In the ever-evolving digital landscape, brands constantly seek innovative ways to engage their audience. The emergence of Web Stories is a game-changer, providing a new, cost-effective, and efficient avenue to deliver interactive web experiences. At our agency, we’ve seen firsthand the potential of this powerful tool to capture and retain audience attention, drive traffic, and boost search rankings.

What is a Web Story?

Think of Instagram Stories, but way more integrated and versatile. A Web Story is a visual content format that allows brands to publish brief, engaging narratives. These stories can feature videos, pictures, or animations, all neatly packed in a mobile-friendly format. What sets Web Stories apart is their ability to be integrated into websites and linked across various platforms.

To better illustrate, here’s a demo Web Story we created for Fiction Tribe.

Why Choose Web Stories?

According to Adobe, “Interactive web experiences have a 25% higher engagement rate than static content.” This finding underscores the power of interactive content in capturing and holding audience attention. Web Stories enable brands to create such content that’s short, visually-rich, and interactive.

TechCrunch notes, “Web Stories are designed to be snackable and fun to consume, much like the Stories format found on other social media platforms. [It allows] marketers to offer a unique experience that aligns with the way people consume content today.”

Leveraging Web Stories: The Impact

1. Engaging User Experiences: With elements like quizzes, polls, and offers, Web Stories allow brands to deliver captivating experiences to their audience.
2. Shareable Content: Users can easily share your content, expanding your audience reach.
3. Boosted Search Rankings: Web Stories can help you secure prime positions in search results, enhancing organic traffic and sales.

As an example, check out this Fintech Web Story we created for Fortinet.

Web Stories Performance Tracking

You can track your Web Stories’ performance via the typical GA Dashboard, which provides metrics like story starts, time spent, pages viewed, story completions, and offer clicks/lead capture.

Creating a Web Story

Here’s a basic guide on creating a captivating Web Story:

• Title Slide: Use relevant keywords and attention-grabbing imagery that centers around your content’s theme.
• Introduction Slide: Briefly introduce the topic and its relevance to your audience, using clear and concise language.
• Key Point Slides (3-5 slides): Break down your content into 3-5 key points or sub-topics, using a mix of text, images, and graphics.
• Supporting Data/Statistics Slide (optional): Back up your key points with relevant data or research findings.
• Quotation/Testimonial Slide (optional): Showcase a quote or testimonial to build trust and credibility.
• Call-to-Action (CTA) Slide: Encourage viewers to take the next step with persuasive language and a clear CTA button or link.
• Closing Slide: Summarize the key takeaways, include your brand logo, a link to your website, and add your social media handles.

SEO Tips for Web Stories

Use descriptive and keyword-rich file names for your images, add relevant alt text to all images, and optimize your Web Story’s metadata with targeted keywords.

To see how these strategies can be utilized effectively, here’s another example of how we helped Comcast Business tell their Security Edge story.

In conclusion, Web Stories present a unique opportunity for brands to engage their audience in a new, interactive way. As a technology director, I believe this is a tool every brand should consider incorporating into their digital strategy. It’s time to tell your story, the Web Story way.