Instagram is an undeniably highly effective channel for businesses to achieve a huger audience — in fact, nearly 80% of the platform’s one billion users follow at least one business on Instagram.
The platform is ultimately a site for engagement: we “like” friends’ pictures, comment on their posts, and tag friends in influencer giveaways to try and win a free pair of yoga pants.
In short — in case your brand is on Instagram, you should be communicating and engaging with your audience.
Luckily, in 2018 Instagram launched a new function that makes it simpler than ever to engage with, and receive feedback from, your followers — the Instagram’s Questions Sticker.
Here, let’s dive into how to use it.
How to Use Instagram’s Questions Sticker
1. Go to your Stories feature, and either add a picture or take one (I took one within the Stories function of my pizza box). Then, click on the square smiley face in the top right of your screen.
2. Click on the “Questions” module.
3. The default for the Questions Sticker is “Ask me a question” however you can click on the text to type a customized query — for example, I typed “I like this pizza place! What’s everybody’s favorite pizza toppings?” When you’re done, add filters or any other features you’d like to include.
If you’re ready to publish, click on “Send To” in the bottom right.
4. Lastly, click on “Share” beside “Your Story” to post your question to your Story.
5. If you are ready to see your followers’ answers to your question, open your Story and click on the pictures of the profiles in the bottom left (these are the people who have seen your Story).
6. You will see “Responses” above the list of people who have seen your post. To individually share one to your Story, click on it.
7. Click on “Share Response” to share an individual response to your Story for your other followers to see.
8. Next, take a picture or add one, and the follower’s response you selected will appear on top of the picture. If you are ready to post, click on “Send To” in the bottom right.
It is necessary to note — your followers will become tired of constantly answering questions on your Story, so utilize the Questions function sparingly. You do not want to overuse the Questions Sticker and risk answer-fatigue from participants.
Moreover, you have a “Poll” feature if you want to ask your followers a binary question, like “Which pizza topping is better, cheese or pepperoni?” Save your Questions function for more complex questions — and attempt to make them fun. Keep in mind, your followers are on Instagram for entertainment, so they do not want to feel quizzed by tough questions.
Lastly, consider what kinds of questions may actually help you understand more about your audience. It will take some trial-and-error, since every brand’s audience is unique, so test a few different formats. For example, in case your brand is in the tech industry, maybe you want to post a Question asking your followers’ their feedback on an innovative new tech product.
Alternatively, in case your brand is in the retail industry, maybe you wish to ask more generic questions like, “Do you still follow the no-white after Labor Day rule? If so, tell me why.”