Dec 23, 2019
As a dedicated Instagram user, you must have noticed what a variety of new filters and effects for Story videos and photos are already available thanks to Instagram AR creators. But did you know that there are thousands of magnificent Instagram Stories filters hidden just inside Instagram? Once you learn how to find and use them, you will open a completely new world of color grades, tones and effects to select from for your on-brand Stories without even leaving the application. InstaBF, a known provider of Instagram and IGTV likes, comments, and followers, will explain how to find and use the best hidden filters and enhance your Stories starting from today!
2019 brought such a crucial and Instagram history-changing feature as AR filters. Its success shows that the feature is sure to go even stronger and more used in the upcoming year. Once Spark AR Studio became open for all users, a new strong wave was activated on the platform. Numerous companies created and published their brand AR filters and boosted awareness. And if you had to use third-party applications such as Lightroom or VSCO to add tones, color grading and effects to your images and videos before posting them as Stories, now you needn’t leave Instagram to use them. And if you don’t know which filter is most appropriate for your content, make use of the new Effects Gallery introduced by the creator community. Sadly, this feature is massively under-utilized, yet.
So, suppose you are in a search for a new Story effect. For this, follow these steps:
- Visit a creator’s Instagram profile;
- Get to the new effects tab just above their feed;
- Browse all the AR effects the creator has introduced;
- Tap on the effect you liked and click on “Try it”;
- Once the Stories camera opens and you like the new effect, tap the “save” icon (find it in the lower corner to the right of the effect);
- The effect will be saved and you can use it whenever you wish just by opening the Stories camera and tapping on it.
If you want to enrich your filter gallery, tap Browse More Effects” to open the Effects Gallery. Here you will be able to find a myriad of custom AR effects sorted by topic or category.
For instance, if you need filter-style effects, you can go straightly to the “Camera Styles” in Effects Gallery and then search for the “Colors and Light” channel. Here you will find various options including film filters, high-grain effects, retro-inspired color filters, etc. After saving whichever options you liked, they will be saved to your favorite filters and effects. Whenever you open your Stories camera, you will see them to the left of your capture button.
Be aware, that Instagram Stories filters are only for those images and videos that you take on the spot. They can’t be applied to the existing content that you upload from the camera roll. Use them while shooting new footage.
The next time you are to post an Instagram Story swipe to access them, choose a particular effect, start recording as you normally do, and post a new highly engaging Story!
Dec 22, 2019
Social media advertising is an integral part of a well-schemed strategy. And if you run it, good for you. And what about Instagram Story ads? With over 500 million people watching Stories daily, it definitely makes sense including this feature in your marketing campaign, doesn’t it?
Being integrated between ordinary Stories, Story ads look normal. However, people tend to swipe through them. Hence, if the Story ad you make doesn’t grab attention at first sight, it won’t convert. How to get someone interested in your ad in just a few seconds? This sounds challenging, doesn’t it? InstaBF, a leading Instagram and IGTV provider, is going to provide you with an ultimate guide right away.
How You Can Create Instagram Story Ads
If you have made up your mind to start a new campaign for a Story ad, great! Here is how you can do that:
- Instagram Story ads are created through Ads Manager similar to Facebook ads. Get there and tap Campaign. Then click Create.
- Now distinguish between several options depending on your objective: Brand Awareness, App Installs, Reach, Traffic, Conversions, Lead Generation. If you aren’t sure which is appropriate for your case, make use of the special link that serves as a guide in choosing the objective. Tapping on your objective, you will see another box appear. Name your campaign and switch on the Split test and Campaign Budget Optimization if you need it. Tap Continue.
- Now it’s turn to give a title to your ad set and select the audience. Here you can either use a saved audience or create a new one. To create the profile that best matches your ideal customer, set age, interests, locations, and gender.
- Once the audience is set, pass to selecting the placement. For this, go to the Placement section and choose either Automatic or Edit Placements. In the first case, the ads will run on all platforms and Stories, as well. However, if you want your ad to run only as a Story ad, choose Edit placement and give the necessary settings. Mark the boxes you would like your ad to appear in.
- The next section to check is the Budget & Schedule. Here you can set a cost control and set a precise budget on a per-click basis. If you plan to run your ads for a limited time (the ads are promotional, for instance), set the schedule.
