Instagram unveils new Stickers to enhance story engagement

Instagram this week announced the launch of four new creative tools for Stories, aiming to increase user engagement and interaction. These stickers cater to various content creation styles, allowing users to share music recommendations, personalize photos, and build intrigue around their stories.

The Add Yours Music sticker leverages the popularity of the existing "Add Yours" feature, but with a musical twist. User-generated content (UGC) is a powerful tool for driving engagement. This new sticker allows users to initiate a music trend by sharing their favorite song and inviting followers to contribute theirs.

Here's how it works:

• Users tap the sticker icon in the Stories creation menu and select "Add Yours Music."
• From Instagram's music library, they can choose a song that reflects their mood or interests.
• Once the story is posted, viewers can add their own songs using the "Add Yours" button, fostering a sense of community and shared discovery.

Adding a nostalgic touch with frames

The Frames sticker allows users to transform photos into vintage-style instant prints. This caters to the growing trend of nostalgia marketing, where brands and content creators evoke positive emotions by referencing the past.

Here's how to use it:

• Tap the sticker icon and select "Frames."
• Choose a photo from your camera roll to be displayed within the frame.
• Users can add captions and the photo's timestamp is automatically included.
• A unique aspect of Frames is the "shake to reveal" function. Followers can only fully view the framed photo by shaking their phones, adding a layer of interactivity.

Intrigue and Direct Messages with the Reveal Sticker

The Reveal sticker taps into the concept of mystery and intrigue. Marketers have long understood the power of curiosity as a marketing tool. This sticker allows users to share a blurred story that can only be revealed through direct messages (DMs).

Here's how it works:

• Users select the "Reveal" sticker from the sticker menu.
• They can then add a hint to their followers about the hidden content.
• A preview function allows users to see how the blurred story will appear to viewers.
• Once posted, followers must send a DM to the user to unlock the hidden story. This can encourage direct interaction and potentially lead to deeper connections.

Cutouts: Unleashing user creativity

The Cutouts sticker empowers users to create personalized stickers from existing photos and videos. This aligns with the increasing focus on user-generated content and empowers users to become content creators themselves [4].

Here's how to create Cutouts stickers:

• Tap the sticker icon and select "Cutouts."
• Choose a photo or video from the camera roll with a clear subject.
• Instagram automatically generates a sticker. Users can refine the selection if needed.
• Once satisfied, the sticker is added to the user's sticker tray for future use in Stories or Reels.

An interesting feature is the ability for users to share Cutout stickers with others. This allows friends to reuse these custom stickers in their own content, fostering collaboration and a sense of community.

Strategic implications for marketers

These new stickers offer valuable opportunities for brands and businesses on Instagram.

• Leveraging UGC: The Add Yours Music sticker can be used to initiate branded music challenges, encouraging user-generated content that promotes specific artists or soundtracks.
• Nostalgic Marketing: Frames can be used to create a sense of nostalgia around a brand or product, potentially appealing to older demographics.
• Building Intrigue: The Reveal sticker can be used to create interactive campaigns or teasers for upcoming product launches.
• User-Generated Content at Scale: Cutouts allow brands to encourage user-generated content specific to their campaigns or products. By providing users with the tools to create custom content, brands can expand their reach and engagement.

Overall, Instagram's new sticker rollout provides users with a wider range of creative tools for storytelling. By understanding the marketing concepts behind these features, businesses can leverage them to enhance their brand storytelling and connect with their audiences on a deeper level.