Instagram Influencer Marketing

10 Superb Brand Instagram Stories Examples to Inspire You

Stories are as important as ever for earning engagement on Instagram. Here are ten of the best brand Instagram Stories we’ve seen recently to inspire your own.

brand instagram stories cover photo

If you want to grow your brand on Instagram, now’s the time to step up your Stories.

In fact, Instagram Stories should be a top priority given what we know about the latest Instagram algorithm.

That’s because earning more reach goes hand in hand with driving more engagement. Consider how Instagram Stories helps brands do both by…

  • “Skipping the line” of your followers’ feeds so your content is always front-and-center
  • Increasing interactions via Stories features like Polls and Question Stickers
  • Tagging customers and republishing their content to encourage comments and reshares

instagram stories feed

Not sure what a “good” Story looks like these days? We’ve got you covered.

Below are ten of the best Instagram Story marketing examples from brands we’ve seen recently. Coupled with our tips and takeaways, you’ll be on your way to creating stellar Stories yourself!

1. Good Dye Young

Let's start with this impromptu Q&A session from Good Dye Young. This Story shows how authenticity can create meaningful connections with your audiences.

Presented as a conversation between an employee and customers, this Story is also a playful example of how to pick your followers’ brains.

@gooddyeyoung Instagram Story example

Source: @gooddyeyoung

Fielding questions via Stories is a great way to understand your follower's biggest challenges. You can uncover valuable content ideas for the future by doing this, too.

Think about it. If you realize people keep asking the same questions, maybe you should address it in a Reel or In-Feed Post. The Question Sticker makes it a cinch to gather information in a way that’s fun and informal.

If you’re strapped for Instagram Story ideas, remember that going back and forth with your audience is always an option!

Tips and Takeaways for Your Brand’s Instagram Stories

  • Educational content like how-tos and tutorials should be central to your Stories strategy. These types of Stories are particularly popular among makeup, hair and skincare brands.
  • Don’t forget about Stories’ interactive content features like Polls and Stickers. These features keep viewers on your page longer and encourage valuable interactions. In turn, you send positive signals to the Instagram algorithm to boost your engagement rate.
  • Presenting your Stories as content from a team member is a great way to humanize your brand. Note that customers today crave authenticity from the companies they support.

2. Byte

Byte does a brilliant job documenting every step of their customer journey using Instagram Stories. The brand consistently shouts out customers that tag them. This includes people who just got their aligners, anyone in the middle of the process and those at the end of their journey.

This shows how to use Stories to speak to potential and existing customers at the same time. Whether you’re a fan of Byte, you’re on the fence or you’re just hearing about them for the first time, these posts are relevant.

@byteofficial Instagram Story example

Source: @byteofficial

Also, “before and after” content is super compelling and makes for the best brand Instagram Stories. That’s because posts like this prove the positive impact of your product. Letting your customers showcase how you’ve helped them is powerful social proof.

Tips and Takeaways for Your Brand’s Instagram Stories

  • Pay attention to opportunities to source user-generated content for your Instagram Stories. This includes tags, @mentions and uses of your brand’s #hashtag.
  • Consider how Instagram Stories can help you document your customers’ journeys over time (think: “before and after”).
  • Remember that branded Stories content doesn’t need to be pristine. After all, your authenticity is what makes your brand relatable.

3. Lime Crime

Beauty Instagram Stories are often eye-popping and this one from Lime Crime is no exception. 

@limecrimemakeup Instagram Story example

Source: @limecrimemakeup

Oh, and bonus points for featuring a creator! This is yet another example of how to create educational Stories that incorporate Instagram videos such as Reels. 

There’s no shortage of brands using Reels right now. Given the popularity of the format, double-dipping your brand Reels via Stories makes perfect sense.

Beyond how-to videos, Lime Crime also uses their branded Instagram Stories to highlight deals and sales. From promotions to UGC, Stories offer so many options for engaging content. Brands should experiment to understand firsthand what followers respond to the most.

