Cross-Promotional Campaigns: Highlight Story Ideas
Use Instagram Highlights to turn short-lived Stories into lasting cross-promotional assets—giveaways, influencer takeovers, UGC, launches, events, and analytics.
Instagram Highlights are a game-changer for keeping your best Stories visible long-term. Unlike regular Stories that vanish after 24 hours, Highlights stay on your profile, making them perfect for cross-promotional campaigns. Here’s how you can use Highlights to maximize partnerships, boost engagement, and drive traffic:
- Collaborative Giveaways: Extend the life of joint contests by saving them in Highlights, complete with entry instructions and countdowns.
- Influencer Partnerships: Showcase influencer takeovers or product reviews in a dedicated Highlight section to build trust and drive conversions.
- Brand Mentions: Turn shoutouts and press mentions into lasting social proof with Highlights like "As Seen On."
- Co-Branded Content: Save joint product launches or collaborations to keep them front and center for new visitors.
- Reels and Guides Promotion: Use Highlights to direct viewers to engaging Reels or Guides with "Watch More" CTAs.
- Lifestyle Integration: Create relatable content showing how your brand fits into daily life alongside partners.
- Event Coverage: Document launches or events in Highlights to build excitement and keep the buzz alive.
- Testimonials and UGC: Collect user-generated content and testimonials in Highlights to showcase customer success stories.
- Bundle Offers: Promote exclusive deals or referral programs through Highlights like "Special Offers."
- Data-Driven Highlights: Use Instagram analytics to curate top-performing Stories for maximum impact.
Instagram Highlights are like mini landing pages for your campaigns, helping you organize and extend the reach of your best content. With tools like link stickers, branded covers, and analytics, you can turn fleeting Stories into lasting assets that keep driving results.
10 Instagram Highlight Strategies for Cross-Promotional Campaigns
1. Collaborative Giveaways
Using Instagram Highlights for collaborative campaigns can significantly boost cross-promotional efforts.
Joint Prize Bundle Highlight
Team up with a complementary brand to create a shared prize package and feature it in a Highlight. Plan your Highlight with a clear flow: start with teaser Stories a day or two before the giveaway launches, then move to an official announcement showcasing the prize bundle. Follow this with simple, step-by-step entry instructions spread across slides. Use bold text overlays like "GIVEAWAY" and eye-catching animated stickers to grab attention as users scroll.
Keeping the giveaway accessible beyond the usual 24-hour Story limit is crucial. Since 61% of consumers engage with brands on social media for incentives, having a Highlight ensures latecomers can still participate. Add countdown stickers and use Instagram's "Collab" feature to display the giveaway on both brands' profiles, doubling visibility.
For example, in July 2025, sustainable retailer Biome partnered with cloth nappy brand Designer Bums for a joint Instagram giveaway. Each brand offered a $250 gift voucher, and participants were directed to a link in Biome's bio to enter. This not only drove traffic to Biome's online store but also introduced both brands to new audiences.
"A collaboration giveaway is a contest co-hosted by two or more brands that work together to promote a shared prize... It's a win-win setup, where you split the work and multiply the results." - Stacey Corrin, Writer, RafflePress
Make sure to tag all participating brands in every Story slide to maximize exposure across all audiences. Once the giveaway ends, update the Highlight cover or first Story to say "CLOSED" to avoid confusing late viewers.
For even better results, tools like UpGrow can provide real-time analytics and AI-powered insights to fine-tune your giveaway strategy and drive organic growth.
2. Influencer Partnerships
Influencer Takeover Highlights
Collaborating with influencers who resonate with your target audience can make a real impact. Focus on influencers whose followers engage actively, especially through Instagram Stories using features like polls, Q&As, and link stickers. To ensure success, analyze data from your last 5–10 campaigns to identify what worked best.
"The best influencer isn't the one with the largest following; it's the one whose audience actively engages with their Stories in ways that move the needle for your brand." – Michael Teves, Author
Once you've selected the right influencers, take it a step further by creating a dedicated Instagram Highlight category. A "Collabs" or "Takeovers" Highlight with custom branded covers that align with your brand's aesthetic can keep influencer content visible beyond the 24-hour Story limit. Whether it's an unboxing, a styling tutorial, or a behind-the-scenes moment, save these posts immediately to ensure they remain accessible. Given that 61% of social users discover their next purchase on Instagram, this Highlight serves as ongoing social proof for new visitors checking out your profile.
