Stories: polls, Ask me, and who sees them

Posts are for keeping. Stories are for right now: the new harness before the bar, the view from the hotel on an event weekend, a quick question to the men who follow you. A story is one photo or one video, and it stays up for 24 hours before it disappears on its own.

They are also the easiest way to start a conversation without writing a whole post. A poll or an Ask me sticker gives people a reason to tap, and every reply lands in your messages.

Making a story

Start from your feed.

1. Tap Create your story at the start of the stories row.
2. Take a photo, hold the button to record a video, or tap Choose from your photos.
3. Dress it up with Text, Draw and Stickers.
4. Tap Share, choose who sees it, and share it.

You can have 20 stories up at once. Story videos have a length limit that depends on your plan, and a longer clip is fine if you trim it to fit. The current limits are in Stories and Story Studio.

Polls and Ask me

Both live under Stickers, and they do different jobs.

A Poll is a question with two answers. Viewers tap one to vote, and their first vote stands, so nobody gets to change his mind halfway through. Good polls are quick and a little playful. Boots or sneakers for tonight. Leather or rubber for the weekend. Two answers is all you get, so make them a real choice.

Ask me lets viewers type a reply to you. Only you see the answers, and you get a notification for each one. That privacy is the point. Men will ask things in an Ask me box that they wouldn't put in a comment, so it works well for "What should I wear to the party?" or "Ask me anything about getting into pup play."

A few other stickers are worth knowing:

• Open to chat shows you're up for messages.
• Mention someone, Add a location and Add the time do what they say.
• Badges such as WOOF, PUP or LEATHER say a lot without any text.

Choosing who sees it

On the share screen, Who can see this has two settings: Everyone or Followers.

Followers means anyone who follows you. Unless you approve new followers, anyone can follow you in one tap. If you want to choose who gets in, turn on Approve new followers in Settings › Privacy & safety. From then on, men ask to follow you and you decide, and anyone still waiting can't see your followers-only content until you accept. Following people and follow requests has the details.

People you've blocked never see your posts, whatever setting you pick.

Explicit stories

The share screen also has an Explicit switch. Tick it if the photo or video is explicit.

The website always shows everything. The Real Kink Men app lets each member choose whether explicit photos and videos show up, so marking a story explicit means men who chose to hide adult content in the app won't see it there. If most of what you share is explicit, turn on All my posts are explicit under What you post in Settings › Privacy & safety. Stories then start marked for you, and you can still untick any one before it goes out. More in marking posts explicit.

Posting later

Also on the share screen, Schedule lets you turn on Post it later and pick a time. Handy for a story you want up when the party starts, without fiddling with your phone at the door.

Who watched and who replied

Open your own story to see its Activity, split into Viewers and Replies. When someone replies to or reacts to your story, it arrives in your messages, so a story often turns into a chat.

Changed your mind? Open the story and tap Delete story. It's gone straight away.

A few habits that work

• One idea per story. A clear photo and a short line beat a cluttered frame.
• Ask a question people can answer in a second. Polls get more taps than long text.
• Use followers-only when the photo is more for your regulars than for the whole site.
• Check the background before you share. Mail on the table and a view from your window say more than you think.
• Reply to the replies. Someone who answered your Ask me has already started the conversation for you.

Next time you're getting dressed for a night out, put up a poll and let the men who follow you pick. Then head to the events calendar and find somewhere to wear it.