How to customize instagram story
Change Background Colors & More
Ready to take your Instagram Stories game to the next level?
Knowing the latest Instagram Stories hacks will keep your posts on point (and ahead of the trend!)
From little-known design tricks to engagement-boosting strategies, we’re sharing every Instagram story hack you need to know in 2022:
Instagram Stories Hacks You Need to Know in 2022Instagram Stories are getting a lot more creative — from responsive AR filters to interactive Instagram Stories stickers, there are tons of new features to experiment with.
Ready to get started? We’re sharing the best Instagram Stories tips and tricks you (probably) don’t know yet.
Discover the top Instagram story hacks in action! Watch the full YouTube tutorial here:
Table of Contents:
Instagram Story Design Hacks
Instagram Story Photo Hacks
Instagram Story Sticker Hacks
Instagram Story Video Hacks
Other Instagram Story Tips and Tricks
To change the background color of an Instagram story, tap the draw tool in the upper right-hand corner of the screen, and select a color.
Next, tap and hold on the screen for 1-3 seconds. If you’ve shared a feed post to stories, the background will fill with your chosen color behind the post.
If you’ve created a new story, the whole screen will fill with color, creating a layer of color on top of your photo or video:
You can then use the eraser tool to create a “scratch card” effect to reveal part of your image or video.
Tap the eraser icon on the upper right-hand corner of the screen and select the size of the eraser using the slider on the left-hand side of the screen. Now tap or swipe on the screen where you would like to reveal the underlying image.
And that’s it! If you’re looking to entice your audience and share just a tiny highlight, this Instagram Stories hack should come in handy.
Instagram Stories Hacks #2: Add a Background Image to Your Instagram StoryWhen you share a feed post to your stories, not only can you change the background color but you can also add in a background image from your camera roll!
If you want to add an image to your Instagram Stories background, here’s how to do it:
First, select the post you want to share to your Instagram Story and select “Add post to your story”.
Tap the sticker tray and select the Instagram “Add from Camera Roll” sticker. Scroll through your images and select the image you want to use as your story background.
Move the feed post to one side of your Instagram Story screen and expand the added photo using two fingers (in a pinch motion). While doing so, tap and hold the original feed post using your thumb. This will bring it to the front of the screen:
Positioning the feed post on the right-hand side of the screen will increase the likelihood of taps — as people typically tap here as they browse through stories.
TIP: If you don’t have access to the “Add from Camera Roll” sticker in stories yet, use an Instagram Stories template app like Unfold or Storyluxe.
Instagram Stories Hacks #3: Access More Colors in Instagram StoriesInstagram Stories are the best place to show off your brand’s personality. But, what if Instagram doesn’t offer your brand’s color in its default color options?
Luckily, there’s a hidden Instagram Stories hack that lets you access every color you could ever need!
Open your Instagram Stories and select the draw tool.
Tap and long-hold any of the default color options at the bottom of the screen to open the color slider. Then, swipe across the slider to pick a custom color for your story.
BONUS HACK: Make a rainbow effect on your Instagram Story text.
To do so, open Instagram Stories and type out a message. Next, tap on text and tap “Select All” to highlight.
While your text is highlighted, press and hold one finger down on the color palette tool at the bottom of your screen (like you did before) to open the entire color spectrum.
With one finger held down on the color slider, and one on your highlighted text, begin to drag both fingers toward the left side of your screen at the same time.
You’ll see your text begin to change color, letter by letter, as you drag your finger across the color spectrum! You can move your finger faster or slower for additional color variations, or alternate the direction that you drag your fingers across the screen to achieve an entirely different result.
If you’ve ever wanted to make your emojis stand out more on stories, this Instagram trick is for you!
To add extra depth or a glow to your emojis, open your stories, tap the screen to open the text tool, and scroll through each of the fonts until you find the style you like!
Instagram Stories Hacks #5: Add A Custom Font to Your StoriesIf you’re looking to make your stories feel a little more “on brand,” adding a custom font is a great option. Here's how to add a custom, branded font to your Instagram stories.
Start by downloading the GoDaddy Studio (formerly known as Over) mobile app. Once downloaded, AirDrop your font’s .OFT file to your mobile device.
Select “Over” from the menu that pops up.
Once you’ve got your custom font added, you can design stories in the Over app (there are tons of story templates to choose from) or you can write a line of text on a transparent background, save to camera roll, and then add them to your stories via the “Add from Camera Roll” sticker.
Looking for more ways to create Instagram Stories that match your branding? Check out our free video workshop on how to design captivating Instagram Stories!
Instagram Stories Hacks #6: Create Cool Effects with the Eraser ToolDid you know you can actually use the eraser tool to create all kinds of cool effects on your Instagram Stories?
First, upload the photo of your choice and use the draw tool to draw an effect over the image.
Next, use the eraser tool to remove parts of the zig-zag to create a 3D effect.
This is just one of many ways you can use the eraser tool to create cool design effects on your Instagram Stories!
Instagram Stories Hacks #7: Add Your Brand Colors to Your StoryWhile Instagram’s full color palette is extensive, it can be hard to pick out an exact color.
Thankfully, there’s an Instagram hack for this.
Use the Instagram Stories “Add from Camera Roll” sticker to add an image with your chosen colors in it.
Next, use the color picker tool (the pipette icon on the left-hand corner of the screen) to sample your desired hue:
You can then use this color for your stories background, the draw tool, or your text.
You can remove your color reference by holding the image down with your finger and moving it to the bottom of the screen until the little trash can appears.
See more tips for branding your Instagram stories here.
Instagram Story Photo HacksInstagram Stories Hacks #8: Add Multiple Photos to Your Instagram StoryYou can now add extra images to your Instagram story! Here’s how:
#1: Use Instagram’s “Add from Camera Roll” Sticker
To begin, tap the Instagram story sticker tray.
Once you’re in, select any photo from your camera roll, change the size, and place wherever you’d like.
To change the shape of the image, tap the image and select from a circle, star, rectangle, and more.
