Struggling to get many Instagram story views? You're not alone, friend. As an online business owner, it can be frustrating when your story views don't reflect the effort you put into creating engaging content.
You can find yourself wondering… “is there any point in making stories if only 10 people watch them??”
But fear not, because in this blog post & podcast episode, I'm sharing the ONE simple strategy + tool I used to 8x my Instagram story views and double my daily digital product sales.
You’ll also learn how many Instagram story views you should be getting based on how many followers you have.
Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google or Spotify.
RESOURCES MENTIONED
The Content Batching Blueprint - Mini course to help you batch 1 month of content in 1 day
Story Sprint - Mini course to help you batch 1 month of Instagram stories in 1 day
ARTICLE
So, picture this: you're posting content on your Instagram story, but barely any of your followers are watching. You start to wonder if putting energy into making daily stories is even worth it. Sound familiar? Well, fear not, because I've got a little trick up my sleeve that's been working wonders for me lately.
Full transparency: I didn’t “invent” this strategy. In fact, I’ve seen three posts on Instagram talking about this in the past. By the time I saw it for the third time, I wanted to give it a try but with my own spin. (I’ll share the difference between the strategy in the post I saw vs what I do later.)
Before I tell you about what I did to increase my story views, let me tell you: my views were dooooown.
I have 36.8K followers. According to Rival IQ, accounts with 10-50K followers should have 2.6% of them watching their story. So my views should have been around 956 on average.
And if you have less than 10k followers btw, your story should reach approximately 6.5% of your audience.
Now, this one strategy helped me not just reach 956 views, but go beyond that to the 1300-2000 mark. On a great day, I can get 2000+ views, on a good day I can get 1300, on an OK I can get 3x what I used to average.
Before I dive into the one strategy that has helped me do this, you should know that I have a new masterclass called Story Sprint which teaches you how to batch 1 month of stories in 1 day.
People join every day and are loving it. It saves them ever having to ask “what do I post on my story today that will make sales or attract inquiries?”
And the cool thing is that it’s only the cost of one dinner date. That’s all that is between you and an endless stream of sales and clients that come from your story without you actively having to create it every day.
How I 8xd my story views
Here's the scoop: on my story, I've been asking people to reply with a special word if they want access to something juicy, something that I haven’t shared elsewhere yet.
Now, here's where the magic happens. I use a nifty little tool called Manychat to set up the automation.
Manychat is an automation tool that allows people to comment on your posts with a certain word and then automatically receive a DM from you.
But why does this simple strategy boost your views? Well, let me break it down. The Instagram story algorithm absolutely adores it when people are REPLYING to your story. It’s the ultimate signal that your story is engaging.
When the algorithm sees that your story is getting replies, it takes notice. It's like waving a big ol' flag that says, "Hey, this story is super engaging!" And what does the algorithm do in response? It pushes your story closer to the front of your other followers' stories—the ones who might not normally watch yours.
What kinda things should you ask your followers to reply for?
Freebies
Step-by-step instructions
Resources: link to a tool you use, or a book you’re ready, or a course you’re taking
Quick tips or hacks for epic results
And always remember: when you send them the resource, also link to something you sell that can help them further. You should be selling every day, and this is a nice “soft” way to sell. Provide value, then present the offer.
How is this different to the original post I saw about this strategy?
You might want to try her strategy too! (I don’t remember who posted this because it was on my explore page or else I would link to her.)
She posted a story about why entrepreneurs are different levels should be using a DIFFERENT email marketing strategy.
She wrote out 3 levels of entrepreneurship, called them A, B & C. Then she asked people to reply with the category they fit in (A,B or C) and she’d send them the specific strategy they should be using.
She gained 2000+ replies.
Why does your story (and your story views) matter? Why not just focus on your feed content instead of your story?
According to Iconosquare, the average engagement rate by followers on Instagram is 4.7%. “Other studies have found the average engagement rate to be 1.22% and 4.59%. These statistics are averages and vary from industry to industry.”
This means only 4.7% of your followers are engaging.
Yet they followed you for a reason. So yes, we should absolutely post consistently to our feeds to attract new non-followers and grow our audience. But we shouldn’t forget the people who have already chosen to follow us. They followed you because you have something they’re interested in! They’re a goldmine of potential clients and customers.
So one way to re-engage them is through increasing your IG story replies and thus getting more of your followers to watch your story.
The cool thing is: if someone watches your story for the first time in a while and finds it valuable, they’ll keep watching!
So, there you have it. A simple yet powerful strategy to explode your Instagram story views.
This info came from my masterclass, Story Sprint, which teaches you how to batch 1 month of stories in 1 day and exactly what to say on your stories to turn viewers into buyers.
If you’re also interested in batching 1 month of feed content (reels, carousels etc) then check out The Content Batching Blueprint.
About Nesha
Hey there! I’m Nesha, 11-year traveling entrepreneur and host of The Simple Business Show. I teach women how to build a $5-10K/month online service business working just 3 days a week, so they can have the financial and time freedom to live the life they dream of.
Looking for more ways I can help you? Here they are:
1:1 Coaching: Work with me on an intimate level to take your business from where it is to where you want it to go.
Group Coaching Program: The Simple Business Builder: Learn to build a $5-10K/month online business working 3 days a week.
Organize & Automate - Join 1200+ students and learn how to organize your entire online service-based business in just two weeks (on the side of your regular routine!) so you can stop stressing and fall back in love with your business.
Simple Sales School - Learn how to get a consistent flow of clients so you can build the income & financial freedom you desire.
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