Did you know that Instagram stories have millions of active users per day? Insta stories took off quickly after they were first introduced nearly four years ago in August 2016. Maybe it was because people were drawn to dynamic, real-time content that was all about the here and now. Or just the fact that the stories are always at the top of your Instagram profile page so we often see them first!
Since its inception, Instagram has introduced several cool features that enhance how Insta story content is presented. These include boomerangs, superzooms, polls, type mode, emoji sliders, questions, and even music in stories!
However, for many businesses that have Instagram accounts, stories are still new territories. This can be due to not having enough knowledge about this feature or even feeling that it will not enhance their monthly social media content calendars. Some might even think that it is too informal or “light” to promote their brands professionally.
Before you decide whether or not you should invest time and effort in Insta stories for your interior design business, have a look at the below examples of how you can promote your home decor business with Insta stories. You might just be surprised by some of the perks this format can offer you!
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Be creative and engage your audience with home decor Insta stories
One of the biggest benefits of Insta stories is the opportunity to engage with your audience. You can choose various formats to make your stories fun and exciting. For instance: You can ask your followers to answer questions about your business, you can do a fun poll about your projects or you can do an emoji poll about a recent project. Your followers will love this interactive way that content is presented – you are, after all, asking them for their input and involving them in your business!
Using Instagram Stories to create interest and urgency
Insta stories are available to be watched over a limited time. That means they are usually very timely content. For an interior designer, this could be behind the scenes from work content or even attending an event.
Your followers will get alerts when you have published a new story, or they will see when they log into their Instagram account that a new story was published. This creates excitement and interest – they will want to see what is new and what is happening!
After 24 hours, your Insta story will either disappear or it can be categorized and watched from your profile under different themed icons. This is called archiving and has the benefit that your stories can be revisited.
Use apps to create consistent, branded home decor Insta stories templates
Insta stories can be spontaneous when the occasion calls for it, but what will really help you create a professional look and feel for planned stories is a well-put-together story template. There are loads of user-friendly apps that you can consider to create stories that have a similar layout or color scheme. These include the Canva app (also available to use on desktop), Unfold, Easil, and Over, to name only a few!
With so much creativity at your fingertips, it will be easy to promote your business professionally – especially if you prefer a more poised look for your interior design social media profile.
Cross-market your interior design stories on Facebook
As Instagram is owned by Facebook now, Instagram stories can be reposted automatically as your Facebook story, which can save you time and double your results in terms of engaging with your audience. It will also save you time to create even more interesting content.
In conclusion: Leverage every opportunity that you can with Instagram stories
It seems that Insta stories are not going anywhere and yet still, so many interior designers do not make use of them, even though they provide a great opportunity to show your skills authentically and build a deeper relationship with your followers.
So, break the mold and start promoting your interior design business with this dynamic, ever-evolving medium. Show another side of your daily life as an interior professional, whether you are a designer, a stager, a furniture maker, or an architect. There are many interesting aspects of your work that are worth showing to your followers and even things you can teach to your audience.
Always remember the golden rule of thumb: Keep it short, keep it engaging, keep it interesting!
Oh, and if you’d like to bring your Insta game to a whole new level, be sure to sign up for our Instagram course for interior designers. It contains everything you need to know to grow your home decor business with Instagram.
Image credits: Unsplash
For more Insta inspiration, be sure to visit our Instagram page where we share tips for managing your Instagram account every week.
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