Tips and Takeaways for Your Brand’s Instagram Stories

  • Multi-frame Stories can keep viewers engaged and on your Page for longer. If you incorporate videos, they might stick around even longer.
  • Experiment with videos in your Stories feed to see if they perform better than photos. When in doubt, mix it up! 
  • If you don’t already, promote a branded hashtag to source customer photos to republish. This is especially important for skincare Instagram Stories where competition is fierce. For example, Lime Crime has over 10,000 posts from their #NEVERBLENDIN tag alone.

neverblendin

4. Gainful

This brand Story example from Gainful highlights how to use the format to build awareness and generate leads. 

Using their a dedicated IG Stories Highlight feed, the brand promotes an “About” section to:

  • Highlight positive customer reviews and testimonials
  • Send social traffic to a lead magnet (“Take the Quiz”)
  • Create a sense of community with their branded hashtag (#TeamGainful)

@gainful Instagram Story example

Source: @gainful

Tips and Takeaways for Your Brand’s Instagram Stories

  • Look for opportunities to repurpose UGC for your Instagram Stories. This includes reviews and testimonials, not just photos or videos.
  • Let some of your Story Highlights serve as a mini Q&A for your brand and product. Doing so can help potential customers research you without leaving Instagram. 
  • Tie your Instagram presence to a specific destination on-site. For example, you might have a quiz or landing page where you send your social traffic. This helps your Instagram presence serve as a bigger part of your marketing strategy.

Instagram Influencer Campaign Manager Spreadsheet

5. Eva NYC

Again, beauty brands tend to crush it when it comes to Instagram.

Eva NYC fills their Stories feed with influencer posts and off-the-cuff creator content. The brand encourages customers to share their styles and snapshots on the regular. Below is a series of Stories promoting creators alongside a product rollout in partnership with singer Tinashe. 

@evahairnyc Instagram Story example

Source: @evahairnyc

For competitive industries like beauty, word-of-mouth is invaluable for a product launch. Stories from individual influencer accounts are a seamless way to build buzz and get people talking. 

Tips and Takeaways for Your Brand’s Instagram Stories

  • Let your customers be your best cheerleaders! When possible, try reposting customer content that details why people love your products.
  • Beyond your own products, Stories can serve as a channel to promote your affiliates, ambassadors and influencers.
  • As proven by many of our Instagram Stories examples from brands, creator content can be used to directly strengthen your social sales strategy.

6. Nalgene

We keep talking up the value of unpolished content for your Stories, right?

But check out Nalgene actually puts a spin on this trend by posting customer photos that look like they're from a nature photoshoot.

nalgene instagram story

Source: @nalgene

Pretty cool, right? 

The brand is all about adventure and encourages customers to show off their products “in the wild.” When we say that creators know how to show off your products in the best way possible, photos like this are what we’re talking about.

Tips and Takeaways for Your Brand’s Instagram Stories

  • If you haven’t already, dedicate a feed of your Story Highlights to your customer content.
  • Don’t feel pressured to repost or republish everything you get tagged in. If you want to maintain a certain aesthetic for your Stories feed, you totally can.
  • If you want to show off your product in new and unconventional settings, creative customers can make it happen.

7. IL Makiage

Depending on your industry, memes make for marvelous Stories. 

Cracking jokes can really highlight your brand’s personality and human side. Check out how IL Makiage shares and reposts memes from their followers as part of their weekly “Meme Wednesday” series.

il makiage instagram story

Source: @ilmakiage

Brand Instagram Stories should connect with audiences, Right? Well, making people laugh is one of the best ways to make those connections happen. 

If nothing else, memes are a lower-effort, high-impact type of content that won’t dominate your schedule to create. Given that the top brands on Instagram publish a story every other day, having some “easy” posts in your back pocket is fair game. 

And as long as your audience is engaged, you’re golden!

Tips and Takeaways for Your Brand’s Instagram Stories

  • Stick to content themes (like “Meme Wednesday” or “Tuesday Tips”). This makes filling up your Stories feed a lot less daunting when you have some sort of plan.
  • Features like Polls and Emoji Sliders are a low-hanging way to drive interactions.
  • Humorous Stories are a safe bet for brands. In fact, humor represents the most popular type of marketing messaging right now.

