How to Create an Instagram Story Highlight

So we’ve learned how to repost stories, interact with them, post them, and add all that creative goodness to them. It can be heartbreaking to see all that hard work disappear after 24 hours.

What if I told you that Instagram allows us a place for our beautiful Instagram story creations to live forever?

Story highlights allow you a place to categorize and save your stories so that your followers can refer back to them whenever they want to!

Plus, they can look pretty neat on your page! Check mine out below (they are the colorful circles under my profile)!

Why should I use a highlight? 🎨

Highlights not only add to the overall aesthetic and cohesiveness of your page, but they are also a fantastic marketing tool for business owners.

With highlights you can:

• Answer commonly asked questions and have them live on your page for new followers to refer back to.

• Show new followers more of your personality.

• Pick only the best stories you have created to save to each highlight.

• Edit it whenever you want to make sure it stays up to date with the most current information.

• Allows new followers to interact with story content way after the 24 hour period is up.

So, how do I create one? 🧐

To create a story highlight:

1. While viewing your profile, press the white circle with the plus sign inside labeled “New”.

2. Select the stories you want included in your highlight and click “Next”.

3. Name your highlight (make sure it’s short enough so that the entire word can be seen on your profile).

4. Press “edit cover” and either choose an image from one of your stories or click the photo album icon to choose an image from your camera roll.

TIP: I always create Instagram Story Highlight covers over on Canva or download them from Pinterest. In Canva, you can edit them to include your brand colors and add text.

Also, always make sure that your story highlights aren’t too busy. There’s a lot of information already on your profile, you don’t want to overwhelm your followers by adding more chaos.

Your Challenge: Create an Instagram Highlight!

Today’s task requires you to download, purchase, or create your own Instagram Story highlight covers! If you’re looking to go about this in the simplest way, you can purchase my Top 5 Instagram Story Highlight Cover Templates here ($1.97)!

To use the template,

1. Click the link.

2. Add your own Story Highlight names.

3. Optional: Edit the template to include your brand colors and fonts.

4. Save the photos to your camera roll.

5. Use the photos from your camera roll when choosing a story cover.

Create one highlight or create as many as you’d like! I can’t wait to see what you all create!

• How do I edit an Instagram Story Highlight?

  To edit an Instagram Story highlight:

  1. Hold down on one of your Instagram Story Highlights.

  2. Press edit highlight.

  3. From here you will be able to add new stories, change the name, and edit the cover.

• How do you add highlights to Instagram without adding stories.

  You need at least one Instagram Story posted to create a highlight. You can use that same story as a placeholder for each highlight you create.

  Just remember to eventually change the stories within each highlight as time goes on.

• How do you start a highlight story?

  To start a highlight story:

  1. Go to profile view.

  2. Press the white circle with a plus sign inside of it that says “New”

  3. From there, you can add stories and edit it to your liking before pressing done.