#2: Copy and Paste an Image from Your Camera Roll
Start by opening a photo from your camera roll and tapping the “export” button.
Now tap “Copy” and head to your Instagram story.
Double-tap the screen to pull up the “Paste” option.
And that’s it! The photo you copied earlier should now appear on your story. Repeat this process for as many photos as you’d like.
NOTE: Only available to iOS users.
Instagram Stories Hacks #9: Turn Live Photos Into BoomerangsICYMI: You can turn live photos into fun Boomerangs!
Open Instagram Stories, swipe up, and pick a live photo from your camera roll (you’ll see the boomerang icon on eligible photos).
Once selected, press on the screen for a few seconds until you see the word “Boomerang” appear briefly.
Now you’ve turned your shot into a Boomerang!
NOTE: This hack only works for iOS users.
Instagram Stories Hacks #10: Create Videos That Are the Perfect Instagram Story LengthIf you add a photo to your Instagram Story, it’ll play for five seconds. If you add a video to your Instagram Story, it’ll play for 15 seconds.
However, there’s still a way to share longer videos to your Instagram Stories.
If you have a video that is longer than 15 seconds, the whole video will split into 15-second segments. However, you’ll have to add extra elements (such as GIFs, stickers, and text) to each segment. For more tips, check out Later's Ultimate Guide to Instagram videos.
Instagram Story Sticker HacksInstagram Stories Hacks #11: Share Multiple Question Answers on a Single StoryThe Instagram Stories question sticker has gotten a lot of love from businesses on Instagram — the only drawback is that you can only share one question sticker answer per story.
Luckily, there’s an easy workaround to share multiple responses on one story.
First, create a story where you share a response to your question sticker. Take a screenshot or save the image and exit out of the story.
Open that screenshot and create a second story using a different question sticker response.
Repeat this until you have multiple question stickers on a single story.
And that’s it! Your followers will thank you for saving their thumbs!
Instagram Stories Hacks #12: Pin Stickers, Emojis, Text, and GIFs to Your Instagram StoriesDid you know that instead of layering design elements on top of your Instagram Stories, you can pin text, stickers, emojis, and GIFs into your videos and boomerangs — so they show up at the perfect moment?
To do this, simply record your video then add a creative element like text, a sticker, emoji, or GIF. Then tap and hold the element that you added.
Use the slider bar at the bottom of the screen to scroll through the video and find where you want to pin your creative element.
Once you’ve found the right location in your video, tap “Pin.”
Instagram Stories Hacks #13: Find On-brand GIFsThere are thousands of GIFs available to make your Instagram Stories more interesting.
In fact, there are so many that it can be hard to find good options.
Here are some of our favorite keywords to search in the app to find the best Instagram story GIFs:
Instagram Story Video HacksInstagram Stories Hacks #14: Use “Create” Mode to Add a GIF BackgroundInstagram’s collaboration with GIPHY has been a huge win for businesses and regular users alike.
To create a GIF background to your Instagram story, head over to Instagram’s “Create” mode by tapping the letters icon in the Instagram Stories camera screen, and scroll across to the GIF tab.
From here, you can search from thousands of fun GIFs. They’ll either layer up or display in full length, depending on their aspect ratio.
This is a great way to share content with your audience if you’re running low on original content.
Instagram Stories Hacks #15: Create an Animated GIF with ImgPlayIf you’ve been looking for a way to create fun GIF videos for Instagram Stories, look no further.
The ImgPlay app lets you select multiple photos to create your own looping GIF.
To begin, download the app and select the source for creating your GIF — whether it’s photos, live photos, or a video — then tap “Make.”
Once you’ve created your GIF, you can change the playback speed and duration, and add text, filters, and other customizations using the icons in the bottom bar.
Once you’re done, upload your new GIF to Instagram Stories!
Instagram Stories Hacks #16: Use “Hidden” Instagram Story FiltersDid you know there are a bunch of hidden Instagram Story photo and video effects? To access Instagram Story effects and add a filter to your stories, open up your camera and swipe all the way to the end and select “Browse Effects”.
Here you can scroll and find hundreds of fun effects.
Not sure where to start? Here’s a list of some of our favorite Instagram Story effects to search for:
“Presentation” by rendi_vendi
“Background” by luisgilson_18
“Greenscreen” by Instagram
“iPhone Screen 1” by pvikinga
“Presentation” by gulim.
satekova
Adding music to your Instagram stories is a great way to make your content more entertaining.
Make sure you’re using the latest version of the Instagram app, open the Instagram Stories camera, and take or upload a photo or video.
Once that’s done, select the music sticker at the top of the screen (or search for “Music” in the Instagram Stories sticker tray).
This will open the Instagram music library where you’ll find thousands of songs to choose from.
You can scroll through a “For You” tab of suggested songs, browse by categories, or search for a specific song.
When you’re happy with your song choice, you can fast-forward and rewind through the track to choose the exact part that fits your story. You can also choose how long you want the music clip to play for (the maximum is 15 seconds).
Finally, you can customize what the sticker looks by tapping it before publishing (there are six variations in total!):
NOTE: If you have a business account, you may only have a limited selection of music due to Instagram’s licensing agreements.
If you don’t have access to music on stories, check out this blog post for our top trouble-shooting tips. Learn more about adding music to your Instagram stories here.
Other Instagram Story Tips and TricksInstagram Stories Hacks #18: Automatically Add Closed Captions To Your StoriesThanks to the new Captions sticker, it’s easier than ever to automatically add closed captions to stories.
Here’s how:
Head to the Instagram Stories camera and either record or upload a video from your camera roll.
Once uploaded or recorded, tap the sticker tray icon and select the “Captions” sticker.
At this stage, you can choose from four different text formats, move the text around the screen, and change the color.
And that’s it! Your captions will now be generated on your Instagram story.
Be sure to watch and read captions before posting as Instagram may not accurately transcribe your audio.
NOTE: The Instagram captions sticker is currently only available in English and English speaking countries.
