Instagram has now enabled links in Instagram Stories for all users, not just those with ten thousand followers or verified accounts.
As explained by Instagram:
“When we first introduced Stories links, the feature was limited to verified accounts or those with a certain number of followers. We’ve heard from the rest of our community that they also want to share things that matter with their friends and family. Whatever you’re into, from cooking to volunteering or shopping, you now have a space to share in Stories – regardless of your account size.”
Link sticker for Stories
Starting today, everyone will be able to discover the link sticker for Stories, which Instagram first introduced as the main link sharing option, rather than ‘Swipe up’ links.
That will undoubtedly put more effort on Stories as a means of communication for companies, and with Instagram increasingly aiming to focus on video material, such as Stories and Reels, you can anticipate the platform itself to emphasize Story usage in order to encourage more interaction.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said so much in Facebook’s most recent earnings announcement, noting that:
“Reels is already the primary driver of engagement growth on Instagram. It’s incredibly entertaining, and I think there is a huge amount of potential ahead. We expect this to continue growing and I am optimistic that this will be as important for our products as Stories is. We also expect to make significant changes to Instagram and Facebook in the next year to further lean into video and make Reels a more central part of the experience.”
Clearly, Reels is an important component, but Stories is as well. That broader video push will eventually see Instagram re-aligned around Stories and Reels specifically, with the traditional feed taking a back seat and perhaps moving to another tab in the app.
