Instagram Stories: Tips, tricks, and new features for 2026
Are you a Feed-commitment-phobe? Do you love GIFs, stickers, and a little creative chaos? Then Instagram Stories are most definitely for you. Instagram Stories have all kinds of built-in tools and functionalities. But they can be tricky to find and even trickier to use. In this guide, we’ll walk through everything you need to know about how to use Instagram Stories, from basic navigation and features to creative tips for business users. Key takeaways Stories are where real attention lives. With 500M people watching daily, IG Stories remain one of the highest-visibility placements on the platform. They’re way more interactive than in-feed posts. Stickers, polls, GIFs, countdowns, links, and shopping tools turn quick updates into high-engagement moments. You don’t need to be a designer to make great Stories. Instagram’s built-in formats, effects, and editing features make on-brand Stories effortless. The best Stories are planned. Schedule yours with Hootsuite to keep yo...
