How to add a link to your Instagram Stories, no matter how many followers you have
Image Credit: Instagram
After a few months of testing, Instagram confirm they are rolling out Link Stickers to all users globally, regardless of follower count.
For years now the only way to share a link on Instagram Stories was to be verified or have over 10,000 followers, via a swipe up. In June, Instagram tested letting anyone place links in Stories via a Sticker. In August, Instagram continued with Stickers in place of the swipe up, but kept them restricted to verified accounts or 10k+ followers. Now Instagram have finally setted on allowing anyone, regardless of their size, share links via Stickers on Stories.
This is great news for growing artists looking to share links to their music across stores, or ticket and merch sales, rather than directing fans to “the link in the bio”. Against the old swipe up method, a Link Sticker shows the URL, allowing the end user to see where they’ll be redirected to before going ahead. The new method also allows DMs to still be sent on Stories with links.
— Adam Mosseri (@mosseri) October 27, 2021
How to share links in your Instagram Stories
- Swipe right or tap the + icon in the top right corner of the Instagram app to create a new Story.
- Take a photo/video or upload one from the camera roll.
- Swipe up or tap the smiley face in the top right corner to access Stickers.
- Tap Link.
- Type the URL, then tap Done.
- Tap the link to change the colour and make any other adjustments to your Story before tapping Send to and choosing where to send it.
The feature appears to still be rolling out to all users. In Instagram’s effort to limit harmful content on the app, new accounts and those that repeatedly share things like hate speech and misinformation, as well as other content that violates Facebook/Instagram’s Community Guidelines won’t be able to access Link Stickers. Click here to learn more about your account status and make an appeal.
Link Stickers to all users joins a whole bunch of new features Instagram has debuted in the last few weeks, including Instagram uploads on desktop, Instagram Videos, Instagram Collabs, Live Scheduling and new Reels effects.