The most successful stories have a clear flow, a consistent aesthetic, and tell a strong story.
Which is why it’s a good idea to plan and storyboard them in advance!
By scheduling your Instagram Stories posts with Later, you can visualize how your posts will flow together.
Planning and scheduling Instagram Stories posts takes just a few minutes and it can all be done from your desktop.
When the time comes to make your Instagram Stories live, you’ll receive a push notification to your phone and with just a few taps, you’ll be able to share your posts with your followers.
Ready to start scheduling your Instagram Stories posts? Later’s Instagram Stories scheduler is available now on all paid plans. Upgrade now to get access or start scheduling stories!
Instagram Stories Hacks #20: Create and Share Multiple Stories at OnceIf you want to add a number of stories at once, Instagram’s multi-capture tool is the way to go.
To access it, press the multi-capture icon on the left hand side of the screen.
Here, you can take up to 10 photos in a row. When you’re happy with the photos you’ve taken, you’ll see the photos in a lineup at the bottom of your screen.
At this stage, you can tap and edit each individual slide. You can change your story background, add text, stickers, music, or effects to each slide.
Instagram Stories Hack #21: Use the Correct Instagram Stories SizeNot sure the correct Instagram Stories dimensions?
Luckily you can share pretty much anything on Instagram Stories, as long as it has a minimum dimensions of 1.91:1 and a maximum dimensions of 9:16.
Because most people prefer their stories to take up the whole screen (no borders), we recommend using an aspect ratio of 9:16 with a size of 1080px by 1920px.
Instagram Stories Hacks #22: See How Many Times Your Post was Shared on StoriesInstagram collects a ton of great data about your post’s performance, like the number of impressions, saves, follows, and more.
But there’s one piece of data you might be missing out on: story reshares.
You won’t find this in your Instagram Insights. Instead, you’ll need to tap the ellipsis in the top right corner of a post to pull up a menu with the option to “View Story Reshares”.
This will take you to a screen with a list of public reshares that are currently live.
You can tap one of the reshares to see it live on the user’s account.
If you don’t see the option to see reshares, this either means your post isn’t currently being shared in anyone’s public stories.
This can be particularly useful for finding and replying to shares that you’re not tagged in.
Given the number of updates and new features on Instagram Stories, it can be difficult to stay on top of all the cool features at your disposal.
Hopefully, these Instagram Stories hacks help you create fun, artistic, and creative Instagram Stories that set you apart from your competition!
Start scheduling your Instagram Stories with Later today, available on all paid plans.
15 Instagram Stories Design Tips to Create Stunning Visuals -
Summary
To help you captivate your audience in your Instagram Stories, we’ve put together 15 Instagram Stories design tips that will have you creating high-quality visuals your followers will go back to view again and again.
You will learn
- How to incorporate brand fonts and logos for stunning designs
- Insider tips on formatting and graphics, backgrounds and overlays
- How to create stunning highlights covers and templates
Your Instagram feed isn’t the only way to engage your audience and stand out among the crowd anymore.
In fact, since the feature was launched in August 2016, Instagram Stories have quickly grown to over 500 million daily active users, meaning at least half of Instagram’s overall user base create or view stories every single day.
This means you have the potential to connect with your Instagram audience in two different places on the app, and you don’t want to waste that opportunity with dull Stories and visuals.
To help you captivate your audience in your Instagram Stories, we’ve put together 15 Instagram Stories design tips that will have you creating high-quality visuals your followers will go back to view again and again.
1. Start with a storyboard
There are many different ways to use Instagram Stories. From promoting new blog posts to sharing new features and more, Stories are a great way to engage with your audience without having to be as polished as your feed.
This means you can take live video, behind-the-scenes footage, and iPhone photography without having to worry if it matches the rest of your content.
However, when it comes to your Instagram Story graphics, you still want to ensure you’re putting together visually appealing designs that make your audience want to tune in.
A great way to get started is by using a storyboard to fully plan out your story before you even start on the design.
If you’re wanting to promote a recent blog post, build a storyboard around several of your key tips or points that entice viewers to click through.
Or you might put together a storyboard that showcases how to use your product or service.
The possibilities are endless, but having a plan in place can help make your entire design process that much easier.
2. Stay in the lines
Think back to your coloring days in elementary school (or maybe just last Tuesday in your adult coloring book). Learning to stay within the lines is a big deal.
Your Instagram Stories have some pretty important lines and parameters you want to stick between as well.
The top and bottom areas of your story graphics are covered by your username and ways to interact with your story, respectively. You don’t want to include any pertinent information or design elements in these areas.
Thankfully Instagram will warn you if you’re about to move an element too far up or down on the screen, but it’s important to ensure that anything you design outside of the app also stays within the lines.
So while Instagram Stories dimensions are 1080 x 1920 pixels, Instagram recommends keeping all key design elements between the center 1080 x 1420 pixels, leaving 250 pixels at the top and bottom.
3. Create a Story-specific style guide
While you can utilize fully produced graphics and short video clips for your Stories, Instagram also offers tons of design elements you can use to embellish your content.
Consider putting together a style guide specific to which font choices, filters, GIF types, and more, that your company can utilize from IG Stories to continue to stay branded.
You can create this style guide in many different formats to keep handy anytime someone on the team is creating and sharing Instagram Stories. Since there are many different design preferences, having a Story-specific style guide can help improve brand recognition even further
4. Use your brand fonts and colors
Keep everything you create on brand. Even your Instagram Stories.
This means you want to have your brand kit ready to go with your color hex codes, your fonts, your logo and more.
Incorporating your brand fonts and colors helps with brand recognition when your followers are simply scrolling through their stories.
They’ll see one of your graphics and automatically know it belongs to your company, without even having to see your username.
5. Incorporate photography
Your Instagram Stories don’t have to consist of entirely custom graphic designs. It’s a great idea to switch it up and incorporate photography every now and then.
The beauty of Instagram Stories is that not everything you publish has to be high-quality and professionally created. Instead, use that smartphone camera and take some behind-the-scenes photography right in the app.
