Choosing the best Instagram Highlight cover might be tough, but with the right inspiration, your profile can transform into a visual masterpiece that captivates your audience. In 2024, the trend is all about personalization and creativity, making your Instagram highlight cover and story highlight covers more than just decorations—they’re a statement.
Whether you’re aiming for elegance, fun, or boldness, there’s a perfect Instagram story highlight cover waiting to embody your content’s spirit.
Elevate your Instagram highlights to match your evolving style and engage your followers with covers that tell your story at a glance.
What is Instagram Highlight Cover?
An Instagram Highlight Cover is a customizable image or graphic placed as the front of an Instagram Story Highlight to summarize its content and attract viewer engagement.
How to Add Instagram Highlight Cover to Instagram Stories?
Adding an Instagram highlight cover to your Instagram stories is a simple process that can significantly enhance the visual appeal of your profile. Here’s how to do it step by step:
- Open the Instagram App on Your Phone: Start by launching the Instagram app on your device. Ensure you’re signed in to your account.
- Go to Your Instagram Profile: Tap on your profile picture in the bottom right corner to access your profile. This is where all your posts, stories, and highlights are displayed.
- Access Your Story Archive or Create a New Highlight: You can add a cover to an existing highlight or create a new one. For an existing highlight, skip to step 5. To create a new highlight, proceed to the next step.
- Create a New Highlight: Tap the “+” (New) circle under the ‘Story Highlights’ on your profile. Then, scroll through your story archive and select the stories you want to include in your new highlight. Tap ‘Next.’
- Editing or Adding a Cover to Your Highlight: After selecting stories for a new highlight or tapping on an existing one, you’ll see an option to ‘Edit Cover.’ Tap on it. Here, Instagram allows you to choose an image from your stories as the cover or tap on the gallery icon in the bottom left corner to upload a new image from your phone.
- Choose Your Instagram Highlight Cover: If uploading a new image, navigate through your phone’s gallery to select the desired highlight cover image. Instagram highlight cover templates or custom designs can be used here. Once selected, you can pinch to zoom in or out and drag to adjust the positioning of your cover image.
- Name Your Highlight: After setting the cover, you’ll need to give your highlight a name. Keep it concise and descriptive to let your followers know what type of content they can expect.
- Save Your Highlight: Tap ‘Add’ (for a new highlight) or ‘Done’ (if editing an existing one) in the top right corner of the screen. Your updated highlight with the new cover will now appear on your profile.
Remember, your Instagram highlight covers can significantly contribute to your profile’s aesthetic appeal, offering a glimpse into the highlight’s content at a glance.
Customizing your covers to match your brand’s style or personal aesthetic can make your profile more attractive and engaging for your followers.
Where to Use Instagram Cover Templates?
Enhancing Brand Identity with Instagram Highlight Covers
Instagram highlight covers offer a unique opportunity for brands to enhance their identity on the platform. By designing covers that align with your brand’s colors, style, and ethos, you create a cohesive and memorable experience for followers.
For example, a coffee shop might use covers featuring their signature drinks, ambiance, and special events, thereby reinforcing their brand’s theme and appealing directly to their target audience.
Utilizing cover templates can simplify this process, ensuring consistency and professionalism across all highlights.
Curating a Portfolio of Services or Products
For businesses, Instagram story highlight covers can function as a visual portfolio showcasing different services or products. Each highlight can represent a category, such as “New Arrivals,” “Best Sellers,” or “Customer Favorites,” with a cover that visually summarizes the category.
This approach not only organizes your offerings for easy navigation but also allows potential customers to explore your products in depth. Customizing cover templates to match your offerings enhances the visual appeal and helps in retaining user interest.
Showcasing Customer Testimonials and Reviews
Instagram highlights can serve as a dedicated space for sharing customer testimonials and reviews. By creating a highlight cover that signifies trust or positive feedback, businesses can encourage new visitors to view stories featuring customer experiences and endorsements.
