Listen on…
Today you’re going to learn how to use one of the fastest growing social platforms, Instagram Stories, to build your email list, without using the Swipe Up feature.
I don't know about you, but Instagram is by far my favorite social media platform. Mostly because I love Instagram Stories but also because I think the connections on Instagram feel more real than any other social platform.
If you are on Instagram then you've probably either recorded an Instagram story yourself, viewed one–or several (they are completely addictive), or you've heard someone else talk about Instagram Stories and you weren't really sure what the heck they were talking about.
Wherever you fall in this equation, there's one thing that is certain…you as a business owner, should be using Instagram Stories to create more solid, real connections that will, if you do it right, go far beyond just chatting on social media.
I had the pleasure of interviewing Tyler J. McCall, an Instagram Marketing Strategist, who has found great success in growing his email list through Instagram Stories. He shared tons of valuable insight, tips, and strategies that you will be able to implement starting today!  And, don’t worry, as I mentioned earlier this strategy has nothing to do with the Swipe Up feature, which requires you to have 10,000 followers to use.
So whether you’re familiar with Instagram Stories or not, we’ve got you covered here! Let’s first dive into the basics around Instagram Stories and then we’ll go ALL in on strategies to grow your email list via this platform!
WHAT IS AN INSTAGRAM STORY?
An Instagram Story is content that is shared on Instagram itself, typically photos and videos, but you can also share text-based images. Your photos or graphics last six seconds while your videos can be up to 15 seconds long. You create the Story content using Instagram (the creation and editing tools are built right in), or you can create them externally and upload them to your Instagram account.
How Stories are different than a post in your regular Instagram feed is that the content goes away after 24 hours unless you add it as an Instagram Story highlight in your profile, which is a whole different episode!
WHY YOU SHOULD BE USING INSTAGRAM STORIES IN YOUR BUSINESS:
Instagram now has over 800 million users. Of those, 500 million are on the app every day. And of those 500 million, 300 million are on Instagram Stories every day. Need I say more?!?
Tyler tells us that Instagram Stories are taking over as the content of choice, and Instagram likes this, because it gives them another place to run ads. Â And as business owners, Instagram ads are a very powerful tool, as well. And let me tell you, Instagram Story ads are converting really well for my business right now!
“There are now millions of people every single day waiting for the right content to show up for them on Instagram Stories” – Tyler J. McCall
How to Create High-Quality Instagram Stories
In order to grow your email list through Instagram Stories (we’ll get to that strategy in a minute), you first need to know how to create high-quality Instagram Stories that people want to watch. Here’s a quick rundown, but make sure to tune in to the episode for all the details!
- Create your Stories with purpose and intention
- Use a good mix of personal and business (Tyler shares information about his business in his Stories, but he also shares his shopping trips to Target! Yes, he loves to walk the aisles and point out some of his favorite products!)
- Utilize a beginning, middle, and an end to your Story. Just like your elementary school teacher taught you! Download this great 2-page worksheet “The Story Arc Method” to work through an exercise Tyler put together for you to up your Instagram Story game!
- “Never let the dashes turn into dots!” I love how Tyler put this, regarding being careful to not create painfully long Stories.
- I asked Tyler how he always has AMAZING light for his Stories and he shared two tips that money can’t buy!!
- Use captioning in your Stories for people who want to consume your content but don’t use audio. Tyler said that this technique will help keep retention high, too.
- Drive interaction with Instagram features like polls and DM conversations. Engage with your followers!
How to Grow Your Email List Using Instagram Stories Without Using the Swipe Up Feature
Ok, now that you have a plan to create high-quality Instagram Stories, Tyler shared some really great insight as to how to grow your email list through a Direct Messaging strategy. Since Tyler has over 10,000 followers he is able to utilize the Swipe Up feature available in Stories, but he admits he doesn’t use it much because he thinks it’s a bit lazy and too passive!
Growing your email list through Instagram is all about Instagram Story Direct Messaging!
It’s through this DMing that he’s able to directly communicate with his followers, build relationships, hear pain points directly from his potential customer's mouth, and engage in an authentic way.
Here are a few of the important habits Tyler suggests you build around Instagram Story DM engagement in order to be in a position where you can actually grow your email list:
- Show up consistently
- Make sure your content is high quality
- Use calls to action in your Stories (from asking your followers to answer simple questions, respond to polls, and finally to respond to your invitation for them to learn more about what you’re doing or to gain access to an opt-in offering.)
- Once you’ve engaged them, keep the conversation going,…see how you can help them
- Post in the regular feed less often, so you can spend more time in Stories (you saw the stats, this is where the people are!)
Do these things and the opt-in opportunities that you offer your followers (the ones that keep coming back to watch your Stories) will put you in a prime position to grow your email list. Tyler’s DM conversions are huge!
Listen in as Tyler shares a system which he calls — An Instagram Story Opt-In Sandwich — in which you guide your Story viewers through a journey that ultimately leads them to your lead magnet, content upgrade, or webinar via DM conversations.
I, too, have recently using my DMs to engage with my followers, and it is powerful! The only problem is that it can be time-consuming — time well spent, but time-consuming, nonetheless.
Since Tyler gets A LOT of DMs, I asked him how he manages it all and one of the top tips he shared is to get in there a few times throughout the day so you are responding pretty quickly, and also so the DMs don’t pile up and become too overwhelming for you to respond to.
I’ve found that it’s helpful for me to actually create a task in Asana (my project management tool), to check my DMs daily, and that’s working well at this point.
So here’s what I want you to do, download and work through this 2-page worksheet that Tyler created for you and don’t spend another minute on Instagram without intention and purpose.
A great big thank you to Tyler for providing such great step-by-step teaching in this interview!
Tyler and I would both love to hear from you in our DMs! I’m @amyporterfield and he’s @tylerjmccall.