And don’t forget about the millions of free stock photo options that are available to use as well. Just make sure they’re relevant to your brand and the content you’re sharing!
6. Take boomerangs
Boomerang is an Instagram-owned app that has been incorporated directly into their Stories. Users can easily access it by opening the Stories camera and navigating to the option directly to the right.
A boomerang is a quick 1-2 second clip that loops and can be a fun way to create content.
Use this instead of taking photos every now and then to add some personality into your Stories.
7. Add a text shadow
Get creative with Instagram’s in-app design assets. You can add a text shadow right in the Stories creation dashboard by adding two different colored layers of the same text.
Simply type out your text in either a lighter or darker shade and place it where you want it to sit on your Story. Then do the exact same thing with your primary shade, placing it overtop the shadow at a slight angle.
This gives you a fun way to add text overtop a photo or video that you took right in the app, making it quick and easy to design your Instagram Stories before publishing.
Instagram Stories has five different font options to choose from: Classic, Modern, Neon, Typewriter, and Strong.
This means your letters and symbols have five different styles. If you take some of these letters and symbols, rotate them, and blow them up, you’ve got some pretty cool design elements to help spice up your Instagram Stories.
Take a look at this example below. Each of these elements have been added with a different symbol, right in the Instagram Stories dashboard.
The top left design was created with capital I in the Modern font. Rotate it sideways, and you can create a bar chart or an underline/backdrop for your text.
Across from that, you see a pink asterisk also in the Modern font. Use these to create stars or snowflakes in your photo or video.
The green circles are periods in the Strong font that have been blown up and overlapped to create a funky design.
Then there are two blue hyphens in the Classic font, and the last element in the example above includes a line of periods in the Modern font that create a dotted line appearance.
See if you can play around with the different letters and symbols in each of the fonts to create accents, backdrops, and more.
9. Access even more colors
When you open up the text or drawing features, you’ll automatically have access to three pages of color options, but you’re not limited to only those 27.
Holding down on one of the available colors opens a spectrum of even more colors for you to choose from.
You can also use the color picker to grab a shade right out of your graphic or photo. If you have your logo in the graphic you upload, this allows you to add additional elements in your brand colors, or simply match them to the colors in your photo.
10. Give your text a rainbow or ombré effect
Let me start with a disclaimer: this is tough to master. But the end result is very cool. In order to achieve this effect, you need to type out your content before selecting it all, or the word(s) you want to ombré.
Then you’ll need to first hold down the screen on top of the first letter before then holding down the screen on top of the color you want to start with.
To create a rainbow effect, you’ll slide across the color spectrum while also sliding across each letter simultaneously. To create an ombré effect, you’ll go from top to bottom or bottom to top.
You can watch this in action in the GIF below:
If you move either of your fingers off the spectrum or off the letters, it can mess the entire thing up, so definitely practice this one a few times before putting it into play.
11. Create backgrounds and overlays
The drawing tool can do more than simply color or highlight information in your story. It can also help you to create backgrounds and color overlays.
If you want to share an announcement on your story without having to find a photo, simply open up the pen tool, find your background color, then press and hold until your entire screen turns that color.
You can also create a translucent color overlay by using the highlighter tool to do the same process – choose a color, then press and hold the screen.
You can also have fun creating sneak peeks by adding a background color overtop your image and moving over to the eraser tool to remove some of the color.
Use this feature to tease new products, blog content, and more.
12. Use Stickers and GIFs
Instagram Stories offers tons of different sticker and GIF options to add humor and pizzazz to your designs.
Scroll through the options or search for something specific to add to your Story. There are many different styles of icon, and you can even add polls, quizzes, Q&As, or hashtag stickers to further engage your audience.
Users can even create and submit their own stickers and GIFs for users to add to their stories, or for your own brand to easily access. Become a verified brand on Giphy to get started creating!
13. Show users how to access more content
Users with more than 10K followers get the “Swipe Up” feature in their stories. If you’ve met this milestone and you add a link to one of your Stories, use your story design to show/tell users to swipe up.
If you don’t have this feature quite yet, and users have to go click a link in your profile, use an arrow or other type of design element that draws their attention to exactly where they need to click.
This creates a call-to-action that lets your Story viewers know exactly what they should do next. Plus, there are tons of arrow stickers to choose from that can further spice up your design.
14. Create branded highlight covers
If you want to save stories for longer than 24 hours, you can add them to various highlights at the top of your profile. There’s no limit to the number of highlights you can create, but only the most recently updated five will appear on your profile. Users will have to scroll to view the rest.
You can create custom covers for each of these highlights, and we highly recommend you do so. Make sure these covers also match your brand and mesh well with your feed since they’ll be viewable at the top of your profile.
15. Start with a template
If you’re still not sure about your design eye with your business or personal Instagram Stories, there’s a solution for that. Start with a template instead of trying to create a Story from scratch.
You can find templates for nearly any purpose, like sharing your #ootd, recent blog posts, inspirational quotes, new product photos, and so much more.
Using fully customizable templates like the one above gives you a starting point for your design, while also allowing you to add in your own brand fonts, colors, and other flair.
Get started creating your own stunning Instagram Stories and wow your audience. Use your Stories to create calls-to-action to your website, to engage your audience with polls and quizzes, to showcase what’s happening behind the scenes, and more.
And to stay organized, you can easily schedule your Stories and simply get a notification when it’s time to publish!
What are your favorite Instagram Story design tips? Reply to our Tweet below with your ideas!
To help you captivate your audience in your Instagram Stories, we’ve put together 15 Instagram Stories design tips for creating high-quality visuals your followers will love! ✨ https://t.
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The Complete Guide to Instagram Stories
Instagram Stories, aka “stories”, “moments”, “stories” or “stories” appeared in 2016, and since then have gained such popularity that Instagram is constantly updating and improving this format. Instagram Stories appeared thanks to the growing popularity of Snapchat, in which users could send short videos and photos.
