5 Tips For Making Engaging Instagram Stories

In August 2016, Instagram rolled out a new feature that had widespread positive effects on Instagram usage. Instagram Stories became a new way to post to the ‘gram without having to be picture-perfect and made posting stress-free and fun again.

Stories are a great place to post behind-the-scenes content, promote fresh deals, or even provide educational content. In addition to images, you can also post videos with great built-in effects. In this quick guide, you’ll learn more about how IG Stories can help you grow your following.

An online Instagram activity tracker that will allow you to make your content more engaging
  1. What Are Instagram Stories
  2. Why Are Instagram Stories Important?
  3. Five Tips For Using Instagram Stories To Grow Your Account

A) Knowing When And How Often To Post

B) Using Stunning Visuals And Templates

C) Use Stickers That Encourage Engagement

D) Drive Organic Social Traffic To Your Website

E) Use Tools To View Instagram Stories Anonymously And Spy On Your  Competition

What Are Instagram Stories?

Instagram Stories is a feature that created a separate feed of photos that disappear after 24 hours. The fact that their availability is short gives viewers FOMO and a desire to constantly scroll through stories so they don’t miss something. One of the great things about IG Stories is that they show up at the top of the app and are quite hard to miss. Stories also introduced a way to share a link in your Instagram posts, something that is not available in regular feed posts.

Many people present a carefully curated look to their main Instagram feed, which doesn’t leave room for more casual photos and daily announcements. That’s where the beauty of IG Stories comes in. These stories do not become part of your permanent feed so that they won’t disrupt your branded look.

Why Are Instagram Stories Important?

According to Sprout Social, over 50% of Instagram users have visited a website or made a purchase after clicking on a link in Instagram Stories. This alone is a fantastic reason to implement a social media strategy for stories.

Another great reason to use IG Stories is that it increases your reach and engagement. Each time you add a new story post, your avatar jumps to the front of the line on the Instagram App’s top row, ensuring that more people see your content. You also have a lot of features within Stories that will help you engage with your audience. Engagement increases the bond between you and your audience and teaches the Instagram algorithm that your content is important and should be shown more often.

Instagram stories are not only engaging, but they are very addictive due to their short lifespan. Once you’ve watched all the stories from one user, the stories of the next user in line automatically start. This makes it easy for viewers to get sucked into watching IG Stories way longer than they intended. Story posts often receive more exposure and greater reach than static feed posts.

If you want to build a more personal, authentic brand, then story posts can certainly help. These posts are a great way to get to know your audience and start conversations that will create a deeper connection between you.

Track what other users are liking to better understand their interests

Five Tips For Using Instagram Stories To Grow Your Account

#1. Knowing When And How Often To Post

A study done by Buffer suggests that you post up to seven stories each day and spread them out throughout the day rather than posting them all at once. Posting throughout the day will make sure your avatar is bumped to the front of the line multiple times over the course of each 24-hour timespan.

You should look at your Instagram analytics to see when your audience is most active on the platform. You can schedule your story posts around these times. You must have a business or creator account to view your analytics. From your main profile feed, tap “professional dashboard” and “see all.” From this page, you will tap on “total followers” and scroll to the bottom; this will be where you find your follower’s most active times per day. Be sure to check the busiest times of each day of the week as the times might vary, especially on weekends.

#2. Using Stunning Visuals And Templates

Even though Instagram Stories are designed to be more casual, this is no time to get lazy with the graphics. You will want to post eye-catching designs and clear, well-lit photos. You can post single images, videos, or graphic templates in vertical format.

If you need help creating stunning story images, you’re in luck because there are some great free and paid apps to help you make a lasting impression. These apps include drag-and-drop editing to help you make tons of graphics with ease, and they give you the ability to change text and colors even with zero graphic design experience.

One of the best and easiest-to-use apps for making IG Stories is Canva. You can use the desktop or mobile phone app to create your images. It comes with tons of free templates to use. You can use the app for free with limitations or pay for a pro plan that includes lots of free graphics for you to use in your designs.

You can also use Instagram’s own tools for adding filters and text to stories to help them look amazing. Use sticker gifts of arrows or circles to highlight important parts of your text.

#3. Use Stickers That Encourage Engagement

Once you have a photo or video loaded to Stories, tap on the sticker icon to add exciting ways for your audience to interact with your content. There are a few types of poll stickers to play with and a question box. Story interaction is important because the more interaction you get, the more people your stories will be displayed to.

You can add text, music, and fun gifts to your story to draw attention and make it pop. Instagram also has built-in templates and filters to help make your photos and videos unique.

One technique people use to direct attention back to their feed is to share their most recent feed posts to stories and dress them up with stickers that encourage you to tap on the image to read more. You can also share other’s people feed posts or Reels to your stories to show support.

