This week, Facebook unveiled Instagram's Stories update, a near-exact replica of one of Snapchat's most distinctive features of the same name, which compiles photos from the past 24 hours into a single stream. The update marks an important shift in the battle for social platform dominance. Early in its development, Snapchat was barely a thorn in Facebook's side, dismissed by big brands as a sexting app (and PR nightmare) at worst, at best too frivolous ever to be used as a serious marketing tool.
My, how the tables have turned. With even The New York Times admitting Snapchat's viability as an advertising publisher, Snapchat's status as a social media darling for brands and consumers alike has moved it into direct competition with the preeminent social media giant. While the Stories update is a bold business maneuver on Facebook's end, reminding users of its ability to pivot and quickly develop competitive features, the Stories release may have not been a great move on the user end.
For more insight, we asked the PR News community what they think of the Stories update, and the response was overwhelmingly negative:
@PRNews I think they're trying too hard. Create something new & dynamic, this exact thing has already been done.
— Adam D'Agostino (@Dagss) August 3, 2016
@PRNews My favourite thing about #Instagram was that it did one thing really well. Disappointed by this copycat move.
— Katie Harrington (@wildewords_PR) August 3, 2016
.@PRNews It jumped ship! Instagram and Snapchat were never competing, they coexist nicely. I'll never use the new feature.
— Lauren Blake (@_lblake) August 3, 2016
Amidst the social media outcry, one respondent was optimistic, viewing the Stories update as a new route for well-established brands to get more personalized with their Instagram followings:
@PRNews Insta Stories are an effective way for people with a large audience to personally connect with followers and answer questions
— Melanie Mueller (@melaniemueller_) August 3, 2016
Has your brand started experimenting with Instagram Stories? Let us know what you think of the update by tweeting to @PRNews.
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