Now more than 400 million Instagram users view Stories per day, and this figure continues to grow. nine0003
Any content on Instagram can be seen by all users - profile posts and “stories” - this is a very promising media format, moreover, stories are integrated with Facebook, and users can view them from the feed of this social network.
Stories can only be viewed for 24 hours, after which they disappear from the feed and are stored in an archive accessible only to the user. The time of one video clip is no more than 15 seconds.
“Stories” are actively used for advertising, personal brand and business promotion. They help the brand to remind about itself, attract a new audience, talk about promotions and new products. Stories is like your own TV channel. nine0003
How to view stories on Instagram?
Instagram Stories appear at the top of the app, to view stories, just click on the profile photo. Stories are rewound with a single tap on the phone screen: on the right - fast forward, on the left - back. Stories are paused by long pressing the screen - this is usually used to read long texts.
To switch stories, swipe from right to left or vice versa. nine0003
How to make stories on Instagram
You can create stories through Instagram or third-party applications, upload photos and videos from your computer after editing them.
We will tell you about all the ways to create and upload stories.
To add previously captured videos and photos to stories, you need to switch to the Stories shooting mode, click on the leftmost button to go to the gallery, and select the necessary files. Thus, you can shoot stories not only with the camera from the application, but also with any available phone camera that you use. nine0003
How to make a story on Instagram?
Instagram allows you to capture and edit your Stories directly from the app. To create a Story, click the camera icon in the top left corner of the app, or open the camera by swiping right.
Instagram camera has several modes and features. Let's get to know each of them.
As soon as you switch to creating stories, the normal camera mode turns on. One short press on the central round button creates a photo, a long press - a video that lasts 15 seconds. If you hold the button and move it up, the camera will move closer to the object.
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Below the photo and video button is a menu with other camera modes.
Boomerang
Boomerang is an analogue of live photos, that is, short looped videos made up of a series of photos. Frames taken one after another are played from beginning to end and in reverse order. Boomerangs are not as popular now as they were when they appeared, but users still love to make short videos and come up with new ideas.
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Posted by Starbucks Coffee ☕ (@starbucks)
Superzoom
Superzoom allows you to shoot dramatic 3-second video music using a special camera close to the subject. Instagram gives you the opportunity to choose several shooting options, from romantic to tragic. It remains only to choose the right one.
Reverse Capture
Reverse Capture creates videos with reverse playback, so you can diversify your content with an interesting idea. nine0003
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Posted by ReverX (@reverx.app)
Shooting one video will last 15 seconds.
Text
Text - a mode that allows you to insert text information into stories. There are several font options: modern, neon, typewriter, bold. Fonts are switched by touching the font name at the top of the screen. You can change the background color by touching the button with the current color on the bottom left. nine0003
Live
Live allows you to broadcast stories in real time, communicate with subscribers and get instant feedback.
The live broadcast cannot last more than one hour, and users see the comments and likes coming at this time on the screen with the broadcast. Starting a live broadcast is very easy. It is enough to select the desired mode, and the “On Air” button will appear. Subscribers who are currently online (they can be seen live) will receive a notification when the broadcast begins. nine0003
During the live broadcast, you can write a comment and pin it on the screen. You can turn off the ability to comment for everyone by clicking on the menu item and selecting “Turn off comments”. Live broadcast allows you to broadcast together with another user.
To end the broadcast, you must click “End” and confirm the action. By clicking the "Save" button, you will download the live broadcast without likes and comments. This function is made so that the video material is not lost. The live broadcast can be seen on Instagram in the recording for another 24 hours, like regular stories.
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Remember: if you don't save the live broadcast, it will be deleted after 24 hours and you won't be able to restore it.
Instagram masks
Another feature of stories is adding masks. Masks are virtual face filters that make Stories even more colorful and funny.
Masks are available in almost all shooting modes. Just click on the smiley to the right of the record button and select the appropriate one. Masks can change along with the rotation of the camera, the surrounding space or the user's facial expressions. nine0003
How to repost stories on Instagram?
You can publish your posts from your Instagram profile to Stories to attract more attention to them. To do this, you need to click on the airplane icon under the post and select “Add to story”.
You can repost the story itself from another person's profile if your account is tagged in it. When this happens, you will receive a notification in private messages about the mention in the story, there is also an active link “Add this to the story”.
After clicking on the link, a window with editing stories will open. nine0003
How to edit stories on Instagram?
Once you've shot your story, it's time to edit it. Editing is available for both photos and videos.
How to add filters to Instagram?
To view and apply filters, swipe left and select your favorite.
How to add hashtags to Instagram Stories?
A hashtag is a special label that combines user content into one group. On Instagram, hashtags are used not only as a means of navigation and search, but also for promotion. We can say that hashtags are the keywords of your post, story and Instagram profile. nine0003
There are several ways to add hashtags to stories.
The first way: click on the sticker icon at the top of the screen and select “#Hashtag”. In this case, you need to enter the hashtag without the pound sign #, Instagram will offer several popular or frequently used hashtags.
Second way: enter the hashtag using the Text tool. In this case, you must enter along with the hashtag #, and Instagram will also offer to select popular or frequently used hashtags. nine0003
Some users use tricks to insert more hashtags into stories. They use two methods at once, write more hashtags in text, hide hashtags in a poorly viewed area of the screen (at the very bottom or top of the story), fill the text with a hashtag with a background color so that they are not visible to users and do not annoy when viewing.
These hashtags are also included in Instagram searches.
On Onlypult.com, when publishing stories, you can insert up to 9hashtags, while they are not visible in the story itself, but participate in the Instagram search.
How to geotag Instagram?
Instagram geotags are also used to promote and search for publications. Geotags or geotags are data about a specific position that are affixed to a frame as metadata.
Inserting a geotag into an Instagram story is very easy. Just click on the sticker icon and select . Choose from the proposed list or start typing the name of the location. nine0003
How to tag a person in an Instagram story?