The Snoopreport tool provides, among other things, reports on the user’s new followings and unfollows

#4. Drive Organic Social Traffic To Your Website

Also found under the sticker tab is a feature that will allow you to add a link to your story. In the past, users had to have over 10,000 followers to get this feature, but it is now available to everyone. The link sticker comes in three different formats; just tap on the link once you’ve posted it to cycle between the choices. The link styles come in blue, white, or black. In your Instagram analytics, you’ll be able to see how many times your link was clicked on to help measure your results.

This is a great way to drive free organic traffic from your social media account to your website or storefront. You can use this feature to get viewers to read your latest blog post, watch a YouTube video, or even sign up for a product or service. Story links are a great way to promote limited-time offers, new products, or even new content that will help your business grow.

#5. Use Tools To View Instagram Stories Anonymously And Spy On Your Competition

One drawback to stories is that there is no native way to watch them covertly. In fact, the account owner can look up exactly who viewed each and every one of their stories. This could be bad if you want to scroll through your competition’s stories anonymously or if you want to view stories of a public account that has blocked you.

Collect valuable insights about your audience’s behavior to increase profile reach and engagement

Fortunately, there are a few free services you can use to view stories of any pubic account without being detected. Here are a few of the top free services you can use right now for anonymous story viewing:

Insta-Stories-Viewer

Instanavigation

InstaStories.Watch

Most of these applications work the same way; simply copy and paste the profile URL of the account you want to spy on into their search bar and let the app go to work. These tools will only work on public accounts, but you can use them to view accounts that have you blocked. Most of them will let you see more than just stories, though; you can also watch their live feeds and download their content as well. You don’t need to be logged into Instagram or have an account.

Speaking of anonymity and innocent Instagram stalking, try Snoopreport to get in-depth information on any public account. You can see someone’s following history as well as what types of content they interact with the most. You’ll be able to get a weekly activity report on any pubic Instagram account. This is a great way to spy on the competition without getting caught, and it’s 100% legal.

How to Use Instagram Story Viewer Tools: The Ultimate Guide

How to Use Instagram Story Viewer Tools

Instagram Stories can tell you a lot about a person — what they’ve been doing, what they’re interested in, where they’ve been spending their time, and so much more. When you see that multi-colored ring around someone’s profile picture, you know there’s something new to check out. But what if you don’t want to choose between watching someone’s Story and maintaining your privacy? That’s where an Instagram viewer comes in handy. Learn all about these popular tools and how to use them in our expert guide.

Snoopreport tool allows to go beyond anonymously viewing Instagram stories

Table of Contents:

What Are Instagram Story Viewer Tools?

Simply put, an Instagram Story viewer tool is a tool like an app or site that lets you watch an IG Story anonymously. Normally, when you watch someone’s Story, Instagram notifies the poster that you watched it. This doesn’t happen with posts; only Stories.

There are many reasons you might not want someone to know that you watched their Story. First of all, it feels like a violation of privacy on the principle alone. Plenty of people don’t like the idea of Instagram reporting their views to someone else and prefer to stay anonymous.

Second, there may be social reasons you don’t want a poster to know you’re watching their Stories. Maybe they’ve posted information you want to know but you have a complicated hiStory with them and you worry that it will spark an awkward conversation or send the wrong message if they see that you watched their Story. An anonymous Story viewer lets you leave the drama behind.

Third, you might be looking for information about someone discreetly. You don’t have to be an Instastalker – you might just want to keep an eye on your significant other or your child. You might also be gathering insights for marketing purposes, such as studying people who fall into your target demographic to learn about their interests and hobbies.

Regardless of the reason, Instagram Story viewers can help you get the information you want without announcing it to the poster.

General report on the Instagram activity of the monitored user

How to Use Instagram Story Viewer Tools

If you’re new to Instagram Story viewer tools, the good news is that most of them are very easy to use. While the details may vary from one tool to the next, the basic steps are often the same.

1.    Choose a Story Viewer Tool

The first task is to choose which Story viewer tool you want to use. There are numerous options available, each with its own features and variations. Some are apps you install while others are sites you can open on any browser, and some are free while others require paid plans. Use caution and read user reviews to find tools you can trust, because some Story viewers don’t work and some could even be harmful to your devices or compromise your digital privacy.

2.    Find the Story Poster’s Profile

Once you’ve decided on a tool, you’ll need to know who posted the Story you want to watch. It’s best to search by their username – the phrase or words that appear at the top of their profile rather than the name that appears below their profile picture. You might also see it with an “@” at the beginning. There could be multiple profiles with the same name but there can only be one with their username, so this ensures that you’re reaching the right profile on your Story viewer.

3.    Search the Story Poster’s Profile

When you know the username for the profile you want to find, open your chosen IG Story viewer. Most of these platforms are very simple: just a basic search bar on the homepage. Type the username into that search bar and you should be able to find the profile you want. You’ll be able to see their profile just as it would appear on Instagram.

