Over the past few months, Instagram has made quite a few changes and additions to its features. There’s Instagram stories. Then they rolled out the ability to upload several photos at once. Now you are able to save photos and organize them into “collections”. Many have said Instagram is simply ripping off other social medias such as Snapchat and Pinterest. While we agree, we also think that Instagram is doing a better job at it, especially with Instagram stories. The latest update of Insta-story is in fact the coolest thing ever and no we are not talking about the selfie filters.

Did you know that when you go into the explore section of Instagram, you can now discover stories from around the world? It’s not just pictures and videos or stories from specific users. Stories are being fed into the feed based on geo-tags and hashtags. This is a huge game changer for travelers, bloggers and brands because it opens up so much opportunity. So we’re going to share 3 ways you can use Instagram Stories to gain followers and discover the world in a more immersive way.

See that second circle on the top with a location icon on top of it? That’s a mashup of all stories by users who have geo-tagged a location in Bangkok in their story.

1. Use the stickers

The geo-tag and hashtag filters aren’t just for fun or tell your friends/followers where you are. They will actually get you exposure.

For travelers, it is a great way to learn about the destination you’re going to. It gives you real-time insights into what other travelers and locals are doing there. You can get the vibe of a city, a restaurant or event before you even get there. Go ahead and give it a try by tapping the magnifying glass icon and searching tags or places.

Since we are excited for our trip to Mykonos, we did a little search as well.

2. Drive Traffic to blog or website

This feature is only available if you switch your account to a business one. Once you taken your video or photo, tap the link icon on the top and insert the URL to where you want your audience to go to. It’s that simple and so useful. You may not be able have your links clickable in your main posts but you most definitely can here.

There is just so much you can do here to drive traffic. It just takes a bit of creativity and a great CTA. Clearly not saying that we do right here hehe but you get what we mean.

3. Do a Live Broadcast

We’ve never done this ourselves but if you have a large following, doing a live broadcast can further enhance your efforts on Instagram. Live broadcast feature of the Instagram story lets you interact with the audience and also gives you more of a credibility. People then know you better, which is what you should be aiming for. This will in turn bring in more followers who want to get to know you.

Perhaps we will do one soon. Any ideas for topics to talk about? What would you like to learn about us or would you rather we give tips? Also let us know what you think of this post and if there is anything we missed.

Have a great rest of the year everyone!