How To Use Google Web Stories

How to Level Up Your Content Marketing Strategy With Google Web Stories

If your content marketing strategy is generating lacklustre results, you might be using the wrong format. Online content can be created in various formats. While you can always create content in a text-based format, such as a web-page article or a blog post, using a more visual and interactive format like Google Web Stories may yield better results.

What Are Web Stories?

Previously known as Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) Stories, Web Stories are interactive, full-page slideshows. They use Google’s AMP framework. With it, you can create Web Stories featuring any combination of text, image, video, audio, and animation content.

Like all slideshows, Web Stories consist of multiple frames or slides. After consuming the content on a given slide, visitors can proceed to the next slide. Visitors on mobile devices can tap the right side of the slide to proceed, and visitors on desktop devices can click the arrow on the right side of a slide. Alternatively, they can return to the previous slide by tapping the left side or clicking the left-facing arrow.

You can see examples of Web Stories by visiting blog.google/web-creators/10-web-stories-and-whats-great-about-them.

Benefits of Creating Web Stories

Why should you create Web Stories exactly? For starters, you can host them directly on your website. Several social media networks offer a similar format. You can create Facebook Stories or Instagram stories, for example. The problem with Facebook Stories and Instagram Stories is that you can’t host them directly on your website. Rather, you’ll have to host them on those platforms. Web Stories are different because you can host them directly on your website.

Visitors may discover your website’s Web Stories in multiple places. Google indexes Web Stories like regular web pages. When visitors search for a keyword that’s relevant to a Web Story on your website, they may discover an organic listing for the Web Story.

Google may display your website’s Web Stories in other places as well. For searches performed on a mobile device, Google may return a “Visual Stories” section consisting of a grid of Web Stories. Visitors who perform a search on a mobile device may discover one or more of your website’s Web Stories in this section.

Web Stories are also eligible for Google Discover. When using Google on a mobile device, visitors may see a personalized feed. Known as Google Discover, it’s displayed at the bottom of Google, directly below the search box. Google Discover is also accessible on certain Android devices by swiping from the home screen. Creating Web Stories will allow you to reach visitors in Google Discover.

You can include links in Web Stories. Each slide in a given Web Story can be customized. When creating a slide, you can customize it with text or images that link to other web pages. Slides support internal links and outbound links. In other words, you can link to web pages published on your website or web pages published on other websites.

As the name suggests, Web Stories are ideal for storytelling. You can use them to tell stories that capture the attention of visitors. You can begin the story on the first slide while gradually expanding the story on the proceeding slides.

Web Stories are easy to monetize. You can design them with advertisements for your website’s products or services, or you can design with affiliate links to brands with which your site is partnered. You can even monetize Web Stories with AdSense. To do this, just add a new display ad unit to it with the “Responsive” size option.

Because they use Google’s AMP framework, Web Stories load quickly. Upon clicking a link to a Web Story on your website, visitors will see them almost instantly. Google’s AMP framework allows for lightning-fast load times. All forms of AMP content load instantaneously, and Web Stories are no exception.

Web Stories support deep analytics. With AMP Analytics, you can see which Web Story has generated the most traffic and which individual slide in a given Web Story has generated the most traffic. Other supported metrics include average session duration, average slide views per Web Story, bounces, and more.

Getting Started With Web Stories

Web Stories use Google’s AMP framework. You can’t create them using standard Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). The validation tool at validator.ampproject.org will reveal whether your Web Stories use the correct AMP syntax.

Along with Google’s AMP framework, all Web Stories must contain several pieces of metadata, including a publisher logo, poster portrait, title, and publisher name. You can use your website’s logo for the publisher logo, and you use your website’s name for the publisher name.

For the poster portrait, on the other hand, you should use a custom image that’s relevant to the Web Story. Finally, the title should tell visitors what the Web Story is about. According to Google, titles for Web Stories should be shorter than 70 characters. Most Web Stories are accessed on mobile devices.

Depending on what content management system (CMS) powers your website, you might be able to create Web Stories with a plugin. There’s a Web Stories plugin for WordPress. Available at wp.stories.google.com, it will allow you to build Web Stories easily in WordPress. You don’t build Web Stories from scratch, assuming you use Google’s AMP framework, but this plugin offers a faster and easier solution.

Google recommends linking to Web Stories in a sitemap. When included in a sitemap, Web Stories are more likely to rank on Google. Google will crawl your website’s sitemap, during which it will discover links to your Web Stories. Sitemap inclusion isn’t a requirement for creating Web Stories, but it can result in higher rankings.

For a stronger content marketing strategy, consider using Web Stories. They will complement your website’s other content while providing visitors with a more visual and interactive experience.