Your Insta Story game is about to get a whole lot more charitable.
Introducing the newest Instagram feature: the donation sticker. Coming to you soon in 2019.
You may be familiar with the various fundraising tools that Facebook offers – from the classic donation button (add it to your page, posts, ads and live videos) to supporter-created fundraising pages. So, it comes as no surprise that after its acquisition of Instagram, the parent company has plans to offer the Instagram community a similar giving experience.
Here’s what you need to know the new feature.
How it Works
Much like the donation button on Facebook, you will now be able to add a donation feature directly to your Insta Story – allowing viewers of your Story to simply tap and contribute directly. It works in the same fashion as the Mention or Location Stickers – once you select it, you can search for your organization and then drop the sticker onto your photo.
Image: @wongmjane
Just as Facebook allows your supporters to add a donation button to their posts, Instagram will allow your supporters to add this donation sticker to their stories as well. By selecting it from the sticker options and searching for your nonprofit, they can now easily take part in your fundraising campaign in their Insta Stories. All they have to do is drop the sticker onto their Story, and boom: another link to your donation page, in front of new audience.
Instagram has not confirmed a date for its rollout, but with the next Giving Tuesday only 274 days away (yes, we’re already counting), it doesn’t hurt to revisit your Instagram strategy and start using Insta Stories right in order to take advantage of this new feature.
Get ahead of the curve and prepare with these tactics.
Insta Story Tactics for Nonprofits
Tell a Story.
It’s in the name, but Insta Stories often are a missed opportunity to tell an engaging… well… story – a narrative that your viewers will be intrigued to check back in and see how it plays out. Get creative and use a mixture of video and photography to tell the story to vary your content and keep your audience engaged. Don’t be afraid to use those stickers; make the experience interactive for your audience, while keeping true to your message and brand image. And at the end, don’t forget your call to action: invite to donate with the new donation sticker and to learn more by swiping up to your bio link. Take this Humane Society story as an example, where they tell a user-generated adoption story – ending with information on the pet project that made this story possible.
Highlight it.
Is there a specific topic or imagery that drives your online engagement? Why not turn it into a recurring story on your Instagram? With Story Highlights, you can save a story to your main Instagram page – and continually add to it as an ongoing catalog of the good work you do. Take this cat café as an example: when you visit their Instagram page, you can choose your visual journey and experience their work in quick, snackable snapshots. No need to scroll through the feed – Story Highlights makes it easier to quickly share your mission in an engaging format.
@crumbs_whiskers
Shout it from the (digital) rooftops.
Let your supporters and social media audiences know that a story is coming. Your story will receive more attention, and more donations, if people know when/where to look. Invite your supporters to take part in your campaign. Ask them to share their plans to donate or fundraising activities on their Insta Stories — with the new donation sticker. The best part: you can share the best ones to your own Story and inspire more of your followers to participate for their spot in the limelight.
Advertise it.
If you have a story to tell, consider making it an Instagram Story Ad. It’s not only getting your nonprofit’s mission in front of new audiences, but with the new donation sticker included, it will be driving more clicks (and donations).
Why to Tap in Now
If you aren’t using Insta Stories, this new donation sticker is definitely reason enough to start. Whereas before you had to direct users to your bio link to give, the donation sticker eliminates that extra step and increases your chance for conversion. And you can’t afford to miss out.
Giving online continues to grow. Just look at Giving Tuesday. In 2018, users contributed 3.6 million online gifts, up by 50% from the year before. And as a nonprofit, you can’t afford to not have a social medial plan in place. Last year, Giving Tuesday received 1 million mentions on social media… In 2018, that rose to 14.2 billion mentions. And it’s not just Giving Tuesday; in 2017, online giving added up $31 billion in donations. That’s money you’re missing out on by not actively pursuing social media as part of your 2019 marketing plan.
2018 Global Trends in Giving Report
So tap in… and start to prep for your epic #GivingTuesday Insta Stories now.
