Facebook has announced a new feature called “Stories”. A similar feature was introduced by Instagram last August which was said to be based on the Snapchat format. The new Facebook feature has been released in Ireland with plans to roll out other countries soon. It allows users share ‘ephemeral photos and videos’ in a slideshow format which remains available for 24 hours. Friends of Users will be able to watch their Facebook Stories by clicking a little circle in the main app above the feed. This process is virtually the same as what is available on Snapchat and Instagram. The replication of Snapchat’s original feature by Instagram already proved successful to Snapchat’s detriment. Instagram Stories ‘soared to 150 million daily users in just 5 months’ (via TechCrunch)
The question is whether Instagram is benefiting from Snapchat’s original format by copying its distinct feature. With Facebook deciding to follow suit, one begins to wonder what will become of Snapchat’s popularity and success. However, Instagram’s founder- Kevin Systrom, had another opinion:
“When you are an innovator, that’s awesome. Just like Instagram deserves all the credit for bringing filters to the forefront. This isn’t about who invented something. This is about a format, and how you take it to a network and put your own spin on it… Innovation happens in the Valley, and people invent formats, and that’s great. And then what you see is those formats proliferate…”
Having recognised the drift in the way people share photos and videos online, Facebook seeks to improve its services for users. This will enable them share their photos and videos in a way that is faster and more fun. It is most likely that Facebook will also experience a significant growth in the number of active users who seek to take advantage of this feature across their social media platforms. They will have the opportunity to share stories on Instagram and Facebook, which will also benefit businesses with time-bound offers or recently concluded events. However, this may have diverse effects as some customers may prefer to be able to reference posts more than 24 hours later. It will require being savvy about what kind of posts will work best through stories for your target audience.
Image Credit: TechCrunch
