Instagram Mimics Snapchat’s Story Feature in a Bold Strategy to Amplify Uniqueness

In a world of technology that thrives on innovation, sometimes imitation is the most powerful tool. Instagram, owned by Facebook Inc., has yet again copied another feature from their formidable rival Snapchat, with absolutely no intent of altering the product’s name.

Instagram Stories, a near clone of Snapchat’s popular Stories feature, is a clear signal of the extent Facebook Inc. would go to diminish Snapchat’s uniqueness. By stitching photos and videos into a sequential narrative, visible for 24 hours, Instagram Stories reciprocates nearly all features of the Snapchat’s popular format.

Much like Snapchat, Instagram allows users to enhance their photos and videos with text, emojis and sketches, then choose between sharing their creation publicly or among a select circle of friends. However, one noticeable feature omission is filters or lenses which can be applied to faces in photos and videos, a notable element that Snapchat users enjoy. Despite Facebook Inc.’s acquisition of Masquerade, an app known for its selfie masks, Instagram Stories breezes past these facial filters.

Money-making via Instagram Stories by running advertisements is not a feature Facebook Inc. has rolled out… yet. Given that Snapchat commenced an advertising program only last month, it’s reasonable to anticipate Instagram may follow suit before long.

Instagram’s strategy also entails encouraging businesses to use Instagram Stories to share ephemeral content with a targeted audience for special moments throughout the year. The goal is to give businesses a fresh avenue for providing an intimate, behind-the-scenes perspective to their audience. Eventually, Instagram aims to introduce novel advertisement opportunities and other business-centric features.

Although Instagram Stories wasn’t a stroke of ingenious creativity, it’s a shrewd and strategic move by Instagram. Despite the popularity of Snapchat Stories, it failed to resonate with a sizable segment of the audience. Instagram’s move indirectly serves this demographic, who prefer Instagram’s familiar interface and functionality. It offers a powerful impetus for these Instagram loyalists to stick around, without the need to untangle the complexities of using Snapchat.

Astoundingly, Instagram boasts a daily user base twice as large as Snapchat’s. Given this, mimicking Snapchat’s Stories could be seen as an attempt to curtail Snapchat’s growing popularity by giving the niche feature a larger platform.

Until now, Snapchat monopolized the concept of a running 24-hour narrative with annotated photos and videos. With Instagram’s adoption of the feature, the game has dramatically changed. Verily, it affirms why Facebook Inc., true to its competitive nature, continues to harvest ideas from its rival’s product catalog.

[Source: Marketing Land]