Instagram Stories have become an increasingly popular way to share your life with your friends and family, as well as a great tool for promoting yourself or your business. Posting an Instagram Story can boost engagement and reach, and help you gain followers. If you’re not sure how to post a story on Instagram, don’t worry. In this article, we’ll cover the step-by-step process to help you get started.
Step 1: Download the Instagram App
The first step needs to be downloading the Instagram app from either the Apple App Store (for iPhones) or the Google Play Store (for Android phones).
Once you access either the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store and open the Instagram page, click on the “INSTALL” button. This button can be found either in the middle or to the right-side of the page.
When the “INSTALL” button is clicked, within a few minutes you should have the Instagram app on your phone and ready to set up. Before setting up, double check you have chosen the correct version and it is up to date.
- Open the App Store/Google Play Store
- Choose the correct version of Instagram
- Click the “INSTALL” button
- Double check the version is up to date
Step 2: Create an Account
Select a Website: The first thing you need to do is decide on a website to create a new account on. Make sure it offers the services you need, and that it is a secure site. It should also be easy to use, and can even provide helpful information and tutorials to get you started.
Provide Your Information: After selecting a website, you will need to provide some personal information to complete registration for your account. This usually includes your name, email address, and a strong password. It may require some additional information such as a mailing address, phone number, and even profile picture.
Secure Your Account: After your account is created, take a few extra steps to make sure you stay secure.
- Enable two-factor authentication.
- Set up notifications for any unusual activity.
- Regularly change your password.
These steps can help you keep your account safe and secure.
Step 3: Select a Photo or Video
Once you’ve written your captivating post caption, it’s time to select the perfect photo or video to go along with it. Photos are great for drawing attention to your post and creating a visually stimulating atmosphere on the platform. Here are a few points to consider when choosing your image or video:
- Size: Choose an image or video that is the right size for the platform you’re using. Different platforms have different size requirements.
- Subject: Determine if the photo or video is relevant to the content in your post. It is also important to check if the photo or video is credited correctly if it belongs to a third-party provider.
- Quality: Make sure that the photo or video is of good quality. Pixelated images or low-resolution videos can arise from an originally low-quality source.
To make sure that your post looks professional and is up to standard, you should use the necessary tools and make sure you’ve taken care of the above points. Once you’ve selected the right file to accompany your post you’re ready to go.
Step 4: Add a Caption or Tag People
Once you have taken your photo or video, you can use the text boxes to add captions, tag your friends, and share what you are doing or where you are. Captions can include hashtags, to enable more people to find your post, as well as emoji and symbols to add a bit of fun!
Adding tags is a great way to get more engagement from your friends, as it prompts them to respond. By tagging friends, your post will appear in their notifications page, and you can see who has viewed and interacted with it. You can tag up to 5 friends in a post.
It is also important to think carefully about choosing the right words for your caption or tags, as they can have a big impact on the type of response you receive. Try to be positive and upbeat and avoid making comments that could be perceived as offensive. Make sure to use language that your friends, family, and followers understand.
Once you have finished crafting your post and adjusting your settings, the next step is to share the post to your story. To do this, click the arrow at the left side of the post and select the ‘Add Story’ option. Make sure to check your preview before clicking ‘Share to Story’. From here, you can customize your story with stickers, text, polls, and figures that suit the post.
Also, be sure to mention your post in the story so that your followers know that you have posted something new. An easy way to do this is to tag your post in your story so that people can go right to the post. When tagging, make sure to use the handle of your page (for example, on Instagram the handle will usually look like this: @examplehandle).
- Click the arrow at the left side of the post and select the ‘Add Story’ option.
- Check the preview before clicking ‘Share to Story’.
- Mention your post in the story by tagging it.
By sharing your post to your story, you have the opportunity to grab your followers’ attention and give them a sneak peek of what the post is about. This way, your followers are more likely to read and engage with the post.
Now you have all the steps to post a story on Instagram. From selecting an image to sharing it with your friends, all the elements to create an effective story are explained. So share your stories, have fun, and tag your friends!