How to respond to Instagram Stories with GIFs from Giphy

Want to successfully showcase your brand on Instagram? Then Instagram Stories should be a part of your daily work. In our 'Storrito FAQ series' we'll explain everything you need to know about Instagram, Instagram Stories and Instagram Marketing.

Today: how can I respond to Instagram stories with GIFs?

Instead of either writing a response to an Instagram story or using one of the rather limited Quick Reactions provided, users can now pick out a suitable GIF via Giphy and send it to the story's creator. To do this, all you have to do is click on the text box. Then, you will see the option to add GIFs through Giphy and it will display GIFs for you to choose from by category.

GIF reactions give Instagram Stories a richer response set than the earlier emoji-only Quick Reactions, which often weren't appropriate or meaningful enough. It's certain that users will be happy to now be able to pick out the most fitting and witty GIFs possible for every occasion.

Companies can also see this as an opportunity to get more engagement from users. For example, it is easy to imagine fun challenges in which users are invited to share the funniest GIFs. For all Instagram users, it should be a welcome change to not always have the same old reactions in their inbox. Brands with their own branded GIFs on Giphy gain an extra distribution channel whenever those stickers travel through replies.

Innovation with Quick Reactions: No more messages

Previously, businesses always got a message when their followers reacted to their stories. Quick Reactions are faster and more optimized now: when you look at other people's stories, an emoji appears at the bottom right, and if you click on it, you can rate the story with a reaction. Instagram no longer sends message notifications about reactions.

You don't get the emojis as private messages; they are displayed under your own story, similar to the 'Ask' feature. So now we can rate the Instagram stories of our favorite stars without them being annoyed at receiving a message every time.

Conclusion: Instagram Stories are the foundation of a good marketing strategy

Instagram Stories are becoming an increasingly important part of a good marketing strategy. To make it easier to work on Instagram Stories as a team, Storrito can help. You can design, edit and schedule your stories from the comfort of your computer. This way, everyone has access to and an overview of your Instagram Stories.