To track the effectiveness of each collaboration, use UTM-parameter link stickers unique to each influencer. These links help monitor traffic and conversions driven by their content. Don’t forget to include disclosure labels like #ad on every Story frame to maintain transparency and comply with legal requirements. Regularly update the Highlight by adding fresh influencer content and removing outdated posts to keep it relevant.
Tools like UpGrow's real-time analytics and AI-driven targeting can help refine your influencer strategy, making future collaborations even more effective.
3. Brand Mentions and Shoutouts
Partner Spotlight Highlights
When your brand gets mentioned by a partner, press outlet, or customer, don’t let it vanish after 24 hours. Instead, save it to a dedicated Highlight like "Partner Spotlight", "As Seen On", or "Community." This simple step turns temporary Stories into lasting social proof, which can amplify your cross-promotion efforts. Why is this important? Because 74% of consumers trust user-generated content and peer shoutouts more than brand-created ads. Plus, with 200 million Instagram users visiting at least one business profile daily, the potential reach is huge.
Think of these Highlights as a way to strengthen your strategy, much like collaborative giveaways or influencer takeovers. To make the most of shoutouts, use Instagram's Mention sticker to notify your partner, encouraging them to share it too. This creates a ripple effect, exposing both audiences to the content. Add a link sticker to guide viewers to a relevant page, and for local partnerships, include location tags to appear in local discovery Stories, reaching nearby users.
"By featuring customer stories and customer-created content together in a single highlight, prospects can easily tap through and see social proof." – Anna Sonnenberg, Social Media Examiner
To keep your Highlights visually appealing, use branded covers for consistency. Since users only see the first few Highlights without swiping, keep your most recent or relevant shoutouts at the front. Archive older content to make room for new mentions, as Highlights can hold up to 100 items. Want to boost engagement? Add interactive stickers like polls or emoji sliders to your Stories before saving them to Highlights.
For an extra edge, tools like UpGrow's AI-powered platform can track the performance of your shoutout Highlights with real-time analytics. This helps you fine-tune your strategy to achieve better growth and engagement.
Next, dive into co-branded content strategies to expand your campaign’s reach even further.
4. Co-Branded Content
Joint Product Launch Highlights
When two brands join forces, Instagram Highlights offer a way to showcase their collaboration long after Stories vanish. Co-branded content grabs attention - 71% of consumers find it appealing, and 43% are open to trying a product from a brand they already like. By saving collaborative Stories into Highlights with titles like "Collabs", "Partner Projects", or even the partner's name, you create a lasting impression while strengthening cross-promotional efforts.
Here’s how some brands have done it: In 2024, Smithey Ironware and Burdell Oak restaurant teamed up to honor chef Edna Lewis, using Instagram's collaboration tools to connect with both the cookware brand's audience and the restaurant's local followers. Another example is Fishwife and Churn, who partnered to launch an anchovy and lemon butter, uniting their specialty food audiences. Even unexpected pairings can work wonders - KFC and Hismile collaborated to link food enjoyment with oral health, proving cross-industry partnerships can tell compelling stories.
"Collab posts can be more powerful than just tagging or mentioning another account for a big reason - they highlight a genuine connection between the brands, small businesses, or content creators right away." – Shivani Shah, Content Writer and Editor, Buffer
To make the most of these partnerships, take advantage of Instagram's tools. Use the "Invite Collaborators" feature to display the post on both profiles, ensuring shared visibility. Each collaborator can access analytics - likes, saves, shares - directly from their dashboard. Add link stickers with clear calls-to-action like "Pre-Order Now" or "Join the Waitlist" to convert engagement into tangible results. For a polished look, create branded Story templates using tools like Canva that incorporate both brands’ colors and logos, ensuring visual consistency across your Highlight reel.
Once your post is live, keep your Highlight updated and engaging. Include product tutorials, behind-the-scenes footage, and customer-generated content to build trust and provide lasting value. With posts featuring 4-5 collaborators achieving 3.8 times higher reach than solo efforts, Co-branded Highlights are a smart way to extend visibility and impact over time.
