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Stickers = sticky sales
Remember the days of swipe-up links that were limited to influencers, verified accounts, or those with at least 10,000 followers?
Thankfully, those days came to a crashing halt in October of 2021 when Instagram announced that it would expand the ability to add links in Stories to all accounts via a new Link sticker. The reason for this, Instagram stated, was to allow small businesses, creators, and change-makers to share resources and information to inspire their communities.
Great news for Sked Social customers: we now support auto-publishing stories with link stickers! Read more about their importance below or see how to schedule an Instagram story with a link sticker now.
Now - regardless of your account size - your business has space to share the things that matter to you the most. From organizing and educating around equity and social justice initiatives to showcasing new product drops to customers, link sharing is a powerful tool that can be used to create engaged online communities. But it gets even better. Link stickers are also one of the best ways to drive sales for your business
So how do you add a link to your story and inspire your customers to take action? Keep reading to find out!
How to add link stickers to your Instagram Stories
Previously, links were added to Instagram Stories through use of the swipe-up feature. When Instagram rolled out the link feature to all accounts, they switched over to a Link sticker that could be added to any Instagram story with ease. When a user taps on the sticker, they’ll be redirected to the webpage of your choice. The whole process takes under 10 seconds, all said and done.
Follow these simple steps to add a Link sticker to your story:
[image credit: Instagram]
- Capture or upload a photo or video to your story via the Instagram app
- Select the sticker tool from the top navigation bar
- Tap the “Link” sticker icon and add your desired external link
- In the Sticker text, enter the text you want to show up on the sticker instead of the URL
- Place the sticker on your story. That’s it! You can customize your sticker by tapping to see color variations and move the link icon around the screen so its placement doesn’t obscure other story elements
What are the benefits of using Link stickers?
On the surface, social media marketing might look like just posting some nicely edited photos and entertaining videos. But any social media manager knows that it plays an important role in your business’s overall sales process.
Your job as a social media marketer is to use any tool you have at your disposal to drive both awareness and conversions. When it comes to conversions for your small biz, it doesn’t get much better than Link stickers.
Here are a few examples of how you motivate your followers to take action using the Link sticker feature:
- Allow users to shop a product page or collection
- Drive traffic to a landing page offer or popular blog post
- Open a lead magnet or downloadable resource
- Book a complimentary consult call
- Sign up for access to courses or training
You might be thinking - “wait, can’t my Instagram bio link do all of this?” Technically yes, but the benefit of adding an Instagram Link sticker to your story is that it reduces the amount of steps required for a user to convert. The more steps involved in your conversion process, the more dropoff you’re likely to have between each step.
By implementing strong CTAs and making your link easily accessible, you increase the odds of a user clicking your link and converting to a paying customer for your business.
Tips for adding Instagram Link stickers
Use Link stickers strategically and sparingly
The old adage goes: “with great power comes great responsibility.” The same goes for Instagram Story links. Even though Instagram has given businesses the ability to add Link stickers to stories however they choose, you should still aim to use your links in strategic and creative ways.
Avoid adding link stickers to every single story you post. This is a surefire way to annoy your followers and come off as spammy, which can have the opposite effect you want.
Instead, your links should be used sparingly. A good rule of thumb is one Link sticker per story series. Your Link sticker should support your overall customer experience and allow users to purchase with ease.
Integrate your Link sticker into your story design
As we mentioned above, your Link sticker should enhance your customer experience, not hinder it. The best way to do this is through clean design that puts your brand’s best foot forward and makes people want to click on it.
You don’t have to defer to Instagram’s story sticker design either. You can use design elements like gifs, aesthetic imagery and templates that show rather than tell people why they should buy from you.
Check out how Anthropologie seamlessly integrates their Instagram Link stickers into their branded story templates with a clever image overlay:
Sked tip: Create your own beautiful Story content with a free design tool like Canva! With pre-made templates, hundreds of graphic design features, and easy drag-and-drop functionality, creating content feels like a breeze. Check out our full guide to get started with creating Instagram content on Canva.
Double check your links to ensure the content adheres to Instagram’s Community Guidelines
One of the risks of Instagram enabling link sharing for all accounts is that it opened the door for the sharing of things like hate speech, misinformation, and other content that violates their Community Guidelines.
Now we know most businesses wouldn’t share this type of content intentionally. But if you’re sharing information from an external source, it’s always a good idea to double check that the content is factual and that the link leads to the correct destination. Otherwise, you run the risk of having your Instagram account flagged or worse - removed altogether.
Checking your Link sticker analytics
As a social media manager, you no doubt know the importance of proving your social media ROI. There’s nothing worse than your work being undervalued by a client, so anytime you have the data to back up your case, you should jump on it.
Thankfully, Instagram has integrated Link sticker analytics into its Insights platform. Here’s how to view the amount of clicks your Link stickers are getting on each story:
- Open the app and click the insights button at the top of your Instagram profile.
- Click on Accounts engaged - this is where you’ll be able to see how Instagram users engage with your content.
- In the Engagement tab, scroll down to Story interactions and click the arrow next to “Top Stories.”
- Open up the Stories tab and in the top left-hand corner, change the metric from Replies to Link Clicks. Adjust your time period and boom - you’ll be able to see exactly how many Link sticker clicks each of your stories received.
Get even more sales for your business by pairing your Instagram Link stickers with an action-packed Instagram bio link
Your Instagram bio link and Instagram Story Link stickers are a power duo for your business’s Instagram success. They work together to hit two different audience segments: those who are instantly ready to take action and those who need a little more convincing before they’re ready to buy.
Sked Link helps you make the most of your Instagram account. Add buttons to anywhere on the web and view them all in a gallery of your Instagram posts to direct users to the right page. Plus design it so it’s all on-brand.
With your story links driving direct conversions and your Sked Link providing a common destination for popular blog posts, newsletter signups, or product collections, you’ll be on your way to smashing your revenue goals in no time! Try it out today with our free 7-day trial.
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