How to leverage Instagram Guides for business

Instagram Guides is a new feature that allows users to share and check out curated content such as tips, recommendations or step-by-step instructional content in a scrollable format. 

The Guides feature was first intended to be used to offer health- and wellness-related content to help people during the pandemic, but it’s since been enabled for all users.

You can see a creator’s Instagram Guide by selecting the Guides icon from their feed tab, similar to viewing their Reels or IGTV. You can also find Guides in Instagram’s Explore feature.

There are three different types of Guide to choose from: Places, Products and Posts. Here are some ideas for how you can use each from a business perspective:

• Places: A great way to network your business on social is to share location-based recommendations, such as the locations of partner companies, favourite local businesses, or show a bit of fun and personality, you could even share a guide to your perfect night on the town. 

• Products: Create a products-focused guide to highlight products you have available in your Instagram Shop. You could group similar category products together, compare different options or showcase seasonal collections or gift ideas. If you don’t have an Instagram Shop, you can curate and recommend other products-—which especially comes in handy for Instagram influencers. For the holidays, you could create a fun “company wish list”, but offer valuable commentary on the products you share.
  
  
• Posts: Curate posts you’ve created yourself, or saved from other users, in an easy-to-follow scrollable format with your own custom headlines and commentary. Try using this type of guide to offer advice or instructional content, share others’ work you admire, or tell a story about your business. Either of these options will help build a connection with your audience. 

Instagram for business is all about building meaningful connections with your followers, and Instagram Guides is a versatile way to do so through unique story-telling and commentary on e-commerce.

Because Guides can be shared to Instagram Stories or with other users, creating valuable, shareable Guide content is a great way to expand your brand’s reach on Instagram. 

Guides can be easily shared to Instagram Stories or with other users by tapping the paper plane icon at the top right-hand corner of the screen:

This new feature is currently available through the Instagram Explore Page, as well as directly via a user’s profile.