes
Buying Instagram story Likes is an easier and quicker way to make your story more popular and gain engagement. It increases your credibility and influences the algorithm to show your story to more users. For the best result, buy genuine Instagram story likes from GetAFollower, where you will get 100% real story likes, a money-back guarantee, and a high retention rate, all through a secure website.
23. Create Shorter Content
Creating more concise content can help you maintain viewer engagement in your stories, leaving them wanting more. Optimize your image by adding straightforward captions and editing texts into it. You can also check some other users’ content for template ideas to increase the time spent watching your story.
24. Upload High-Quality Videos
High-quality video uploads improve clarity and engagement, which helps promote stories. Start by using good camera equipment with additional lighting to improve quality. You can also invest in professional editing apps to improve your storytelling and make your video more fun for viewers. However, if you’re facing issues with stories not uploading, check out these solutions to resolve it quickly
25. Plan and Schedule Your Stories
Posting your content at the right time can be a game-changer for your brand, as users are more likely to engage if you post when they are mostly active. By creating a content strategy for your stories to be posted at specific times, you can easily target your audience and create content that resonates with them.
26. Use Trending Music
Nothing grabs attention like a trending tune. By adding popular music to your Instagram stories, you can instantly make them more engaging and relevant. These tracks resonate with a wider audience, helping your content stay fresh and connected to the latest trends.
27. Share Your Posts on Stories
Share some feed posts on your stories to increase their visibility and engagement. This helps you repurpose your content while connecting with a broader audience who may have otherwise not seen your posts. It also increases the chances of getting more engagements on your feed content, as story viewers will likely click on it and engage.
28. Use Instagram Story Analytics
Instagram’s analytics tools provide valuable insights to refine your story strategy. Swipe up on your published story to see metrics like views, likes, sticker taps, and interactions. Dive deeper with Instagram Insights to track reach, impressions, and exits. Use this data to adjust your content while you generate cool ideas to boost engagement.
Conclusion
The Instagram story Hacks shared in this article can transform your storytelling and boost audience engagement. By implementing these cute ideas, you can improve the visual appeal of your Instagram stories moving forward and see noticeable changes with time, including improved interaction. Explore your Instagram page and make the best of the stories feature!
