https://studio.youtube.com/video/yEzRMRPv7Zo/edit
One of the things where using Stories on Instagram is really helpful is the ability to quickly advertise any time-based content or event. Do you have a live show or are you selling concert tickets? Need people to see your new YouTube video? Need to promote your new website or blog? You can even advertise quick sales of a product you sell. All of this is possible with links within Instagram Stories, but there’s a pretty big caveat. Let’s jump!
Adding Links to Your Instagram Stories
Let’s jump right into that warning. Adding links to Instagram Stories is actually very easy if Most of our readers probably won’t be, you run a verified Instagram account. To be verified on Instagram, you must represent a major brand, celebrity, or public figure. While not impossible (especially for a brand), its verification is beyond the reach of most. Still, there are a few options for adding content that acts as links to your Stories on Instagram, so don’t lose hope if you haven’t been verified. So, whether you want to share a link to your group website or show program or online store, we have some ideas for how you can do it. We add two methods below to add your links directly and indirectly.
Method One: Adding a Link Directly to the Story (Verified Only)
Let’s start with the verified method as it is the easier of the two methods. Start by opening your account and going to the Instagram Stories camera interface. Since your account has been verified, you probably already know how to do this; but if you don’t know, tap the “Add Story” icon under “Stories” or the camera icon in the top left corner of your screen. After you open the viewfinder for stories, you will be able to create your story. After taking a photo or recording a video, tap the link icon in the upper right corner of your screen. Type your link in the field provided and press “Done”.
Now post your story as usual. When users view your story, they will have the option to swipe up from the Story view to automatically access your link, making it easy to advertise any site, store or blog you can imagine.
Unfortunately, only verified users can use this method at the time of writing, so you will unfortunately have to rely on some sophisticated methods to make your link publicly available.
Method Two: Adding a Link to an Image
This second method requires more effort for both you and your audience, but it’s the only option that works if you haven’t been verified, like the majority of the Instagram population. It’s really easy to add a link to an image of your Story by adding a manually entered link after you’ve taken a photo or video for your Story. This is how things are usually done on Snapchat and you can do it too. Fortunately, we have some advice to make link sharing a little easier for both you and your audience.
Let’s start by shortening the link you’re trying to share. Unless you’re directing your users to a well-known website with a very easy-to-remember name such as Techjunkie.com, this is the best way to make your long links manageable for users to type into their phone’s browser. You’ll want to use a computer for this, but your phone’s web browser will work quickly too. Go to Bitly and login to their connection management software. This is free for any user and can be signed in using a suitable Bitly account created with your email or using your Facebook or Twitter information. This will take you to Bitly’s own Bitlink management account, where we can design a shortened link to make things easier for your users when entering links.
Tap “B” on your keyboard from the home screen to open the Bitlink creation screen. Submit your long URL in the field provided and click “Create”. From here, you will be given a special bit.ly link; but it’s still hard to remember as it consists of a lot of jumbled letters and numbers. You can create your own Bitlink with a custom tag using Bitly’s link software so the link reads something like “bit.ly/YourLinkHere”. The easiest way to drive traffic to your page without the hassle of having users remember a long link, article or video name. It’s also a good way to protect and promote your brand. Even if they’ve never been to the website, they’ve seen the name again and will remember it in the future.
Well, with your new link in hand, go back to Instagram and open the Stories viewfinder. Take your photo or video as you normally would and proceed to the “review” stage of your Story. In the upper right corner of your screen, find the text icon (AA) Allows you to add words to your story. From here, enter your bitly link into the interface, choose a color for the text, then close it from your keyboard. You can zoom in or out your text and place it wherever you want on the screen, then type “Next” in the interface and let the post be shared with your Instagram friends. While they will need to manually enter your link in the browser of your choice, this is one of the easiest ways to send a link to your unverified account.
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While none of these methods are perfect (method one works well, but only for verified users), while the second method can be a bit of a hassle for both you and the audience, these are currently the best ways to share a link with your audience. So, whether you’re verified or just starting your journey to become an Internet star, we’ve helped you with these easy ways to share links with your audience on Instagram Stories.