5. Reels and Guides Promotion
Reel Snippets with "Watch More" CTAs
Instagram Reels generate much higher engagement compared to traditional posts, making them a strong tool for cross-promotion. A smart tactic is to share 15-second Reel snippets with a "Watch More" call-to-action (CTA) and save them to a dedicated Highlight. This creates a lasting pathway from your profile to your Reels tab, keeping collaborative content available long after the 24-hour Story window expires.
This method has been effectively used by major brands. For instance, in 2024, Evernote curated a "What's New" Highlight that combined shared Reels and feature walkthroughs. Similarly, Canva's "Recreate" Highlight featured video tutorials paired with link stickers that directed users to interactive workbooks.
To make the most of your Reels Highlights, include link stickers to drive traffic to partner websites. Create custom Highlight covers that align with your brand’s visual style, while clearly signaling that the content is Reel-focused. Regularly update these Highlights by removing outdated Stories, ensuring your most relevant content remains prominent. With Instagram Reels averaging a search interest score of 74 compared to just 20 for Stories in Q2 2024, this strategy boosts both visibility and longevity.
By converting temporary Stories into permanent Highlights, you extend your campaign’s reach and strengthen your cross-promotional efforts. This approach ensures your Reels serve as a key piece of your broader engagement strategy.
Note: Although this section emphasizes Reels, Instagram Guides can also be promoted through Highlights. Create Stories that showcase Guide covers with swipe-up links to add another layer of cross-promotional content organization.
6. Lifestyle Integration
"Day in the Life" Partner Spotlights
Making partnerships feel genuine is key to successful cross-promotion. One way to do this is by creating Highlight Stories that show how partner brands naturally fit into everyday life. This helps audiences see the collaboration as relatable and relevant, rather than just another marketing effort. The goal is to build a connection that feels personal and lasting.
Take Djerf Avenue, a Swedish fashion brand, as an example. They shared behind-the-scenes moments from employees, showcasing the brand in a way that feels human and tied to enjoyable lifestyle experiences. Similarly, Youth Marketing Connection (YMC) created a "YMC Team" Highlight, featuring employees and their interests outside work. This approach fosters a sense of community and makes the brand feel approachable.
To expand on this idea, show how your products and your partner's products complement each other in real-life scenarios. Think morning routines, workspaces, weekend plans, or even seasonal changes. Save these stories under a Highlight category like "Lifestyle Collabs" or "Daily Essentials" for easy access.
"Authenticity is a big part of what helps audiences connect to brands, and your stories are a great place to do that." - Shea Karssing, Content Writer, Buffer
This matters because 95% of consumers expect brands to keep up with online trends and prefer creativity over repetition. To engage your audience further, use interactive tools like "This or That" polls to let them pick between lifestyle scenarios. Or, create mood boards that combine partner products with seasonal themes. These strategies help position your brand as a meaningful part of consumers' daily lives.
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7. Event and Launch Coverage
"Road to Launch" Countdown Series
When it comes to keeping your audience engaged, events and launches are golden opportunities. By documenting the entire journey - from the planning stages to the big moment - you can build excitement and give your followers a reason to keep coming back. A great way to do this is by creating an Instagram Highlight that captures every step of the process.
Take, for example, skincare brand CeraVe. In November 2024, during their 20th-anniversary celebration, they used Instagram Stories to show behind-the-scenes glimpses of their event setup. With captions like "see you soon" and location tags, they invited followers to join the live event. This kind of content doesn’t just showcase the event - it makes the audience feel like they’re part of the experience.
To make your event coverage more effective, break it into clear, branded segments. Use title slides like "Day 1", "Behind-the-Scenes", or "Partner Spotlights" to organize your content. Countdown and link stickers can also help you highlight launch timing and drive registrations.
"A prospective attendee should be able to discern what actually happens at the event from your highlight footage and posts".
Marketing strategist Nick Wolny suggests capturing five essential types of footage: the main attractions, behind-the-scenes setup, live reactions, interactive prompts, and reposts from tagged attendees. This variety ensures your coverage feels dynamic and engaging.
