We created an interactive DJ experience on Instagram Stories, in the first ever hack of the platform.

We simply posted 8 video clips of specially composed beats, samples and scratches to Instagram Stories. Just by skipping back and forth between clips, the viewer feels like they’re mixing on turntables with their thumbs. An innovative use of Instagram Stories that turned a simple social post into a truly unique kind of music experience.

To create Instant DJ, we recorded 8 video clips of turntables playing different scratches, beats and samples. The sounds were specially composed to replicate a typical scratch DJ set. Graphics were overlaid on the videos to create an app-like visual interface. The finished videos were then uploaded into Instagram Stories in a specific order. The end result felt like the viewer was using a DJ app as they skipped back and forth between clips to play the different sounds.

InstantDJ was posted as an organic (unpaid) Instagram Story on the @BacardiUSA Instagram account. Instagram Stories expire after 24 hours so we reposted it each day for a total of one week.

By hacking Instagram Stories, we used the skip function to actually increase brand engagement. There were over 200,000 interactions with our InstantDJ Instagram Story and a 383% increase in Bacardi’s Instagram followers. InstantDJ was also talked about beyond the platform of Instagram Stories, with over 11 million media impressions. And cost nothing to post to Instagram.