In August 2016, Instagram introduced the Instagram Story feature that soon emerged as the talk of the social media world. With this option, users could post photos or videos that would disappear after 24 hours.  

Since then, this feature has been a complete game-changer for individuals and businesses. By helping to nurture relations authentically, the Instagram story feature is a great way to share behind-the-scenes moments, host live Q&A sessions, or conduct polls and quizzes.  

While the Instagram story is an important tool to build brand awareness, many social media managers and marketers still look up “Can you edit an Instagram story?” and how to do it effectively. 

In this blog, we will help you understand how to edit a story on Instagram, both before and after posting. Further, we will also look into what is the best time and ideal number of stories that should be posted every day. 

How to Edit Instagram Story Before Posting?  

Instagram stories enable businesses to showcase their brand distinctiveness and should be highly captivating. 

But if you are unable to do so in one go, no worries!  

Here is how to edit an Instagram story perfectly before posting:  

Select the right content

Firstly, start with choosing the right content to post. To identify the right content, ask yourself the following questions before posting it:

• What is the message you are trying to convey?
• Does the photo/video align with this message?
• Does the story align with your brand values?

Also, make sure the quality of the photo/video you will be using for your story is good.

Use hashtags

Hashtags help in categorizing your content. Your target audience that is not following you yet can discover you using hashtags. Hence, hashtags should not be ignored. But how do you select the right hashtags?

Here is a pro tip- Choose the popular ones. These will generally appear in suggestions.

Also, do not unnecessarily use a lot of hashtags.

Incorporate Interactions

Here are 3 features that can help you increase your story engagement rates by providing your target audience with the opportunity to interact with you:

• Ask questions
• Create polls
• Create quizzes

When used strategically, these can become a powerful way of nurturing brand loyalty by understanding your audience better and getting direct feedback from them.

The Location Sticker

Are you a local brand? Do you want to reach your audience in a particular region?

There is nothing more powerful than using the location sticker on your stories. Use it to let your followers know where your business is located.

Use stickers and gifs

To express your feelings or moods, stickers and GIFs are your best friends. They add personality and fun to your posts. They also make your messages more relatable and enjoyable. So, make sure you leverage stickers and gifs in your stories.

Link to your website

You can add a link to your website or store to your stories to invite your target audience. After adding the URL, do not forget to customise the text on the sticker.

If you are using videos in your stories, there are some important aspects you should focus on:

• Vertical videos have proven to be more successful.
• Keep in mind Instagram’s standard aspect ratio of 9:16 and video length of 60 seconds.

How to Edit Instagram Story After Posting? 

We just discussed how to edit the story on IG before posting.  

However, it is also quite possible that you spot an error in the content after the story is posted. Maybe you ended up making a typo in haste or added the wrong link for your users to click on!  

This brings us to our next question — Can you edit Instagram stories after posting them? 

The answer is yes and no! While you can’t make any significant changes in the content, you can still toggle a bit with the settings.  

Simply choose the story that needs to be edited and tap on the ‘more’ button. From the ‘Story Settings’ option, you will be able to:  

• Hide people whom you don’t want to see your story. 
• Privately share your story with your close friends. You can create your Instagram Close Friends Group to selectively share your private story posts with chosen friends or followers. 
• Select who can reply to your story- ‘everyone’, ‘only people you follow’, or ‘nobody’. 
• Save your story to highlights or your camera roll. 

How do you edit or delete Instagram stories?

We have now understood how to edit a story on Instagram. If you need to make a major edit of Instagram stories, you will have to delete them and repost them after changing them.

To delete your Instagram story:

1. Open your Stories and select the photo or video you want to remove.
2. Tap the three-dot “More” icon located at the bottom right of your screen.
3. Next, tap “Delete.”
4. A pop-up dialogue will appear, confirming if you want to delete the photo or video. Tap “Delete” once more to confirm.

How to edit Story Highlights?

While Instagram stories are only visible for 24 hours, you can save your stories permanently in ‘Story Highlights’.

To do so, select the story you want to save and click on the ‘highlight’ button. Give the highlight a name. Select a thumbnail for it. And you have saved your story as a highlight.

You can edit, change, or delete your highlights whenever you want.

To add Stories to an existing Highlight, follow these steps:

1. Go to the Highlight you want to edit and tap on “More.”
2. Select “Edit Highlight.”
3. Access your Archive and choose one or more previous Stories.
4. You can also edit the cover image and rename the Highlight.

To create a new Highlight and add multiple Stories at once:

1. Visit your Instagram profile.
2. Tap the “+New” button.
3. Select the Stories you want to add to your new Highlight or choose from the Suggested highlights based on location.
4. Tap “Next.”
5. Name your Highlight and choose a cover for it.
6. Finally, tap “Done.

How many stories should I share each day?

There are no restrictions. You can share any number of Instagram stories in a day.

According to research, sharing two stories on your Instagram handle is a good idea, but you are free to post between 1-7 stories each day. The stories on Instagram come under content that is less polished, so they allow you to communicate with the audience in a more relaxed and informal way without any sort of pressure for polished and authentic text.

What is the best time to post on Instagram?

• Considering the time zones for your audience is very crucial. You need to know who follows you, the age group they belong to, and when they are most active on Instagram. Remember that such information will be obtained only if you have a business account.

• Monitor your competitors- Keeping a close watch on what your competitors are posting will provide you with valuable information. However, you cannot directly copy their content but can always get some ideas from their posts.

• Share content when you are satisfied- Post your stories on Instagram when you are 100 % satisfied with the content that you are willing to post.

Related: A guide: What is the Best Time to Post on Instagram?

Bonus tip: Find out the best time to post on Instagram with VAIZLE FREE TOOL. Click below on Get Started for free

What type of content to post on Instagram Stories?

Instagram stories are a great way to engage your audience.

• You can create “How to” Tutorials and add in some interactive features, especially in the case of videos, to make your content more appealing and interactive.
• To generate excitement amongst the audience, make use of countdown stickers for the upcoming events.
• You should stay updated concerning the latest trends and updates in your field and keep updating the audience with the same so that they can stick to you for a longer period.

You should always give your audience some offers and discounts and lifetime access to particular content of yours, creating a sense of urgency among the audience, and do not forget to deliver valuable information and insights to build their interest.