This method of social proof can significantly influence purchasing decisions and enhance credibility. Custom highlight covers help in distinguishing this section, making it easily accessible and visually appealing.
Highlighting Company Culture and Behind-the-Scenes
A great way to engage and connect with your audience is by using Instagram story highlight covers to showcase your company culture and behind-the-scenes content. This could include team outings, office events, the making of a product, or daily operations.
Such content humanizes your brand, builds a deeper connection with your followers, and fosters a sense of community. Tailoring your highlight covers with icons or images that represent fun and inclusivity can attract more views to these stories.
Educational Content and How-To Guides
Instagram story highlights are an excellent medium for sharing educational content and how-to guides relevant to your industry or niche. Using cover templates to create distinct and informative covers can help categorize and signpost different topics, making it easier for your followers to find and access the information they’re interested in.
For instance, a beauty brand could create highlights for makeup tutorials, skincare routines, and product usage tips, each with a cover that clearly indicates the highlight’s content.
Event Coverage and Announcements
Utilizing Instagram highlight covers for event coverage and announcements allows businesses and creators to keep their followers informed about upcoming events, product launches, or special announcements. Custom covers can be designed to draw attention to these highlights, encouraging users to stay updated with the latest happenings.
After the event, the highlight can serve as a recap or a repository of all related stories, allowing followers who missed the live updates to catch up.
Promoting Blog Posts or External Content
For content creators and businesses with a blog or website, Instagram highlights and their covers can be used to promote new blog posts or external content. Designing a cover with symbols or text related to reading or discovery can direct your followers to swipe up links or direct them to your bio for more information.
This strategy not only increases traffic to your external content but also maximizes the use of your Instagram account as a comprehensive marketing tool.
User-Generated Content and Community Highlights
Showcasing user-generated content through Instagram story highlights is an effective way to engage your community and encourage more user interaction. Custom highlight covers that suggest community, sharing, or user content can make these highlights stand out.
Whether it’s reposting customer photos, reviews, or creative uses of your product, dedicating a highlight to user-generated content not only enriches your profile’s content but also incentivizes other followers to share their experiences, fostering a vibrant and interactive online community.
Where to Find the Best Instagram Story Highlight Covers
Utilizing Design Apps for Custom Instagram Highlight Covers
For those seeking to create personalized Instagram highlight covers, numerous design apps offer a seamless experience.
Apps like Canva and Adobe Spark provide users with a plethora of templates, icons, and editing tools to craft unique covers from scratch or modify existing designs.
Ideal for both novice and experienced designers, these platforms enable Instagram users to match their highlight covers with their brand’s aesthetic, ensuring a cohesive look across their profile.
Exploring Graphic Design Websites for Free and Premium Options
Graphic design websites like Creative Market and Envato Elements are treasure troves for Instagram users looking to elevate their profile.
Offering both free and premium Instagram highlight cover templates, these sites cater to a wide range of styles and themes. Users can download high-quality, ready-to-use covers or editable templates that allow for customization, making it easier for businesses and individuals to find designs that resonate with their brand identity and marketing strategy.
Harnessing the Power of Social Media Design Specialists
Hiring a social media design specialist or freelancer from platforms like Fiverr or Upwork can provide a unique touch to your Instagram highlight covers. Specialists in this field can offer custom designs that perfectly align with your brand’s messaging and aesthetic.
This option is particularly beneficial for businesses aiming to make a significant impact on their target audience, ensuring their Instagram highlights stand out with professionally crafted covers.
Leveraging Pinterest for Creative Inspiration and Ideas
Pinterest is an excellent resource for finding inspiration for Instagram highlight covers. By using the search bar to look up specific themes or styles, users can discover a vast array of ideas, examples, and even free downloadable templates.
Pinterest can serve as a starting point for those looking to DIY their covers, offering a wealth of visuals to spark creativity and guide the design process for unique and eye-catching Instagram highlights.