8. Jones Soda

Jones Soda uses their Stories feed as a place to showcase customer reactions to their bottlecap messages. These posts are lighthearted and off-the-cuff but also serve to pique people’s curiosity. 

Will the next Story be a joke? An inspirational post? What flavor are they going to show off? The more you keep your followers engaging and guessing what’s next, the better.

jones soda instagram story

Source: @jonessodaco

The common thread between our Instagram Story marketing examples? People! Whether that means featuring the people that support your business or injecting personality into your posts is on you. Ideally, you can do both just like Jones does.

Tips and Takeaways for Your Brand’s Instagram Stories

  • If you have a branded hashtag, make sure to point directly to it in your Instagram bio.
  • Again, unpolished posts are perfect for brand Instagram Stories as an alternative to more “traditional” content you’d see in a proper photoshoot.
  • Use Stories to highlight the personality of both your brand and audience.

Jones Soda Instagram bio

Source: @jonessodaco

9. Liquid Death

Another major brand with a Stories feed that’s brimming with customer photos!

Liquid Death likes to showcase their customers enjoying their water in every setting you can imagine. From the workplace to music festivals and racetracks, each Story is a surprise.

liquid death Instagram Stories

Source: @liquiddeath

This example drives home how branded Instagram Stories don’t need to be big productions. Liquid Death has over a million followers on Instagram but their Stories are just as “real” as a brand a fraction of their size.

Tips and Takeaways for Your Brand’s Instagram Stories

  • The more user-generated content you source, the more consistently you can publish Stories. 
  • Yet again, tagged photos are an awesome way to show off your products in different settings.
  • Let Stories serve to highlight (and celebrate!) the diversity of your audience. From celebrities to babies and beyond, Liquid Death’s Instagram Stories promote accounts of all shapes and sizes.

10. Moody Lenses

Some products lend themselves to creator content more than others.

But consider how contact lenses are a product that kind of requires real people to show off. 

As a result, Moody doesn’t shy away from hyping up their customer and reposting UGC every chance they can get. The brand promotes multiple Story Highlight feeds dedicated to content sourced from their audience. This includes product photos, reviews and contest entries from customers.

moody lenses Instagram bio

Source: @moodylenses_official

Arguably the best brand Instagram Stories are the ones that empower people to buy your products. Moody Lenses does so by making reposting everyday creators and making customers central to their content strategy.

Moody Lenses Instagram Story example

Source: @moodylenses_official

Tips and Takeaways for Your Brand’s Instagram Stories

  • Let Stories serve as a place to aggregate your products’ positive reviews. 
  • Brainstorm branded hashtags that create a sense of community (like #moodyfam).
  • From influencers to everyday creators and customers, make sure you have plenty of people shouting out your brand on the regular.

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Why Best Brand Instagram Stories Feature Influencers (and Why You Should, Too!)

Despite all the recent changes to Instagram, Stories are still a staple of the platform.

This is especially true for brands. If you want to get more eyes on your products and promotions, Stories are the perfect place to make it happen.

It's no coincidence that almost all of the best Instagram Story marketing examples on our list feature influencers. That’s because potential customers and followers alike want to see authentic and unfiltered content.

And if your brand needs creator content at scale, Statusphere can help.

Our micro-influencer marketing platform matches brands with creators using 250+ first-party data points. Through our vetted creator community and streamlined fulfillment technology, Statusphere helps brands earn guaranteed content at scale. We also track all of your influencer performance metrics in one place.

Statusphere Dashboard and Metrics

We built our software specifically to support brands with an always-on influencer strategy. We’ve already generated 75,000+ pieces of content for 400+ brands.

Want to learn more about how our platform works? Get in touch with one of our experts to see how we can scale your influencer marketing efforts in a fraction of the time.

This article was first published in September 2018. It was last updated May 3, 2022.

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