When you upload a Facebook Story, there are a few things worth noting.
The first is that story content is available for just 24 hours after posting. This means that any video, update, or image that you share will only be visible for 24 hours, and after that will disappear from view.
The second is that you can easily track and see which friends have both viewed your story and chosen to engage with or react to it.
In this article, we’re sharing everything you need to know about Facebook Story visibility – whether it’s possible to view this content anonymously, and how to see which friends have viewed and interacted with your story.
Can You View a Facebook Story Anonymously?
While there is no way of purposely viewing a Facebook story anonymously, if you happen to watch a story posted by someone who you are not friends with, then they will only see your view as an extra count on their viewer total.
In other words, creators can only see the names of the users who they are friends with when tracking story views. Any user who watches their story and who isn’t a friend, will not appear with a name but rather as simply an extra count on their viewer total.
Is Your Story Public or Viewable by Friends Only?
This depends on how you choose to post your story and edit the settings.
When you upload a new Facebook story, you have the choice to change the visibility settings on that story using the ‘Privacy’ button in the bottom left hand corner of the editing screen. Selecting this button will open a menu that invites you to choose your story visibility, hide the story for individual users, and manage how the story is shared on Instagram and other platforms.
This means that individual stories can have different visibility settings, based on the content and who you want to see the story. Any story that you post as ‘Public’ will be openly visible to any user on Facebook – with those who you are not friends with essentially able to view your story anonymously.
How to See Who Viewed Your Story
Finally, let’s look at who has viewed your story and how to track the metrics and popularity of each story you post.
When a story has been posted, you can check in on its progress and reach over the course of its 24 hour period online. Simply open it in full screen mode and click on the eye icon in the bottom left hand corner.
This eye icon will have a number next to it, letting you know the total number of views that your story has earned. By clicking on that icon, you can then see a list of all the friends who have viewed your story, with their reactions posted next to their name where applicable.
Armed with this information, you can then start to create a strategy relating to your Facebook and how you share stories and updates with your audience. Tracking story views and interactions will let you know what content is popular and what you can and should be sharing more of. We hope you find this useful!
