What is the Support Small Instagram Story? The new feature in your feed explained

Both Instagram and Facebook have made it easier for customers to connect with small businesses

Facebook and Instagram have made it easier for users to connect with small businesses. Unsplash

Facebook and Instagram have introduced new measures to support small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic.

The social networks are allowing users to back and show support for small businesses they love, as well as highlighting those in users’ local areas.

Facebook’s new Businesses Nearby section will show users the latest posts from companies within a specified geographic radius, which can be set from anything between 1 kilometre to 800km. The feature will also show current opening hours and any delivery options available, as well as allowing users to send a message easily.

Announcing the new features in a blog post, Facebook said the move would allow businesses access to “more virtual foot traffic as they move online to stay open”.

While on Instagram, which is also owned by Facebook, a new Support Small Business sticker has been introduced, which can be added to any Story that might feature a product or service from a small business that users want to share. Once the sticker has been added, the post will be shared to an Instagram Story highlight, which will group together similar posts from all the accounts you follow.

Facebook will similarly collect all posts that use the hashtag #SupportSmallBusiness to create a highlight.

On top of these measures, Facebook has also announced it will be posting a number of tools and tips for small businesses using Facebook and Instagram to help them during the pandemic. Plus a special business inbox has been added as an extension to the Messenger app to make communication between customers and businesses easier.