Instagram’s small businesses are ‘leading the way’ in Stories usage and innovation
Instagram is reporting that 100 million of its users are now uploading Stories on its platform every day. Yet despite there being no purpose-built advertising slot in the feature for brands to play with, it is businesses that are “leading the way” in creating this ephemeral content, according to its head of small/medium business advertising EMEA, Jen Ronan.
Stories, the offering launched in August this year, was designed to make it easier for users to share their ‘daily moments’, while its newsfeed was stripped of chronological order and loaded with a personalised algorithm. As such, Ronan said she has seen her charge using Stories to “tell the moments in between the more iconic shots in their feed”.
“Because businesses play such a rich role within our community, we’ve seen they are the profiles that have led the way and really innovated in [the Stories] space,” she said. “They’re telling stories of behind the scenes, of the day to day, and really building their brand in that way.”
Ronan’s comments are more than just PR guff: the small businesses her team chose to showcase at last night’s #Instagiftguide event echoed her observations. Georgia Green, the owner of colourful bakery Georgia’s Cakes, said Stories works for her business page because the more ad-hoc photos and videos she uploads through the feature don’t impede on the highly edited, portfolio-style nature of her profile.
“It doesn’t matter what they look like on your page and they can be a lot more personal…it’s nice for my customers and followers to see what I’m like as a person,” she explained.
Alec Farmer, the founder of outdoor accessory brand Trakke, agreed: “It’s quite nice that we can have a well-curated gallery on our feed, and also upload the spontaneous, day-to-day stuff.”
“We’ve got tools like Boomerang and Hyperlapse and we’re also seeing businesses really playing around with,” said Ronan. “They can be used to tell the lighter side of their businesses.”
The next big project for Instagram’s business teams to take on – and eventually monetise – will no doubt be live streaming, a new feature it announced last week. Ronan said that while she had “nothing to share at this moment in time” regarding plans to entice advertisers to the platform with arguably 2016’s hottest video trend, she said Instagram has “heard lots of excitement about it”.
“People have seen great success on the Facebook side and with other live channels, but at this moment it’s too early to tell,” she explained.
Ronan also said that her 2017 focus will be on continuing to “make it even easier for businesses to connect with the people that matter to them and their customers”.
With the Facebook metrics review still looming large at her parent company – a subject the brand “don’t have anything additional to share at this time” - it will surely also be about keeping interest and trust alive with her brand partners too.
Other episodes in the series
Episode 1
Cadbury unleashes the moo of its animatronic cow to promote bovine adoption promo
Cadbury Dairy Milk took to the ever-popular activation spot of the Southbank this week with an animatronic cow in order to promote its Buttons brand’s bovine adoption scheme.
Episode 2
‘Alexa, order me a cocktail’: Diageo and Dentsu Aegis test voice activation in the connected bar
Connected devices, the internet of things and voice activation: all innovations the modern marketer usually confines to the bounds of the home. But in Cannes this year Diageo has teamed up with Dentsu Aegis agencies Isobar and iProspect to bring these technologies into a new consumer market: the bar.
Episode 3
Welcome to the mind of Mark Denton: a look at the work in his Art Mart gallery
The extraordinary creative mind that is Mark Denton has his own art gallery – a grocery shop styled show in Shoreditch, London.
Episode 4
Inside the San Miguel Experience: why the brand is investing in immersive events
San Miguel launched its Rich List campaign earlier this year in a bid to celebrate individuals who have dedicated their lives to seeking our new experiences. Now the beer purveyor is turning to live events to help recruit applicants.
Episode 5
‘It’s not a political statement’: why Publicis is celebrating immigration through artwork
Visit Publicis’ London office on Baker Street throughout August and you’ll find yourself in the midst of an art gallery curated to celebrate the creative lifeblood that immigrants – and the children of immigrants – bring to British culture. However the show should not be read as a political statement, according to the agency’s chief executive.
Episode 6
New York's window displays reviewed by Deutsch head of design Roger Bova
Holiday window displays by big retailers make the season sparkle, with shoppers mesmerized by the shiny details that go into each exhibit.
Episode 7
Behind the scenes of EasyJet's last minute Christmas campaign
On a snowy December morning outside of Terminal One of Gatwick Airport, Santa was seen clambering up and down an escalator without a reindeer close by.
Episode 8
ABB on why its title sponsorship of Formula E is as much about brand reputation as awareness
Tech company ABB hopes its title sponsorship of Formula E will finally make it a global name. But the deal is also fuelled by an authentic support of the race’s underlying philosophy – in spite of its political and sporting controversies.
Episode 9
#TrumpBaby takes flight – and proves the brand-building case for crowdfunding
Today (13 July) saw a rotund orange pocket of air fly above London’s Parliament Square in protest of Donald Trump’s visit to the UK. The huge media interest in the event has proven that crowdfunding a creative idea can not only work but can build a solid brand for the project in the process.
Episode 10
Panasonic wants consumers to adopt a ‘buy less, respect more’ approach to tech
Panasonic Design’s dark but calming installation at the London Design Biennale encapsulates the brand’s refreshed approach to tech – one that connects less with 20th century consumerism and more with the Japanese approach to care and respect.