4.    Find and Watch the Story

Now that you’re on the right profile in your anonymous viewer tool, you can click to discreetly watch any Story you want without the poster’s knowledge. It’s that easy!

It’s important to note that some Story viewers have limits on the number of Stories you can view in a time period or the number of Stories you can view without a paid subscription.

Detailed follows report provided by Snoopreport

Most Popular Instagram Story Viewer Tools

As you’re looking for tools to watch an Instagram Story anonymously, you’ll notice that there are countless options available. Where do you even begin to decide which one to use? While it’s always important to read reviews and check out pricing, features, and other details, these are some of the top Instagram Story viewer tools you may try.

Smihub

Smihub is about as simple and easy as it gets. It’s a website you can open on any browser with a search bar so you can find the profiles you’re looking for. You can also search for a hashtag if you’d like to see Stories that include a particular hashtag. As an added bonus, Smihub lets you download content from users’ Instagram profiles – something you can’t do on Instagram by default.

InstaStories

InstaStories has long been one of the most popular ways to view an Insta Story. It’s a free tool that anyone can use. In fact, you don’t even need an Instagram account. Much like Smihub, you just open the site on your browser, search for the poster’s profile, and click on their Stories to watch them anonymously.

StoriStalker

StoriStalker is a tool that touts itself as an “Insta stalker” service, but you don’t have to be checking up on an ex for this tool to be helpful. You do need to sign up for an account to use this product, and while some information is free, other information requires you to pay for access.

How to Learn More from Instagram Anonymously

Viewing Stories anonymously can tell you a lot about a person without them knowing your every move, but this isn’t the only way to anonymously learn about a person on Instagram. Another tool you can add to your roster is Snoopreport.

Snoopreport allows you to track posts that a person has liked and accounts they are newly following, along with their top hashtags and topics of interest. It’s an exceptional way to learn what type of content interests someone and who they’re interacting with on Instagram, and you get all that information without the person’s knowledge.

If you’d like to see for yourself, follow these steps to use Snoopreport.

1.    Create a Snoopreport Account

Start by creating a Snoopreport account so you can keep track of the profiles you’re following and see your previous reports. To do so, just go to Snoopreport.com and click “Sign Up” in the top right corner.

2.    Choose Your Snoopreport Subscription Plan

Once you have your account registered, it’s time to choose your subscription plan. Snoopreport plans start at less than $5 per month, with higher-priced plans available depending on the number of accounts you want to track at any given time.

3.    Choose the Accounts You Want to Watch

Now that you have purchased your plan, you’ll be able to start tracking any public Instagram accounts you choose. On your dashboard, click “Add Account.” Type in the Instagram username for the profile you want to watch and click “Check.” If you see the correct profile appear, click “Add Account” next to it.

4.    Enjoy Your Weekly Reports

Your work is done! With your desired accounts added, you’ll start receiving a report each week for each of your selected accounts. That detailed report will show you all the posts they’ve liked over the past week, organize their liked posts based on the posters they interact with most often, and show you a variety of other data about their activity for the week.

How to see what someone likes on Instagram?

Important Facts and Tips About Instagram Story Viewer Tools

If you’re using an Instagram Story viewer for the first time, there are a few things you’ll want to know to make your experience smoother.

Public vs. Private Accounts

For most IG Story viewer tools, the only profiles you’ll be able to access to watch Stories are public profiles. A private Instagram profile is a profile that has its content (including Stories) blocked except for users who have requested to follow the profile and have been granted access by the profile owner. Those private profiles aren’t visible with most Instagram Story viewers.

Instagram Story Availability

If you’re new to Instagram, you may not realize that Instagram Stories are temporary – they are only visible for 24 hours. Instagram Story viewers do not extend that time, so if you know there is a Story you want to watch anonymously, you’ll want to choose a Story viewer tool and check it out promptly.

Limited Information

Instagram Story viewers are fantastic tools, but they’re still limited. They only show you what you would be able to see on the person’s Instagram profile normally, just with added anonymity. If you want more detailed information about a person, it’s best to pair an anonymous Story viewer with another tool like the Snoopreport Instagram activity tracker.

Using Tools to Learn About Someone on Instagram

Whether you’re trying to learn about someone for marketing or personal reasons, the right combination of tools will make all the difference. Use the guide above to take advantage of Instagram Story viewer tools and sign up for Snoopreport to get started.

Register on Snooperport.com and start using Instagram activity tracker right now!

How we experienced the smartest way to find influencers on Instagram

Snoopreport is the Instagram monitoring service that tracks user actions as likes, comments and follows.

To start monitoring Instagram users you just need to add their usernames in your dashboard and buy a time package of 4, 26 or 52 weeks.

Snoopreport will provide you the results in weekly and monthly reports in PDF format and all user actions in CSV report that contains the data about users, their posts, links and other metrics useful for in-depth analytics.

In addition to the individual PDF and CSV reports Snoopreport also offers you group reports to apply for analysis of the user groups behavior.

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