When it comes to filters and overall aesthetics, Instagram has it all. Once signed up, you have all the tools at your disposal to beautify your photos. And yet, it’s always nice to have some bit of help in case you run out of ideas to add punch to your Instagram stories.
1. Create a Drop Shadow Effect on Your Text
Even the smallest aspects of the design may have the most impact.
If you’re looking for a simple way to add a little flash and pizzazz to your Instagram Stories, you may want to add a drop shadow effect to your text.
Open your stories and tap the text tool on the screen. Write your message, select your font, and change your size by pinching your fingers.
Repeat these steps again with the very same font and size of the message, but with a different color!
2. Hide Your Hashtags
Sometimes hashtag stickers may spoil the aesthetic appeal of the Instagram story that you want to share, but luckily there are ways around it.
If you want to hide hashtags in your Instagram Stories, type your hashtags (you can use up to 10 in your stories) and pin them to make them smaller.
Now put a GIF or a sticker over the hashtag text so it’s absolutely covered!
Or you can pick a color tool from the text selection and choose a color that suits your Instagram story backdrop perfectly (this works a lot better if the background is a solid color). With only two taps, the text of your hashtag will magically blend into the background, but still be searchable!
Bear in mind that if you make the hashtags too small, Instagram does not in itself record them! The best way, then, is to camouflage them with the backdrop or conceal them behind some design feature.
3. Access Even More Colors in Instagram Stories
Instagram Stories is a wonderful way to show off the individuality of your brand, but it’s also really important to represent the look, sound, and esthetics of your brand. And one of the best ways to do this is to incorporate the color scheme of the company.
But what if Instagram doesn’t show your brand colors in its default color options? Lucky for you, there’s a secret Instagram Stories hack that lets you access every color you like for your text!
Everything you need to do is open your Instagram Stories and pick a brush tool. Now tap and hold any of the preset colors at the bottom of the screen to open the color slider.
Now just swipe through the slider to select a custom color for your story. In the same way, if you are using the Instagram Stories template that you have built for your brand colors, you can use the color picker feature to pinpoint the exact brand color from your template!
4. Rainbowfy Text
If you just want to make your text template even more spectacular, you can use the color picker tool to create a gradient (or rainbow) color effect for your text!
To do this, open the Instagram Stories and type a text. Then tap your text and then tap “Select All” to highlight it.
When your text is highlighted, click and keep one finger down on the color palette tool at the bottom of your screen (as you did before) to open the full range of colors.
You’ll see your text starting to change color, letter by letter, as you move your finger over the range of colors! You can move your finger faster or slower for additional color variations, or alternate the way that you drag your fingers over the screen to produce a totally different effect.
5. Align Your Text Left, Right, or Centered
Some of the font types in the Instagram Stories do not have the option to be left-or right-aligned, which may be a bit of a hassle.
Typically, you can only press the alignment button in the top left corner of the screen to adjust the alignment of your text. But if the button (which is the case for Modern, Neon, and Strong fonts) is missing, your text will automatically be centered.
Luckily, there is an easy solution! Simply type a message in the Instagram Stories with a font that has no alignment button on it. Now swipe your text with your left or right finger. This should change the alignment of the text.
6. Add Your Brand Fonts to Your Stories
Instagram Stories offers a bunch of great fonts, but nothing beats having your own brand font! If you’re looking to add a little more “brand” to your stories, writing in your brand font is a great option. And thankfully, there’s a way to do it.
Start by installing the Mobile Over app. When downloaded, AirDrop your .OFT font file to your mobile computer.
Select Over from the pop-up menu.
Now when you design a story in Over, you’re going to be able to add the fonts of your brand!
7. Paste Photos Directly Onto Your Stories
Have you ever decided to add more pictures or have several photographs in a single Instagram story? Or submit a particular GIF that you can’t find in the Instagram GIF Library?
We’re going to teach you two ways to do this:
Option #1: Copy a photo of your camera roll
This is a super easy and fast way to get an extra picture or GIF on your Instagram story post. What you need to do is clip a photo from your camera roll and then paste it into your story using a text tool!
Start by opening a picture and tapping the “Export” button.
Now tap “Copy” and go back to your Instagram story.
Double-tap the screen to pull up the “Paste” option. The photo you copied earlier should now appear in your story.
Option #2: Use Google’s Gboard App
The second option is to download the Google Gboard app and paste your images directly from your keyboard.
Just open a story and tap the screen to bring up the Gboard to do this.
Now press the Google “G” logo and enter the query in the search bar.
If you find what you’re searching for, just tap the picture or GIF to copy it, and then tap the screen to paste it!
Just remember to verify the rights of use or attribute the picture where necessary.
8. Create a Solid Color Background on Your Stories
This color-fill trick is pretty handy when you want to share a canvas of drawings and text instead of a picture or video!
Tap the pen icon in the upper right corner of the screen and select a color. Then, press and hold on the screen for 1-3 seconds until the screen is full of a solid color.
9. Create Line Breaks
If you want to add a simple colored box to your story, you can do this by programming a text substitute on your mobile with a keyboard shortcut.
If you make a keyboard shortcut that consists only of spaces, you will be able to add the background color to the spaces (as Instagram will always read it as text when you select your font) so it will appear as a plain, colored box in your message!
All you have to do is copy the space between these brackets [ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀] on your mobile screen. Then open your phone settings and go to General, Keyboard, and finally “Text Replacement.”
Tap the “+” button in the top right corner, then paste the space in the “Phrase” portion. Then you can name the shortcut. Now go back to Instagram Stories and press the text tool on the phone. Type the shortcut and then pick a replacement text.
Now, highlight the text and apply a color to the options at the bottom of the screen.
And voila! You’ve got a colored box that you can put behind your text!
10. Schedule Your Instagram Stories in Advance
It’s an easy trick that so many brands and businesses don’t use!
When you’ve got a special product launch or event release coming up, you want to make sure that you’re reaching your viewers because you know they’re the most engaged online! And by scheduling your Instagram Stories, you can use your analytics to prepare, arrange, and upload at the right time.