What Are Google Web Stories?

Google is not a social media platform in and of itself, but one of its features, Google Web Stories, is similar to the stories format found on popular sites such as Instagram.

It presents a unique opportunity for creators, so keep reading to learn everything there is to know about Google Web Stories, what they can do for your business, and how to make them.

What are Google Web Stories?

Google Web Stories are interactive, video-first pieces of content that allow creators to share information with audiences via tappable pages that include audio, images, and text. AMP Stories was the previous name for the Web Story format.

According to Google, first-person narratives, evergreen or updating stories, live stories, educational and experiential stories, quizzes, and polls work best with the format.

Google launched Web Stories, formerly known as AMP stories, in 2015. It failed to gain traction and was soon abandoned. Google will relaunch AMP stories as Google Web Stories in October 2020. India, Brazil, and the United States are their primary markets.

Benefits of Google Web Stories

Vogue increased its website traffic by 18%.

Creative visuals are the medium that converts a user from a viewer to a customer. Vogue India is a long-time client of MakeStories. It increased its organic traffic by 18% using Web Stories. An advantage of Web Stories is that they live on the web as long as you want them to. This is not the case with social media stories. They do not expire or disappear once published. MakeStories has built-in features to direct Web Stories onto platforms. It can be your social media page, website, email, etc. Learn more about the benefits of using Google Web Stories for your brand here.

Are you sold on the concept of creating Google Web Stories for your company yet? If you’re still on the fence, let’s go over some of the advantages Google Web Stories may have for your company and why they may be superior to some of the social media alternatives.

Google Web Stories Examples

Google Web Stories assists you in telling your brand’s story. Do you require motivation to get started? Here are a few examples.

Web Stories are a web-based adaptation of the popular “Stories” format that merges video, audio, images, animation, and text to create a dynamic consumption experience. This visual format allows you to explore content at your own pace by tapping or swiping from one piece to the next.

How to Create Google Web Stories

Google Web Stories Plugin

Google’s Web Stories for WordPress plugin allows you to create and publish Web Stories on your WordPress site easily. The editor comes with templates, a drag-and-drop builder, space for custom branded elements, and the ability to import existing assets from your WordPress Media Library.

From here, you can customise each page with your own content, such as text, photos, and videos. You can also change the template in the middle of the process, as well as select different layouts and presets. The design possibilities are as numerous as your story ideas.

If you want to get the most out of the experience, you can upgrade to a paid account.

There are a few different options, but the main benefit paid accounts provide is the ability to leverage Google ads for yourself. This may be worthwhile if you intend to make money from the content you create.

Another fantastic feature of Newsroom AI is the integration with Getty Images. You can use the free version to access Getty Images’ creative commons images. This is more of a convenience feature, as you won’t have to search for images separately.

The paid versions, on the other hand, include access to the Getty editorial image library as well as Getty videos. If your brand is interested in history and culture, this could be advantageous.

Best Practices for Creating Google Web Stories

1. Champion video-first storytelling.

Google intended for Web Stories to be video-centric. It prefers video over all other media but welcomes audio, images, and animations that help you tell a story. Text can be included, but keep it to less than 280 characters, or about 40 to 70 words per page.

2. Use engaging elements.

The best way to accomplish this is to have multiple story pages that capture the viewer’s attention and entice them to tap and learn more. To increase viewer interaction with your content sources, you can also include interactive quizzes and polls, CTAs, and links to different pages.

3. Use your brand identity.

Because stories appear in SERPs and Google Discover, you should include your distinct brand elements so that audiences recognize you.

4. Ensure your stories are AMP valid.

Because Web Stories are built on the AMP framework, they must be AMP compliant. We mentioned various testing tools above, so use them throughout your process to ensure your Stories can be seen on the web.

5. Make your Web Stories accessible.

Although you want to promote visual storytelling, your Web Stories must also be user-friendly. To ensure that everyone can benefit from your Stories, add alt text to your images, transcribe audio, use subtitles and captions, and include metadata.

6. Be mindful of Google’s SEO standards.

Web Stories, as previously stated, are pages on your website. As a result, when creating your Web Stories, keep SEO best practices in mind so that they can be indexed and appear in SERPs.

Google Web Stories Ad Opportunities

Traditionally, content creators have made money by selling ad space. This is true for both print newspapers and online news blogs. Google Web Stories can use the same concept as programmatic advertisements.

You can create immersive, engaging stories with ads that flow naturally with the rest of your story. You can include CTA boxes, links to landing pages on your reason for creating a story.

What Are Google Web Stories?

Google Web Stories are interactive, video-first pieces of content that allow creators to share information with audiences via tappable pages that include audio, images, and text. AMP Stories was the previous name for the Web Story format. Google Web Stories is not a social media platform in and of itself, but one of its features, Google Web Stories, is similar to the stories format found on popular sites such as Instagram.

Benefits of Google Web Stories

Vogue India is a long-time client of MakeStories. It increased its organic traffic by 18% using Web Stories. An advantage of Web Stories is that they live on the web as long as you want them to.

How To Get Google Web Stories Ad Opportunities

Traditionally, content creators have made money by selling ad space. This is true for both print newspapers and online news blogs.