5 Reasons Why Instagram Stories is Better Than Snapchat
How people use Instagram has drastically evolved over the years. Back in the day, people used Instagram mainly to upload photos of their brunch plates and share their latest selfies.
Now, people — and brands — are using Instagram Stories to share snippets of their days in a linear narrative through disappearing photos and video clips.
When Instagram launched Instagram Stories, people couldn't help but notice how similar it was to Snapchat, another social networking platform where photos and videos self-destruct after 24 hours.
Instagram may seem like a copycat — and it is — but it sure knows how to replicate success and take it up a notch. Within just a year, Instagram Stories has far surpassed Snapchat with over 300 million daily active users, compared to 178 million for Snapchat.
If you're not using Instagram Stories for your current marketing efforts, you're missing out on a lot. Find out why you should start creating these evaporating but engaging stories for your followers and customers below.
Image credit: Mashable
Home Screen Advantage
One of the greatest advantages Instagram Stories has over Snapchat is its interface. It's placed right smack on top of the native feed, which makes it perfectly accessible to all users.
Once a user logs in, they can instantly see all the Stories updates from everyone they follow.
Snapchat, on the other hand, is not so user-friendly. It requires a lot of click-throughs that prevent users from enjoying a continuous viewing experience.
Instagram is generous about promoting updates on Stories from verified accounts, and will send push notifications to all your followers whenever you do a live session.
Instagram Stories are also arranged in ascending order, which gives users access to the latest updates with minimal click-through needed.
With stellar placement and accessibility, it's no wonder people are loving Instagram Stories more than Snapchat.
Better Ease Of Use
Both Instagram Stories and Snapchat operate the same way but the former trumps the latter for being more user-friendly.
Instagram Stories is the success that it is now because it addressed some of Snapchat's major pain points by designing a timeline with more intuitive navigation.
Instagram Stories has an autoplay feature that allows users to binge-watch updates from all the accounts they follow uninterrupted. If you want to watch updates continuously on Snapchat, you have to pre-select the people you want to see and create a queue — which is A LOT of work compared to the ease of Instagram.
The effortless viewing experience makes it so easy for users to watch update after update from friends and brands. Instagram has successfully addressed some of the issues people had with Snapchat and took it up a notch.
The autoplay feature encourages users to watch more stories, both from friends and brands they follow.
If you're a brand, now is the perfect time to integrate Instagram Stories into your current strategy. Instagram Stories is the perfect avenue to connect with potential customers on a more personal and casual level — away from everyone's manicured and carefully curated timelines.
You might also want to consider purchasing a few thousand Instagram Followers from a reputable provider to kick off your marketing efforts. Buying a few thousand followers will give you a seemingly buzzworthy status that will have everyone's eyes peeled on your Stories. And if they like what they see, they won’t hesitate to follow you as well.
250 Million Active Users
Back in June of this year, Instagram Stories hit over 300 million daily active users — and those numbers crush Snapchat's 178 million by a mile.
When it comes to the sheer volume of users, there's no denying Instagram Stories is the clear winner. Snapchat's user growth continues to disappoint year after year as they lose momentum.
Instagram Stories' user count is a clear indication that they're doing something right. As a result, more people flock to this service than any similar competitors.
The number of users alone is enough to draw brands in and encourage them to create stories in their marketing efforts, for a chance to reach out to the platform's 250 million active users.
Cataloging VS Permanence
Snapchat Stories and Instagram Stories may seem eerily similar — and they are — but how they're packaged can't be any more different.
Creators marketed Snapchat to the fun and reckless youth who want to send fun, silly or even compromising photos of themselves to friends without the repercussions that come with permanence.
Instagram, on the other hand, launched Stories with the idea of providing users with a place where they can catalog snippets of their lives — either in short video clips or images.
Instagram managed to strike the perfect balance of carefully curated and aesthetically pleasing newsfeeds with fun and casual disappearing timelines that ease the pressure of perfection — two things Snapchat can't offer their users to the same degree.
Location Tagging
If there's one thing Instagram is doing right, it's making intuitive UIs for their users. Aside from the incredibly easy viewing experience it provides, Instagram makes it a lot easier for users to personalize their posts.
Instagram Stories also has a location tagging feature that helps businesses drive attention to their brick-and-mortar locations. Since not everyone can put a clickable link in their Instagram Stories, adding location tags is a great way to boost a brand's social proof on the platform.
Aside from boosting a brand's credibility, location tags also help users reach a local audience. Adding a specific location tag on a photo or image on Instagram Stories automatically associates it with other posts in the same area.
For an experiment, Bustle uploaded a series of photos and tagged their location. Within minutes, their posts were seen by users who are either in the area or are interested in seeing posts tagged by users within the immediate vicinity of their HQ.
The location tag is a nifty feature that will help smaller brands enrich their presence among local users.
Instagram Stories Is Where It’s At
From the sheer number of users down to ease of use, it's clear how Instagram Stories attracted over 250 million users.
Now is the perfect time for brands and business owners to start integrating Instagram Stories into their current campaigns. Instagram Stories puts you one step closer to reaching your target audience, one story at a time.
Take your Instagram marketing campaign to a whole new level by uploading stories for all your followers to see. And consider purchasing a few thousand Instagram Followers from a reputable provider to give yourself a more impressive social proof. These extra followers will make your Instagram account look more noteworthy, and new users will be attracted to all the hubbub.
Instagram Stories is killing it right now and it would be a shame if you don't take full advantage of it for your marketing efforts — so start uploading those stories TODAY.
Date: November 8, 2017 / Categories: Marketing, Tips, / Author: Mariko
