Instagram Marketing Simplified with Location Stickers and Hashtags

Instagram Stories are gaining popularity. You would have noticed quite a few or you would have shared some stories on Instagram by this time. But, do you know your business can be benefited if location stickers and hashtags are included in Instagram Marketing efforts? Let’s learn how.

Search Results In Instagram

Though most of us are more comfortable searching information on Google, many of us would have ended up searching the same on Instagram. Sometimes purposefully, sometimes unintentionally.

How do you search on Instagram? There are two possibilities. First, let’s say you are in Ahmedabad and want to have the idea about various places nearby your current location. For this, you will go to your Instagram Explore tab. Click “Places” and a list of popular places appear with the first option highlighted as Near Current Location. You tap this option and all nearby places appear in results. Only those businesses, which have registered address through Facebook or Instagram will appear in search results. Now, based on your need, you will decide to inquire or visit a particular place. A single click on a particular location will present you with all the Instagram content available for that particular location. If you have not registered your business address yet, do it now. Don’t miss on this Instagram Marketing opportunity.

The second method, here you search using a product or a service category as a keyword or as a hashtag. For this also you go to explore tab of Instagram but this time you enter a keyword. For example Tea. Search results will appear under the Top tab. These results will be the mix of People, Tags, and Places. You can sort your results by clicking the relevant tab. Let’s say you want to see results only for places associated with Tea. Just click Places and done! Now you decide which one to visit.

When you click on one of these search results, all content related to that particular location will be visible with TOP POSTS (Images & Videos) sorted for you.

Role of Location Stickers in Instagram Marketing

Location stickers improve your Instagram Marketing in two ways. First, while you are searching places; results may include recent stories with location stickers. When you click on a location and at that time if any story is available, you will notice an Instagram coloured ring around search results with location symbol. Just tap the story symbol and all stories with that location sticker will be visible.

Second, you are likely to appear on the top part of “explore” page of Instagram. Here you see a list of stories posted by various people in which you may have an interest. This list may include results for your frequently searched term or location as well. For example, if you live in Ahmedabad you are likely to see Ahmedabad location stories frequently. Just single click on this story symbol and all related stories in images and videos will be available.

How to add Location Sticker to Instagram Stories?

Adding a location sticker to your Instagram story is very easy. Go to the home page of your Instagram. You will see your own photo or logo marked with the ‘+’ sign and  ‘You’ written below it. Click this to start preparing for Instagram Story.

Now you need to decide whether you want to use an image taken in last 24 hours or you want to take an image or record a video directly from Instagram. If you decide to use old image swipe up.

Now, click on the square smiley face option at top of the screen. This will present you with the list of stickers. But you have to choose a Location sticker option. Type location you want to use in your story. As you start typing, Instagram will suggest few options which are matching with your input. Select the correct option from the shown results. This will add a location sticker in your story with location symbol and text, in the capital, with a vignette of purple to blue colour. You can rotate, resize and move the location sticker across the screen to suit your requirements. Once you are fully satisfied, click next to upload the story.

A viewer can tap the location sticker of the published story. This action will bring one notification see location. If a viewer clicks on that, all the Instagram search results for that particular location will appear.

Benefits & Tips about Location Stickers for Instagram Marketing

1. By including location stickers in your Instagram stories you appear in more search results
2. As Instagram Stories disappear after 24 hours, it attracts more clicks (it creates a psychological pressure, if I don’t look at this story I will not be able to know what the story was about)
3. Once a user clicks you get a better retention rate of the target audience for that story
4. Use popular landmarks around your business in location sticker. So, when clicking on those landmark location stickers your story may appear in the results.

Role of Hashtags in Instagram Marketing

As mentioned earlier, you can straight away search with the hashtag in explore page of Instagram. This will present you with all those results which have selected hashtag in their post content or comment. If a hashtag has been added to a story that can also appear in this search results in the Instagram coloured ring around it with #symbol. Tapping on this story symbol allows the user to view all stories.

How to add Hashtags to Instagram Stories?

You need to decide whether you want to add hashtag as a sticker or hashtag as text. Let’s first look at the option of Hashtag as a sticker.

First, select the image or video taken in last 24 hours or click or record it directly on your Instagram App. Click the Sticker symbol and choose #HASHTAG from the presented list. This should open a keyboard and present the #HASHTAG sticker on your story screen. Now you can start typing your hashtag. The moment you start typing Instagram will start suggesting popular hashtags. If any suggested tag fits your requirement you can choose or else continue typing your own hashtag. To suit the requirements of your story rotate, resize or move the hashtag. Once finalized, click next to upload. These Instagram Marketing efforts should make your story visible to whom it matters.

Now let’s understand how to add hashtag as text? For this click on the text symbol (Aa). Start typing, but remember to type # first otherwise you will see a simple text. So first # and your hashtag content without space. Here again, you will see suggestions from Instagram. After finalizing your hashtag you can change colour, resize, rotate or move to suit the requirements of your story. You can have multiple hashtags in your story but staying focused with one or two gives better results.

Once the story is published potential audience can click on your hashtag to have a look at all the content related to that hashtag.

Start using Instagram Story as part of your marketing and include location stickers and hashtags in your stories to have a better result from your Instagram Marketing efforts.