- After all the points are completed, you can create the ad. Give it a name and choose both Facebook and Instagram accounts it should run on.
- Set the right format for your ads. Here you can choose a video format or a carousel post format. In the second case, mention whether you need a Native Stories Carousel that automatically displays three cards with full-screen creative (must be bought exceptionally as a standalone Gram Stories placement), or Expandable Stories Carousel displaying up to ten cards.
- To track the performance of the Story ads, switch on the Facebook pixel. To give it a start, press Confirm and your ads will get to work!
If you want your Instagram Story Ads to be effective, here are a few tips:
- Try the video format;
- Keep the ad simple and short;
- Make certain you have included the logo;
- Incorporate a meaningful CTA;
- Add sound and music;
- Draw eyes away from the word “Sponsored” on the top left corner.
Dec 19, 2019
Would you like to increase your engagement on Instagram Stories? Why not make use of such an amazing feature as Story polls?! They are a fabulous way to move an Instagram marketing strategy forward while keeping your followers interested and amused. Story polls can provide you with a higher level of engagement than any ordinary Story no matter how unique that might be.
So, not neglecting the power of Instagram Story polls, InstaBF would like to address them in this blog post. But before that, you can pas to the main page of this website and learn how to order Instagram and IGTV likes, comments, followers and views on a profitable basis.
Playing a Quick Round of Trivia
The primary way you can use a Story poll is by asking engaging trivia questions. Trivia is simple yet quite engaging and flexible. You can ask questions about any current event, about your products, etc. It will be great to start with easy ones and then gradually increase their difficulty until you get the level that works the best for your audience.
Building Interest Around New Products
This idea is great especially for small businesses that can carry only a limited amount of products. Suppose, you own a small boutique and can only offer one of the two models. Which to choose? The one you liked the most? Won’t it be more sensible to be based on the opinions of your possible buyers – your followers? Just ask the people you targeted when setting the business. The same can be done by restaurants, cafes, etc. Ask them whether or not they would buy this or that product, choose this or that color, style, etc.
Curating Content
When you decide what content to post, it’s clear you should rely on your marketing strategy and your knowledge in your target audience. And the best way of learning whether your followers like what you post is asking them straight through Story polls. So, before you determine to post a new type of content you haven’t before, it will be sensible to throw a simple poll and ask your followers if they are interested in it. This way you won’t risk losing your followers because of unrelatable content.
Keeping Up with Trends
Perhaps the easiest way of using an Instagram poll and entertaining your followers is by putting a poll related to what’s currently trendy. This might be a major sports event, a new TV show, a meal you’re trying for the first time, etc. The best thing about this idea is that it has huge flexibility and availability for personalization. You can try around different options to find what’s best for your unique audience.
Building Suspense
Do you have a major upcoming announcement for your brand? A new product line or a new blog post? One of the easiest yet working ways of using Story polls is bringing attention to your new launches and hype the things up a bit. If you find you’re going to use this idea, consider to simply ask your followers if they are excited about the upcoming event, or even show how they can use a new product, etc. Use it in any way that aligns with your brand to create suspense around your brand and let your followers know something bit is coming!
Dec 17, 2019
Instagram Stories are a grandiose way of boosting brand awareness and attracting new followers. The more interesting and unique your Stories are the higher your chances of success will be. And animated Instagram Stories appear just awesome. Such eye-catching content is on trend currently. Do you wonder how you can create them? By the way, you don’t have to own a professional camera or hurry a design team for creating animated Gram Stories. With your bright imagination and a proper application (there are multiple apps for creating Stories available), you will get your freshly animated Story within a few clicks. InstaBF, your unique means of raising Instagram and IGTV engagement, is ready to show you how you can create a fantastic Story animation. Flashy and eye-catching animated Stories are more likely to stop your followers to watch them. Fortunately, there are many applications available today that you can use. So, you can do that right from your smartphone. Just keep your excitement high and your eyes on this article.
Life Lapse for Stop-Motion Stories
Life Lapse is a wonderful application you can use to create top quality stop motion videos just from your gadget. Besides, it has easy tutorials that guide through the entire process. In fact, the application allows creating videos ten times faster with a simple smartphone than a pro editing software or an expensive camera can! Additionally, the application also comes packed with filters, a diversity of speeds, stock music. The interval timer, meanwhile, helps to get the right timing for your videos. It’s available for iOS devices completely free.