Much like influencer takeovers or collaborative giveaways, event Highlights serve as lasting proof of your partnerships. They turn fleeting Instagram Stories into permanent, shareable content that reinforces your brand narrative.
Here’s a bonus tip: Instagram campaigns that include Stories often see a 20% increase in reach. After your event wraps up, keep the Highlight active, but clean it up by removing outdated details like expired registration links. This ensures that new viewers see only the most relevant and up-to-date content.
Finally, tools like UpGrow (https://upgrow.com) can help you track real-time analytics, giving you valuable insights to fine-tune your event strategy. By combining these techniques, you can keep your partnerships fresh, engaging, and highly visible.
8. Testimonials and UGC
"Partner Wins" Social Proof Showcase
Testimonials and user-generated content (UGC) are powerful tools for building trust and credibility. Think of them as digital word-of-mouth. In fact, 72% of consumers trust a business more after reading a positive testimonial, and 74% trust UGC over traditional brand ads. By creating a dedicated testimonial Highlight on Instagram, you can turn temporary Stories into a permanent, easy-to-find collection of social proof.
To make the most of UGC, organize it into themed categories like "Success Stories", "Real Results", or "Partner Wins." This structure helps potential customers quickly find the proof they need without wading through unrelated posts. Since Instagram only displays the first four Highlights prominently, focus on showcasing your most engaging content. And don’t forget to credit contributors when reposting their content - this not only builds trust but also encourages others to share their experiences.
When resharing UGC from influencers or cross-promotional partners, always tag the original creators. It’s a small gesture that strengthens relationships and motivates others to contribute. To maximize the impact, consider adding link stickers to these testimonial Stories, allowing viewers to directly explore the featured products.
Keep your Highlights fresh by periodically removing older Stories. Since Instagram organizes content chronologically within Highlights, newer testimonials can get buried over time. Regularly updating these collections ensures your best content stays visible.
Encourage followers to share their experiences by using Question Stickers to ask for feedback or by creating a branded hashtag. With 41% of consumers needing one to four UGC reviews before making a purchase, even a handful of authentic testimonials can make a big difference.
9. Bundle Offers and Referrals
"Partner Up & Save" Exclusive Deals
Bundle offers and referrals are a smart way to boost engagement and attract new customers, especially when paired with complementary brands. Imagine a fitness app teaming up with a meal-prep service, or a florist collaborating with a bakery to create gift baskets. These partnerships provide a convenient, one-stop shopping experience that customers love.
Take the 2025 collaboration between parenting brand Frida and OddFellows Ice Cream as an example. They launched a limited-edition breast milk-inspired ice cream flavor to promote Frida’s new manual breast pump. The results? Over 7.8 billion impressions, a 55% increase in breast pump sales, and pint drops that sold out within minutes. This campaign highlights how impactful a well-thought-out bundle can be.
To make these deals more accessible, create a dedicated Instagram Highlight titled something like "Bundles", "Kits", or "Special Offers." Use tools like Product Cutout Overlays to make key images stand out in a grid, and include Link Stickers, Product Tags, and Countdown Stickers to encourage immediate action.
For referrals, design a "Refer Friends" or "Rewards" Highlight with eye-catching graphics and sign-up links. Since 92% of consumers trust recommendations from friends and family over traditional ads, referral programs can turn your customers into enthusiastic brand advocates. Custom Highlight covers in your brand colors also help maintain a polished, professional appearance.
Finally, track your efforts with analytics tools like UpGrow to refine your Instagram campaigns. By integrating bundle offers and referral programs into your Highlights, you can expand your reach and deliver ongoing value to your audience.
10. Analytics-Driven Highlights
"Performance-Powered" Highlight Curation
Instagram analytics can be a goldmine for curating your Highlights. Did you know Instagram keeps Story performance data for up to two years? This makes it easier to analyze long-term trends in your cross-promotional efforts.
Start by using Instagram's "Content You Shared" insights to filter archived Stories. Sorting by Link Clicks can help you identify which partner products or referral links performed best. Pay attention to the "Taps Back" metric as well - if viewers are revisiting a Story, that’s a clear sign it’s worth saving. As Hootsuite points out:
"If a story's earned a lot of repeat views, it may be a good one to save to your Instagram Story highlights".