Finding Niche-specific Templates through Online Communities
Online communities and forums dedicated to social media marketing and graphic design can be invaluable resources for finding niche-specific Instagram highlight cover templates. Sites like Reddit and Quora allow users to share tips, resources, and links to unique templates that may not be widely available elsewhere.
These communities often provide insights into the latest trends and best practices for designing Instagram highlight covers that effectively communicate a brand’s message.
Scouring Instagram Itself for Trendsetting Highlights
Instagram’s own platform can serve as an abundant source of inspiration for highlight covers. By exploring popular accounts, competitors, or influencers within your niche, you can uncover trendsetting designs and innovative ideas. Tapping on a highlight can reveal the creativity behind each cover, offering insights into how successful brands and personalities utilize their covers to attract and retain followers’ attention.
Diving into Stock Photo Websites for High-Quality Images
Stock photo websites like Unsplash and Shutterstock offer a vast collection of high-quality images that can be used as Instagram highlight covers. These sites provide photos across various categories, allowing users to find stunning visuals that align with their brand or personal aesthetic.
Whether you’re looking for minimalist designs, vibrant landscapes, or thematic imagery, stock photo sites are excellent resources for sourcing images that make your highlights stand out.
Collaborating with Artists for Unique, Handcrafted Covers
For those seeking truly unique Instagram highlight covers, collaborating with artists might be the perfect solution. Platforms like Instagram and Etsy make it easy to connect with talented artists who can create handcrafted, bespoke cover designs.
This option not only supports the artist community but also ensures your Instagram highlights feature one-of-a-kind covers that reflect your personal style or brand’s ethos, setting you apart from the competition.
Key Takeaways
- Instagram highlight cover is essential for branding and aesthetic appeal on your profile.
- Customizing your Instagram highlight cover can significantly engage and retain your audience’s attention on feed and post.
- Utilize design apps and graphic websites for a vast selection of templates and icons.
- Employing a social media design specialist can provide a unique touch to your Instagram highlights.
- Pinterest and Instagram itself are great sources for creative highlight cover ideas and inspiration.
- High-quality images for highlight covers can be sourced from stock photo websites.
- Collaborating with artists offers bespoke and unique designs for your Instagram highlight covers.
- Your highlight covers should align with your brand’s style and messaging for coherence across your account.
- Editing and adding a new cover can be done directly from your Instagram profile in the bottom right corner.
- Continuously update and refine your highlight covers to keep your business profile fresh and engaging.
Conclusion
Crafting the perfect Instagram highlight cover might seem daunting, but it’s an integral part of showcasing your brand’s identity and engaging your audience. With the right tools, ideas, and creativity, you can create highlight covers that not only stand out but also effectively convey your brand’s style and achievements. Whether you opt for DIY templates, professional designers, or collaboration with artists, the key is to ensure your covers reflect your content’s essence and appeal to your followers. Now it’s your turn to transform your Instagram highlights and elevate your social media presence. Good luck!
FAQ on Instagram Story Highlight Cover
How do you make highlight covers on Instagram?
To make Instagram highlight covers, use design apps like Canva or Adobe Spark. Choose a template or start from scratch, customize with icons and graphics to match your style, then save and add them to your Instagram highlights through your profile.
Where can I get highlight covers for IG?
Highlight covers for IG can be downloaded from graphic design websites, such as Creative Market or Canva, offering both free and premium options. Alternatively, use design apps to customize your own or search Pinterest for inspiration and downloadable templates.
How do you see highlight covers on Instagram?
To see highlight covers on Instagram, visit a profile and look below the bio. Tap on any highlight circle to view its cover and the stories within. If searching for specific covers, use the search bar to find profiles or hashtags related to desired styles.
What size is highlights cover on Instagram?
The ideal size for Instagram highlight covers is 1080×1920 pixels, which corresponds to an aspect ratio of 9:16. This ensures that the cover displays fully on the screen without any cropping, maintaining the quality and integrity of the design.