To mark another Instagram profile in your story, you need to select the “Text” tool and enter the user's nickname, starting with the @ symbol. In this way, you can enter up to 10 profiles in one History. If you click on the sticker and select “Mention” from the menu that appears, you can add one profile without using the @ symbol.
In both cases, Instagram will prompt you to select a profile corresponding to the characters you enter, it remains to choose the one you need. nine0003
The user will be notified that they have been mentioned. He will not be able to remove the mark, but it will be possible to share this Story in his account.
After affixing such a mark, subscribers will be able to go to the specified profile by clicking on it in the story.
How to insert a link in an Instagram story?
This feature is only available to business accounts with more than 10,000 subscribers. A few days after reaching the required threshold, a link button appears at the top of the screen in the interface for adding stories. nine0003
With this tool, discounts and promotions are announced, Instagram users are directed to the site or a separate page of the site, links are added to blog articles, online and offline events, and so on. By clicking on the button, enter the desired link and create a story. When viewing your Story, users only need to swipe up to follow the link.
If after reaching 10,000 followers the link button still does not appear, try restarting your phone or updating the app, you can also contact Instagram support. nine0003
How to draw on Instagram stories?
Instagram Stories has a drawing tool. To use it, you need to click on the pencil icon at the top of the screen.
Several modes or brushes are available for drawing. They differ in overlay style and line thickness.
Use the drawing tool to fill a photo with a solid color. Just select the desired color at the bottom of the screen and pinch the photo anywhere.
To fill with a translucent solid tone, choose a brush with a thick nib or a “marker”. nine0003
There is another secret to this tool. You can choose not only the standard colors indicated in the palette. If you press and hold the colors of the palette, a panel with a choice of an arbitrary color will appear. Without lifting your finger from the screen, move to the desired color to select.
How to add a selfie to Instagram stories?
You can add a selfie to the finished photo or video. To do this, click on the camera sticker. If you click on the finished selfie, the design will change: blurry edges or a white frame. nine0003
What else to add to stories?
Questions.
A form is attached to the story in which you can enter your question. Subscribers will be able to ask you any questions.
To insert a form, select the “Questions” widget while editing stories. You can choose the color and size of the published form.
Enter your appeal in the form. For example, “I will answer your questions. Ask!".
Responses can be viewed by clicking in the lower left corner in the story. You can share responses with subscribers, to do this, open the desired response and click "Share response". You can choose the color of the form, add a comment and publish to stories. nine0003
Polls
The "Polls" widget allows you to conduct a small survey among subscribers, where only two answers are available. The standard form is “Yes” and “No”, but you can enter your own question and short answers. After the survey is published, you will see the responses as a percentage.
In the story statistics, you can see which user clicked on which answer, and the total number of viewed stories.
Voting
Voting in stories is done using a scale. By selecting the appropriate widget, you can assign the color of the scale and emoji for the answer. Ask a question, and to answer it, subscribers will move the slider, expressing the degree of their reaction to the question.
Statistics will show exactly how users voted, as well as the average answer on the scale.
Quiz
This widget is also called “Test” because you enter the correct answer, and users, having chosen an option, immediately see whether it is correct or not. To insert a widget, click on the sticker icons and select "Quiz" in the story. In the form that appears, you can enter your question and several answers. nine0003
There can only be four answers. Enter the answers in order and press “Next” on the phone keypad for new options to appear next.
The color is changed using the setting at the top of the screen.
Do not forget to indicate the correct answer. To do this, click on the letter of one of the options, it will be highlighted in green.
To see user responses, go to your story statistics or swipe up. You will see the number of correct and incorrect answers, as well as the total number of viewed stories. nine0003
How to add music to Instagram stories?
Adding music to Stories has been available since 2018, but not in all countries. Therefore, if it is not possible to add music directly through Instagram, you need to use third-party applications. But we will tell you about all the ways.
How to add music through the Instagram app?
If you can add music through the Instagram app, click on the sticker icon and select “Music” from the menu. The application has a search by mood, genre and popularity. After selecting a song, you can rewind to the desired moment, and the track will be played from a given point while the story continues.
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You can add a track before selecting a video. Open the camera, swipe the menu under the record button to the right and select "Music". Find the song and the right moment, and record a video while the song is playing.
How to add music to Instagram?
If there is no choice of music in the Instagram application, it is possible to add it to the story through third-party video editors.
You can download the video editor from the App Store or Google Play, here are some of them:
Storybeat - allows you to add not only music, but also small effects on photos and videos, you can record your voice or slow down the video.
InShot - can remove unwanted frames, suppress noise, add text and stickers. Music is added only from the device library.
PicMusic - photo and video editor, you can add music, voice, text.
How to publish a story on Instagram
When a story is ready and edited, it can be published.
To do this, just click the “Your story” button in the lower left corner, and the story will be published on your profile and will be available to everyone. You can limit your viewers by clicking the "Best Friends" button when posting. Then only those whom you add to your friends list will see the Story. nine0003
Stories can be sent to selected contacts if you click on the "Publish" button and select the desired profiles.
Within 24 hours, while the published History is available, it can be deleted, edited and adjusted. To do this, click on the three dots in the lower right corner and select the desired menu item.
To customize your story, select "Story Settings". By moving the sliders and checking the checkboxes, you can customize the display of stories for yourself. Here you can hide Stories from certain accounts, allow or block comments on stories, and create a list of best friends. nine0003
You can post multiple stories at the same time. To do this, select the story camera and click on the gallery icon.
The latest photos and videos taken by the device will be shown. Click the pages icon at the top right and select all the photos and videos you want in the order in which they should be posted. Each story can be edited before publication.
To publish stories from a computer, you need to use third-party services. For example, the Onlypult.com deferred posting service, with which you can select the date and time of publication. nine0003
Go to the service website, click "Stories", edit the publication card and set the time. Ready!
How to delete stories on Instagram?
Already published stories can be deleted. To do this, you need to open the Stories and at the moment the unnecessary file is displayed, click “More” in the lower right corner. When the additional menu of stories comes out, click “Delete” and confirm the deletion.
