Instagram Channel Features
For a list of the most up-to-date features, visit the Instagram Feature landing page.
The Instagram Feed
The Instagram Feed is where you find any content shared by users you follow. Here is where you engage with your followers’ posts by liking, commenting or sharing content to your stories.
Bayer Usage Recommendation
Posting content within this format is recommended for content that should live on your profile for users to be able to find at all times. This is the most commonly used format for image and video content.
Instagram Stories
Instagram Stories are quick assets that are posted for 24hrs. You can post assets with interactive stickers, GIFs or text for your community to quickly engage with.
Bayer Usage Recommendation
This format is best used for quick content you want your community to engage with or when sharing quick bites of information. Keep in mind that this content will not live on your feed past 24 hours (unless added to highlights).
The recommendation is to use this feature when sharing content that links to a webpage you want the community to visit. Your account can use the Instagram link sticker feature. Users are able to quickly tap the link sticker to view the webpage instead of scrolling to find the relevant link or click out of the app.
By using the integrated link stickers, users are able to tap the sticker to view the webpage instead of scrolling to find the relevant link or click out of the app.
Instagram Stories — Filters and Lenses
Like Facebook Effects, Instagram Stories filters and lenses are masks, frames and interactive filters that you can apply to your photos and videos. Interactive filters can even allow users to interact with objects or create quiz games for your community to use themselves.
Bayer Usage Recommendation
Use filters and lenses as a feature to engage your audience. Developing interactive quiz filters or creating filters themed with Bayer owned branding could be a fun and effective way to add buzz or engagement around your event or even for a trending topic.
Instagram Highlights
Instagram Stories disappear in 24 hours, but you are able to save Stories to your Instagram “Highlights.” Doing this pins these Stories in designated groupings on your profile for users to click through. Highlights act as a collection of folders to organize stories of related content together so users are able to explore everything in one place.
Refreshing Guidance:
You can add up to 100 photos or videos to your Highlights — and there’s no limit to how many Highlights you can create. However, the recommendation is to only keep Stories in Highlights for up to 6 months. This ensures information and content is still relevant and accurate.
Bayer Usage Recommendation
The number of Highlights should be around 10. Depending on the topic, multiple divisions can own the Highlight. If there is a gold event or timely challenge, you can create a Highlight for easy access but ensure it is removed when the content is no longer relevant.
Instagram Live
Live allows users to broadcast real-time videos directly to their community. The community can comment and chat while the Live video is being broadcasted. You also can “go live” with another user to broadcast your conversation.
Bayer Usage Recommendation
Instagram Live is dependent on the type of content you will be discussing. For business-related topics, use LinkedIn Live instead for this format as the experience and audience is more curated. For personal content like Science at Home or Ask an Expert series, Instagram Live could be a feature to use to promote transparency and the further education of online communities about Bayer-related topics. After you go live, save your Live to your IGTV so viewers who were unable to attend can watch.
With going live on all platforms, there is always a risk of negative language and engagement in the comment streaming section. Ensure the talent, moderators and virtual team are prepared for this before going live.
Instagram Bio
The Instagram Bio is a place that companies can showcase who their brand is and what their audience can expect from the channel. Because messaging is subject to change, refer to the Bayer global Instagram channel bio messaging.
Link in Bio — Linktree
The Link in Bio feature allows you to add a link to your profile that typically redirects users to a webpage with more information. Bayer has a global contract with Linktree that all business partners have access to use.
Bayer Usage Recommendation
The Linktree link in our bio allows users to find all relevant links in one website page. Feed posts are unable to include links so it is common to include “visit the link in bio” within post copy.
Link content within Stories, but using this method for feed photos is okay if there will be a heavy interest in the web content from the global community.
Instagram Guides
Guides is a feature that gives users an easier way to share and consume helpful recommendations and tips in an easy-to-digest format. They allow users to follow a curated flow of posts with commentary, which is great for step-by-step guides, tips and recommendations. The Guide types are broken out by recommended places, recommended products and recommended/favorite Instagram posts.
Bayer Usage Recommendation
Use the “recommended posts” guide type as an alternative format option when giving your community references to affiliated accounts where users can find more information, or a list of posts from your feed that relate to the same topic for users to easily find similar information in one place.
Guides that are published should be curated to serve up the content in a new and visually interesting way. Look to create a specific asset and theme for each Guide to weave throughout the visuals and copy.
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