Over the years, Instagram has done a stellar job at finding unique ways to connect us with our followers. We’ve eaten up features like being able to privately reply to Instagram Stories, Instagram Live, and the polling feature because it stirs activity between users, influencers and brands alike.
What’s next in the efforts to keep your community tight and your content as interactive as ever? Here’s a clue: it’s the reason you have 67 text messages at any given time. And you are most likely involved in at least 3 of these at any given time. That’s right. Instagram has rolled out a Group Chat feature in Instagram Stories!
How to Start a Group Chat in Instagram Stories
Instagram kicked things up a notch on July 2, 2019, by creating the Chat option, which can be found in the Stickers section in Stories. First, you create a title for the chat (let the inside jokes commence!). Then your followers tap on the text where they can request to join the chat. By default, the text is in blue, but you’re allowed to change it up.
After that, you’ll be able to view who sent you requests on your Stories Viewer. Now imagine how this will impact your Instagramming experience when it comes to live-watching things like watching Love Island, The Bachelorette, or the Oscars!
Reality TV isn’t all Group Chat will be useful for. This feature will be a massively helpful tool for study groups, travel groups, event planning, or to interact with your followers directly. What happens if you have some followers you’re not keen on being in your group chat? Don’t worry, you can control who sees the story using the Close Friends function. You can also end the chat at any time.
Wait, Instagram stories expire, right? Yes, but the chats stay! Fortunately, you can delete them at any time, just like other chat capabilities.
Now here’s the golden question: what does the Group Chat sticker mean for social media marketing? The answer is more engagement! Click To Tweet
Ready to Start a Group Chat in Instagram Stories?
Now here’s the golden question: what does the Group Chat sticker mean for social media marketing? The answer is more engagement! Influencers and brands now have an even more effective way to intimately engage with their audience and discuss their promotions, answer questions and raise awareness for events.
Another perk is that using this function won’t be time or energy consuming for either party. This could be a saving grace for influencers who receive an overwhelming amount of direct messages or comments and can’t effectively connect with their audience. If used properly, this new function is ideal to drive direct engagement and promote deep discussions which could then lead to inspiring content. Studies have shown that as an influencer’s follower count increases, their engagement rate decreases. Perhaps this function could make a difference.
See you in the group chats!
