What are Web Stories and how do you integrate them into your strategy?

A Brief History of Web Stories

It is impossible to talk about a web story without talking, above all, about a story.

In 2013, a new content format appeared on the web, which would quickly revolutionize the world of Content Marketing: The Story, Born from the Social Network Snapchat. You're probably already familiar with stories, those ephemeral videos that disappear after 24 hours.

Over time, seeing the potential of this format, All Social Networks Release Their Own Stories Feature : Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, LinkedIn, LinkedIn, LinkedIn, LinkedIn, YouTube, and even Pinterest or messengers like WhatsApp and Signal.

But It was only in 2018 that the web story as such was born. Google is launching it, under the name AMP Stories, as an extension of its Accelerated Mobile Pages. Since then, they have been known under the name of Google Web Stories, and you can find them both in the search engine results, but also in Google Images and Google Discover.

Back to the present: web stories have now become an innovative key format for working on your natural referencing (SEO) strategy, but also, quite simply, for communicating your brand messages in an engaging way.

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Ok, but what are the differences between web stories and social media stories?

Beyond the fact that they appear directly in search engine results, web stories have significant differences from stories that are traditionally found on social networks:

• They have an unlimited duration, since they don't disappear after 24 hours.
• You Can Integrate Your Web Story Directly Into Websites, on the home page, on your product sheets, or on any other type of page.
• You are the owner of your web story, which is not the case with a traditional story. Indeed, if the social network where it was designed disappears, your story disappears with it.

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Hey, what does a web story look like?

Now That You Know How They Were Born The Web Stories, it's time to find out what that looks like, in concrete terms.

A web story is A full-fledged page on your website, which contains several pages that the visitor can scroll using arrows. By nature, a web story has a format responsive : It adapts to any screen size, from the Desktop To the mobile, through the tablet.

Generally, a web story adopts the same Vertical format Than the stories that we traditionally see on social networks. Elle Combines different types of content : video, text, image, GIFs...

You Can Also Integrate Into Your Web Stories Links, to improve navigation on your website or conversion.

Another interesting possibility: the inclusion in your web story of Engaging content formats, like quizzes or polls, for example to collect Feedback On your brand.

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What are the best practices for using web stories in your marketing strategy?

Tempted by the idea of creating web stories? Here are some best practices to apply to effectively use this innovative format.

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Create a script for your web story

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To create a good web story, everything starts with the design of a script. In the same way as when you design a video, the script of your web story allows you to be sure of Broadcast the Key Message You Want to Get Across, and of Structure your content effectively.

However, creating your script requires Think about the objective you are experiencing through this web content. Do you want to reassure your targets before buying your products on your e-commerce site? Increase the time spent on a blog post? Explain your value proposition in an engaging way on your home page?

By thinking about this primary objective, you determine the most effective format to give to your web story, and also think about the channels where you will broadcast it.

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Skillfully handle the Storytelling

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As a marketer, you know it: words have weight, and every web project must know how to make good use of them. That's where the Storytelling, or the art of telling stories, comes into play.

Your web story should Tell an Engaging, Self-Sufficient Story, just like another page on your website.

Of course, your content can link to other pages, to make your visitor dig deeper or to encourage conversion. But your web story must be able to be consumed alone, and get your key message across accurately, while generating engagement.

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Beware of Information Overload

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While it is tempting to make the most of the web story format, one of the key mistakes is to overload each of its pages with supernumerary information.

We generally recommend designing web stories ofA maximum of dozen pages - Number beyond which you risk losing the attention of your target.

But Be Careful With Do not overload these pages with text, links or visuals, which would blur the key message That you want to pass. Choose clear, airy pages, and a level of textual information that remains legible in just a few seconds.

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Use a web story editing tool designed for marketers

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The code for web stories is open, meaning that anyone can design them. However, to save time and ensure a professional result, you must haveA web story editing tool designed for your needs.

In particular, this tool should:

• Be intuitive and easy to handle
• Allow you to include your graphic charter, to highlight the visual identity of your brand in your content
• Dispose of Templates Pre-designed, designed to engage your audience, in order to save time on your content creation

That is exactly what you are offering JOIN Stories: What if you discovered our web story creation tool Immersive and responsive ?

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Broadcast Your Web Stories As They Should

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You're probably familiar with Pareto's law and how it applies to the world of content creation and management. It is generally said that you need to spend 20% of the time spent creating your content, and 80% of the time distributing and promoting it so that it receives the necessary visibility.

That's why, once your web story is designed, you need to work on Broadcast it on all relevant marketing channels: 

• On your website, on the pages that make it possible to achieve the marketing goals underlying your web story
• In your newsletter or other emails
• In Your Communication Print, Via a QR Code that leads to the web story page
• In the Feeds Organic Pages of Your Social Networks, to create engaging carousels...

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Measuring the Performance of Your Web Stories

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As with any web marketing strategy, it is crucial, once your web stories are published, to Measure the performance they collect.

Take the time to regularly do a Reporting comprehensive, including in particular:

• The Number of Views
• Click-through rate
• The completion rate of your videos

This allows you not only to measure the ROI of your strategy, but also to optimize your content continuously, to make it even more effective.

You now have the theoretical bases to learn how to use web stories in your communication.

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