Instagram keeps changing social media with its photo and video sharing features. One of its most popular additions, Instagram Stories, is still very popular thanks to the new features being added.
With Instagram stories, you can let your followers know what you’re up to at any time. You can post short videos or vertical photos that vanish after 24 hours. You can see who views your stories, and you can save them as IG story highlights on your profile.
We’re noticing more brands using Instagram Stories, so we’ll show you the best Instagram Story size to make sure your videos and images look great on the app.
Here are some tips and the ideal dimensions for Instagram stories to help you make great and professional-looking posts.
For Instagram stories, your photo or video should be 1080 pixels wide and 1920 pixels tall. This creates a vertical rectangle with a 9:16 ratio.
You can use PNG or JPG files for your Instagram story, but make sure the image is under 30MB.
Instagram story videos should be 1080 by 1920 pixels in size and no larger than 4GB. You can use MP4 or MOV formats for your videos, with MP4 being the recommended choice.
Instagram is very particular about the size of stories. If your photo or video doesn’t fit the required dimensions, Instagram will crop or zoom in on it. This can result in lower quality and parts of your photo or video being cut off.
How Can I Create an Instagram Story?
To add a photo or video to your story, just take a vertical photo or video with your phone or camera.
Yes, that’s right. Filming in vertical format is different from the usual way videos are made. It lets you use more of the screen space on Instagram stories.
If you want to make Instagram stories with attractive text and professional-looking images, here are some extra steps to follow.
You can use an website like Crafty Art to make Instagram stories for yourself or your business. Pick from many great Instagram story templates that you can customize for your needs.
Instagram Story Tips & Ideas
Instagram stories are great because they’re versatile. You can use them to sell a product, promote your brand, or keep your followers updated.
Here are some fun ideas to make your Instagram Stories more engaging and interactive for your followers.
Call-to-Actions by Adding a Link
If you have a business profile on Instagram with more than 10,000 followers, you can add a link to your story. This lets your followers swipe up to visit a specific webpage, which is great for promoting a blog post or product.
If you’re not a business, you can still promote your new posts by asking people to visit your profile and click the link in your bio for more details. Make sure the link in your Instagram bio takes them to the right page.
Sneak Peeks and Behind-the-Scenes
You can use Instagram stories to show your followers what goes on behind the scenes in your life or business. Sharing teasers is a great way to get people excited about upcoming content and product launches.
Instagram Story Polls
Instagram now lets you add a poll to your stories. You can ask any question, and when your followers tap to answer, you can see their responses and who answered what.
This is basically free market research. By asking the right questions, you can learn a lot about your audience.
Showing content created by users and features of our brand
If you want to maintain a consistent look on your main Instagram feed, it’s usually better not to repost photos or videos from your customers. You can’t control how they create these posts. However, sharing Instagram Stories and testimonials from your customers can be a great way to add content.
Instagram stories are a great way to share what your users post about your product without cluttering your main feed. Reposting their content might even brighten their day!
If your brand gets any media coverage, use your Instagram stories to show it off. For example, Aritzia noticed that celebrity Hailey Baldwin was wearing one of their items. They took a screenshot of the article and shared it on their Instagram story.
Instagram Story Mistakes to Avoid
Long and Redundant Stories
On Instagram, each story can only be 15 seconds long, but you can post as many stories as you like. To keep your followers from skipping your stories, make them short and to the point.
Like Snapchat, no one wants to watch a long video when viewing a story. Stories are 15 seconds for a reason, so keep that in mind when posting.
Too Much Promotion
On social media, don’t promote your business or brand too much. Gary Vaynerchuk suggests giving value first before asking for something in return. This means sharing useful content before making a promotional post or call-to-action.
Excessive Text
Keep in mind that Instagram stories are only 15 seconds long. That’s enough time to read a short headline, but not a long story. So, keep it brief!
People don’t want to see a lot of text on their social media feeds. Be concise, make your content interesting, and ensure it provides value or entertainment.
Irrelevant Instagram Story Hashtags
Instagram Stories let you use hashtags to help people find your content. Don’t use too many hashtags, as it can look spammy, and avoid irrelevant ones.
Use a few relevant hashtags to make your stories easier to discover. We’ve written a guide on using Instagram hashtags, and the same tips apply to Stories.
Top Instagram Story Examples from Brands
1. HubSpot
HubSpot uses Instagram stories to boost engagement with their audience. They promote interesting articles, encourage user interaction, and offer incentives for followers to engage.
2. Puma Women
3. Mercedes Benz
In simpler terms, the Mercedes Benz team provides an exciting preview of their car show at the Los Angeles Convention Center. They share behind-the-scenes footage to get car enthusiasts excited about what they’ll experience. While photos are nice, seeing a car in person is a whole different level of excitement!
The Mercedes Benz AMG team does an excellent job showcasing their AMG class series to their fans.
You get to see a slice-of-life approach with Michelle enjoying the car in Beverly Hills. Although these stories are a clear ad for the car brand, they have created compelling content and have clearly shown the ideal lifestyle of a targeted female consumer that would want to be in Michelle’s shoes.
Final Thoughts
The answer is no. You don’t need to stop posting regular Instagram posts and only focus on Instagram Stories. Both types of content can complement each other and engage your audience in different ways.
Instagram Stories are a way to engage your audience by adding links, directing followers, and increasing brand awareness.
when you create an Instagram story, it doesn’t require much effort, but making it engaging may take a bit more work. To stand out, focus on using eye-catching visuals and graphics.
To ensure the best quality for your Instagram Stories, use the dimensions 1080 x 1920. This prevents cropping and maintains visual integrity. The same dimensions apply to Instagram story ads.