To delete the entire history, you must delete each file in it.
Actual stories on Instagram
Stories Highlights or Actual Stories - albums or sections with archived Stories that users can save in their profile.
Thus, all saved stories can be sorted or the main ones can be selected - as it is more convenient for anyone.
How to add stories to the Topical?
Actual stories you create yourself. They will appear on your profile above your photos. You can add to Topical those stories that have already been published. To do this, in the profile, click on the plus sign “+”, select the desired stories and click “Next”. Give a name to the new collection of "Actual", select the cover (initially it will be one of the stories) and click "Done". nine0003
Here you can save promotions, portfolios, products, case studies, workshops and much more. This will make it easier to navigate through your account and allow you to highlight the information you need.
When creating Actual Stories, it is important to remember:
- The title of the section with Actual Stories cannot be more than 16 characters;
- In order for stories to be added to Highlights, it is necessary to enable saving stories to archive in the settings;
- you can create any number of stories, but the last 4 will be visible in the profile without scrolling; nine0310
- One story can be added to several sections.
How to make icons for relevant Stories?
For the latest, you can create and upload your own icons. This will emphasize individuality.
There are several ways to create a story icon.
The easiest option is to use a pre-made Story and select it as the cover.
Click on the “+” in the Instagram profile, select the necessary stories and click “Next”. After that, give a name to the new album and click "Edit Cover". In this step, you can choose any story for the cover, zoom in or out, or select a specific part of the photo. nine0003
Click "Done" and your new album will appear on your profile.
Another way to create an icon is to make it in third-party applications and services. For example, in Canva or Photoshop. It is better to create regular square images, where the icon will be located in the center. The optimal image resolution is 1080x1080 pixels.
The finished picture can be uploaded as a story and selected as a cover according to an already known option.
Or, when editing a cover in Actual, click on the gallery icon and select from phone files. nine0003
To insert a cover into an already created album, you need to open it through your Instagram profile. In the lower right corner, click on the three dots with the words “More”, and then “Edit current”.
Click “Edit Cover” and select the desired icon.
How to view Instagram story statistics?
Stories statistics can be viewed by connecting a business account.
To view statistics, go to your Instagram profile, click on the menu icon in the upper right corner and select "Statistics". You will have access to account statistics and publications. nine0003
The “Stories” section displays statistics of stories posted in the last 24 hours. But you can find out the statistics of publications made in the last 14 days. To do this, click "All" in the "Stories" section.
In the filter above statistics, you can switch data and view statistics on impressions, reach, clicks, scrolls, responses, and so on.
Impressions - the total number of views of stories.
Reach is the number of people who viewed your stories. Impressions for the same account do not count here. nine0003
Scroll forward and backward - how many times users have moved to your next post or returned to the previous one. So you can understand whether the audience was interested or not, they were intrigued by the continuation of the viewing, they understood what you wanted to tell in the story.
Next story - transitions to the stories of other accounts. The data shows how many people moved from your story to the next without being interested in the content.
Exits - shows how many times users clicked the cross to exit your Story. nine0003
Replies - how many people have responded to your stories.
Reposts - how many other accounts reposted your story.
Clicks on the link - how many people followed the link published in the story.
Stories statistics provide detailed metrics and help you determine how engaged your viewers are when viewing Stories.
Useful
Where can I find ready-made templates and layouts for Instagram Stories? nine0013
Instagram stories can be created on third-party resources and use not only the standard tools that Instagram offers.
Here are a few services where you can create stories from ready-made templates, upload your photos or use ready-made backgrounds and fonts:
Easil is a platform with a number of ready-made templates that you can change. Templates already have the correct dimensions for stories, but in the paid version it is possible to change them.
Another popular platform for creating marketing materials, including Instagram Stories, is Canva. All templates you create will be stored on the platform and you can download them at any time.
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Answers to questions about Instagram Stories
Is the list of viewed Stories displayed in order?
Instagram uses different ranking methods, and users sort differently. Moreover, it can change every few months. Therefore, for some users, lists can be shown by viewing time, for others by the frequency of interaction with the profile, and so on.
How is the list of unviewed Stories formed? nine0036
Usually shows actual stories made in the last 4 hours. Then they are mixed with the earlier ones. But Instagram pays more attention to real people, so the stories of ordinary accounts are shown first, and then commercial or impersonal ones.
Viewing History will count as a profile visit?
No. According to Instagram, visits are the number of clicks on a username to go to a profile.
To learn more about Instagram and other social networks, subscribe to our newsletter. nine0003
Instagram features you might not know about - wishdo
You use the app every day, and maybe you don't know about the features it has.
I have collected the most interesting ones.
Best Friends
The function can be used for its intended purpose: make a selection of people (for example, relatives or close friends) and publish posts and stories for them separately. And you can use a little cleverly.
I added one fake profile to "best friends" (yes, I have one too), and I publish content for it. What for? nine0003
See also: Wishdo checklist: 50 visual apps for social media
Posts - to see how the content will look in the feed after publication (I especially often check videos like this to see if Instagram will spoil the quality).
A story - to add this photo to the highlights ("eternal stories") and make it a cover. At the same time, this picture will not be visible to all my friends.
Multiple links in profile description
Many people have faced a problem: there are several links that you want to put in your profile header.
But you can only have one...
There are services that help to collect several links under one, and even make them beautifully. For example, the site Linktr.ee: you can add several links, sign them and get such a “mini-landing” with all the necessary contacts. The basic functions of the service are free. It looks like this.
More about links
For example, an article was published about you, but the link to it is long and ugly, and you don’t want to post it in this form on Instagram. It can be shortened.
I use bit.ly. If you register, you can edit what comes after /. For example, the link http://bit.ly/perfect_instachallenge will take you to my challenge website. So the address looks beautiful and stylish, you can safely add it to the profile description.