Enlight Pixaloop Will Bring Motion to Your Images
Pixaloop, developed by Lightricks, can easily bring an element of surprise to any static image by adding movement. Using it is so easy, but if you feel uncertain, here is a brief guide:
- Place arrows to designate the motion in the photo;
- In order to eliminate the speed in the animated area, add anchors.
You see, there’s absolutely nothing difficult in using the application. It just requires some practice. Pixaloop is available on iOS devices.
StoryBoost for Seamless Gram Stories
If you have a stock of images or footage and want to transform them into videos, StoryBoost is the application you need. It comes packed with a myriad of story page templates, as well as custom transitions that make sharing multiple short videos seamlessly. So, tapping forward, your followers will view a single and connected story. The application also has GIFs, stickers, and fonts that make image customization an easy thing. It’s available for iOS smartphones.
Adobe Spark for Creating Animated Graphics
If you plan to create animated graphics without having any design experience, Adobe Spark can be handy. The app is packed with multiple stock images free of charge, filters, and fonts. Adobe Spark will help you add a touch of animation to a photo or even a text. It’s completely free and easy to use on both iOS and Android devices.
Dec 16, 2019
Having talked about the power of the Instagram Stories campaign, InstaBF also started a free guide to planning out your first Stories campaign. Ready to go on?
Figure Out Your Strategy and Creative
Deciding on the creative direction you will have a Story campaign totally different from your ordinary stories content. And if you feel uncertain about the strategy and creative direction, we offer to your attention four basic elements to pay close attention to.
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Define Your Campaign’s Concept
Whatever concept lies in the basis of your Insta Stories campaign, it must be closely tied to the campaign goals. For instance, if you aim at promoting a new product line, the concept must be driving sales and the creatives to use should include product stickers, clicks on the link in the bio, swipe-ups to your brand’s website, and so forth.
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Designate the Visual Style of Your Stories Campaign
Just as it’s important to have a brand voice, building a Stories banding kit is a must. It includes inspirational imagery, a static color palette, a design style guide, fonts, defined filters.
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Draft the campaign message and editorial style of your campaign
Having schemed a campaign message you will feel sure about introducing, explaining and even selling your product as long as the campaign is consistent. Hence, draft a couple of words that you’re going to weave during every campaign asset.
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Distinguish with the Stories features
It’s definitely a good idea to establish particularly what features of Stories you’re going to use in promoting the campaign. In case it’s built around a giveaway, which is time-sensitive, a countdown sticker will create interest around it the best.
And don’t neglect Spark AR effects! You can always create and promote AR effects related to your own brand to drive more traction.
Get a Storyboard for the campaign
A storyboard is a visual representation of your campaign that will help you foresee how it will unfold right from the beginning. It will help you determine how to convey your message most effectively.
Create the Assets
Now it’s time to get down with your Stories Campaign Assets, i.e. the content you’ll post including images, videos, GIFs, graphics, etc. Depending on the scope of the campaign, the assets will drastically differ. For instance, in case if you plan to promote a giveaway or a contest, lifestyle shots, illustration, UGC might work well as assets.
Schedule the Campaign
Now just combine all the components and create your Instagram content calendar. It’s not necessary to have the official launch day of a product/event identical to the timeline of Instagram. Besides, think about the lifespan of the content you’ll share and the frequency.
Promote the Campaign
The basic goal of any Instagram Stories campaign is to reach as many people as possible. For its promotion, draft a strategy. Create hype around it with a countdown sticker, partner with compatible influencers to build excitement, create a campaign hashtag, etc.
Go Live on Instagram on the Campaign Launch Day
Besides getting ready to answer questions, monitor the excitement and engage with your community on the launch day of the Stories campaign, there are several other points to perform. Here are they:
- Update your bio;
- Be quick with DM responses;
- Reshare the content your followers share;
- Go live for Q&A.
How successful the Stories campaign was, can be determined through Instagram metrics. Track your brand awareness KPIs (engagement rate, impressions, signups, e-commerce purchases, etc.).
