Instagram Stories

One of the biggest features on Instagram is the Stories feature. With Stories, users add images or video clips to a story which is viewable for 24 hours before it vanishes.

You can view Story content as many times as you want within that 24-hour period. Stories appear as little circles at the top of your followers’ feeds, or you can view by tapping on an individual user’s profile picture.

You can also keep certain stories for your audience to view whenever they like, under a Story ‘Highlight’, which means they will remain in a saved section at the top of your grid.

A breakdown of Stories features:

• Video recording up to 15 seconds
• Image viewing up to 10 seconds
• Unlimited story additions
• Direct messaging within Stories
• You can track the total number of views and see which users have viewed your content
• Use of GIFs, filters and stickers to decorate your content

How can tourism businesses use Stories? Stories are a great way to keep in touch with your audience. Think of it as an instant yet temporary form of communication, like a broadcast message. You can post anything from:

• Updates of changes (e.g. opening times, stock levels)
• Announcements (e.g. collaborations, events)
• Behind the scenes (e.g. day in the life, how-tos)
• Questions (e.g. ‘what more would you like to see?’)