Another service is goo.gl, it's also good, it just didn't suit me. nine0003
Hide comments
You can prevent certain users from leaving comments on your page, you can turn on the comment filter (Instagram will automatically hide comments that are offensive, in its opinion), and you can also enter a list of words that will hide your comments.
The function will be especially useful for popular personalities, or if you have ill-wishers. You can find it in the settings - comments.
Hide Stories from some users
For example, from your boss or competitors. To do this, you need to open your stories - click "more" in the lower right corner - history settings. You can also get into the settings through the general profile settings (upper right corner - ... - history settings).
Instagram allows you to hide stories from any user.
Hide Stories of users who are not interested
You can not only scroll through boring stories, but also hide them altogether. To do this, hold down your finger on the avatar of the stories of the person whose stories you want to hide, and "Delete stories ..." will appear. So, stories from this person will no longer appear in your feed.
You can return them (what if you change your mind?).
To do this, scroll through the stories to the very end, there you will see avatars of a muted, gray color. These are the hidden stories. Hold your finger on the avatar again - and "Restore history ..."
Make Highlights
Relevant/Stories Collection/Eternal Stories is the name of a relatively new feature on Instagram. You can save stories to albums that are under the profile description.
How to make highlights. After the story is published, a heart will appear in the lower right corner. By clicking on it, you save the story to the collection. You can also go to the stories archive (on your page in the panel at the top) - and there you can see all the old stories that can be added to the collections. nine0003
Highlights can be edited. To do this, hold your finger on the selection (the circle under the profile description on your page) - and "Edit current". You can rename the collection, change the avatar, and choose the content you want to stay up to date.
Instagram filters
There are many filters, and most of them you probably won't use. You can hide them or change their sequence. To do this, simply hold your finger on the filter, and the "hide" function will appear. nine0003
You can also turn the filters to the end and go to the settings, where you can turn off unnecessary filters or swap them.
Instagram draft
There is no delayed posting on Instagram, but there is a draft. You can upload a photo or video, add text, then hit the back arrow and Instagram will prompt you to save the draft. When you try to make a new post, the social network will show you drafts and you can publish them.
Archive posts
It happens that a post needs to be temporarily hidden from the page. Perhaps you want to edit it or it is temporarily out of date. It's easy to do, and you don't have to delete content. Click on ... above the publication - and "Archive".
The post ends up in the archive, from which it can either be returned, or where it can be deleted.
Secure your account
You can make your page more secure using two-factor authentication. If you enable this feature in the settings, Instagram will send a password when it doubts whether you are the one logging into Instagram. nine0003
Block user
There are a lot of unpleasant people on Instagram. Blocking a page from a troll or competitor is very simple. Open the desired profile - ... - Block.
If suddenly you decide to pardon a user, you can find the list of blocked accounts in the settings - "Blocked users". If needed, they can be easily unlocked. One negative: there is no search in the blocked list, that is, you can’t start typing a name and find a profile, which makes it harder to search for someone specific. nine0003
Disable online status
If you don't want other users in the direct to see that you are currently online, you can turn off the online status.
To do this, go to settings - show/hide network status.
Sort messages in direct
Not so long ago, in direct on Instagram, it became possible to sort messages:
You can view all incoming, unread and those that you mark with an asterisk as important. nine0003
If you don't have this feature yet, don't panic! 1) Update Instagram 2) Wait for the new one to appear for you. The social network always introduces updates gradually.
View your likes
If you like consciously and selectively, and suddenly want to remember where you saw something, you can go to the selection of content that you liked.
Settings - Posts you like.
Look at the actions of others
Sometimes a lot of interesting things can be found in the content that the users you follow like and comment on. To do this, open likes, select “Following” in the top panel, not “You” - and welcome to the world of the new and often unknown 🙂
Bookmarked collections using the bookmark button.
But also in these bookmarks, you can make daddies and group content in the way that suits you. Folders can be deleted, edited and renamed. nine0003
Copy link
Need to send someone a link to a publication, but don't know how? If you need to send a link to photos NOT from your page, click above the publication ... (upper right corner) - copy the link. If the link is your publication, then again ... above the publication - Share - and at the bottom "Copy link".
How to make a paragraph in Instagram text
Maybe this will be the most important point for you. If you want to indent a lot between paragraphs - and not with a period or some kind of icon, but with white space - you need to copy and paste a specific space. nine0003
I leave it here in quotation marks "⠀". You copy it (without quotes), save it somewhere in your notes, and then paste it in the text. Yes, this is such an inconvenient system.
You will have a space like this in the text
Video cover
When posting a video, you can choose a cover image that will be visible on your profile as a splash screen.
It is important that the "frozen frame" is exactly what you need.
Subscribe to the hashtag
For several months now, Instagram has been offering the opportunity to subscribe not only to the profile of a person or company, but also to the hashtag. To do this, click on the desired hashtag and select "Subscribe".
Hide posts you've been tagged in
Maybe you've been tagged in spam, or maybe your girlfriend chose the wrong photo of you. You can hide this post from tagged photos. To do this, go to the collection of your marks. nine0003
Open the "wrong" photo - ... in the upper right corner - Actions - Hide from my profile.
Hide ads
If you don't want to see some annoying ads, hide them from the feed. Make it simple.
See ads in the feed - click ... in the upper right corner - Hide ads or report them.
If you hide an ad, Instagram will ask you why:
When you show Instagram that an ad is not relevant to you, it edits your interests. For example, the topic of healthy eating or raising children is not relevant to you. It will show you less such content. nine0003
If the advertisement is intrusive or inappropriate, the network administration can block the brand's advertisement or edit it. I don’t advise you to act badly and just block all ads as inappropriate or annoying - you will do bad things to brands that officially work on Instagram, and do not buy “unpaid” posts from bloggers 🙂
Turn on notifications
Instagram algorithmic feed she decides whose posts and stories you are interested in. But if you're worried about missing someone's posts, you can turn on notifications. nine0003
To do this, go to the desired page - click ... in the upper right corner - and "Turn on notifications". So you will not lose new posts of people important to you.