This is a simple way to pinpoint content that resonates and deserves a permanent spot in your Highlights.
Dig deeper by analyzing metrics like "Taps Forward" and "Exits." For example, if viewers consistently drop off after five slides, consider keeping your future Highlights shorter. Remember, while Highlights can hold up to 100 Stories, only the first four are immediately visible - so make sure your best content is front and center.
For more advanced tracking, tools like UpGrow provide real-time analytics dashboards. According to their beta users, leveraging these deeper insights led to a 275% increase in monthly followers through pattern-recognition analytics. To keep your Highlights fresh and engaging, regularly remove Stories with high exit rates so new visitors only see your top-performing content.
Conclusion
Instagram Highlights turn fleeting Stories into lasting content that sits prominently just below your bio - one of the first things visitors notice when checking out your profile. For cross-promotional campaigns, this permanence means that giveaways, partner shoutouts, and co-branded content can keep driving engagement long after their initial launch. These Highlights build on the cross-promotional strategies mentioned earlier.
With over 500 million users engaging with Instagram Stories daily, and 57% of Gen Z discovering new products through social media, categorizing your campaigns into Highlights - like "Partner Giveaways", "Influencer Takeovers", or "Co-Branded Products" - helps your audience quickly find what matters to them most.
You can take it further by designing branded Highlight covers with consistent icons and colors, refreshing them regularly to keep the content relevant, and using interactive stickers to maintain engagement even after the original Stories expire.
For even better results, combine these tactics with UpGrow's AI-driven tools to expand your reach. UpGrow’s Boost™ feature, for example, has helped beta users achieve a 275% increase in monthly followers, earning the platform a 4.98/5 rating from over 58,000 reviews. As one user, Oliver1962, shared:
"UpGrow is the secret to growing your Instagram following fast! In just one month, I gained over 4,000 real followers - it's been a total game-changer for my fitness account."
FAQs
How can using Instagram Highlights enhance cross-promotional campaigns?
Instagram Highlights let you extend the lifespan of your Stories, keeping them accessible well beyond the usual 24-hour window. By grouping and saving Stories into Highlights, you create a permanent, curated collection that showcases the heart of your brand - whether it’s key messages, products, or promotions. This makes it easy for both your loyal followers and new visitors to engage with your content whenever they want.
Think of Highlights as a visual portfolio. They provide quick access to essential campaign elements like product launches, behind-the-scenes snippets, customer testimonials, or exclusive deals. By transforming short-lived Stories into lasting assets, Highlights not only reinforce your campaign’s message but also help draw in new followers and keep your audience engaged. They’re a must-have tool for any effective cross-promotional strategy.
How can I make the most of influencer collaborations on Instagram?
To get the most out of influencer collaborations on Instagram, focus on building genuine connections and boosting audience engagement. One effective approach is partnering with influencers for Instagram Story takeovers. This not only introduces your brand to their followers but does so in a way that feels natural and interactive.
Another smart move is using Instagram’s collab features to co-create content like Reels or posts. This allows both your brand and the influencer to share the content with their audiences, expanding visibility and reaching potential new followers.
You can also collaborate on creative and time-sensitive Story campaigns. These campaigns feel authentic and encourage immediate engagement, which can drive more interaction. Hosting joint live sessions or working together on unique content ideas can further build trust and strengthen your community. For even better results, consider pairing these efforts with tools like UpGrow to track organic growth and gain performance insights.
How can Instagram Highlights be used to showcase user-generated content effectively?
Instagram Highlights offer a great way to feature user-generated content (UGC), allowing brands to keep and organize compelling stories that showcase their community. While regular Stories vanish after 24 hours, Highlights stick around on your profile, giving visitors a chance to explore this content whenever they want.
By organizing UGC into Highlights, you can spotlight customer testimonials, product reviews, or even behind-the-scenes moments. This approach not only helps build trust and credibility but also motivates followers to share their own content, knowing they might be featured. Think of Highlights as a living portfolio of real customer experiences, helping you connect more deeply with your audience while reinforcing your brand’s genuine appeal.
