Instagram has been a beloved app by consumers and marketers alike for quite some time. Instagram’s most recent feature addition “Stories”, released Fall 2016, offers brands a new way to interact with consumers within a platform they already have an established following on. It has been a few months since Stories debuted and now Instagram is taking them to a whole new level.
You probably have already seen some of the new features being used by your friends, there’s the Boomerang integration and ability to tag the person accompanying you in the photo. However, you might not be as familiar with the ‘See More’ links- this is because the new feature is reserved for verified accounts only. Let’s dive into what this new feature is all about and how your brand can utilize it.
Verified? Check!
Instagram in general has always been a platform to quickly and visually connect with your audience base. The ‘See More’ new feature now allows you to enhance that visual by connecting it to a webpage for further promotion. Have you just launched a new product? Are you selling tickets to a special event? Doing a Facebook Live Stream? You can now add a ‘See More’ link at the bottom of your Stories to direct your followers to a specific webpage where they can shop, purchase tickets, watch live, or simply read more. This is extremely beneficial when you want to provide your followers with more information than is possible with a simple image or short video. Moreover, given Instagram’s analytics, you’ll be able to track the clicks and webpage visitors. This new feature sure does wonders in setting Stories apart from Snapchat from a marketer’s perspective.
Not verified? No Problem!
Unfortunately, as it currently stands, there is no way for an account to request or apply to be verified. However, do not be dismayed! There’s another new feature rolling out to Instagram that will benefit your brand and it doesn’t require a check mark next to your username. ‘Shoppable Tags’ is the newest addition to Instagram’s countless features. They are exactly as they sound, you can click to view tags, just as you do when people are tagged, however now they will be a product name with a price. This is a valuable feature for brands, yet this feature can be utilized in a variety of ways. Influencers could also add ‘Shoppable Tags’ to their images when they’re promoting a brand, ultimately adding a tangible dollar amount to their post. Needless to say, we’ll be happy to say goodbye to the all-too-common “link in bio.”
Insta-worthy
With 2017 just around the corner, we’re excited to see how brands will utilize these new features. As consumers ourselves, we can’t say we’re mad at the fact that we will soon be able to shop within Instagram. Nothing is more annoying than seeing the cutest yoga pants in a post and having to hunt down where to buy them! Undoubtedly, Instagram’s new additions are sure to keep users browsing within their platform even more.