Another day, another update.
Instagram has released their latest feature: Instagram Stories. The new feature allows users to share photos and videos in a slideshow format, known as their story. Sound familiar?

Just like Snapchat, you can add filters, text and drawings to your post. The similarities don’t stop there. You can swipe between stories and respond using Instagram’s messaging system. Stories also disappear after 24 hours.

Although they seem quite similar, there are a few elements that differentiate Instagram’s stories from Snapchat’s:

• You can find stories at the top of your feed
• You can also view stories directly from users’ profiles
• You cannot upload a story from your camera roll
• You can pause or swipe back and forth between users’ stories
• You cannot add a geo-filter to your story
• You cannot save a full day’s worth of stories, but you can add snippets to your profile
• You cannot add lenses to your stories

Now before you go accusing Kevin Systrom of stealing, the CEO of Instagram admits that they didn’t invent the concept.

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.

The point of the feature seems to be to encourage users to post about their everyday lives on the platform, and not just the highlights in a curated feed. The photo sharing app is primarily known as a place to share your carefully framed flat lays and filtered selfies, but now wants to become a place to share every moment in life. The goal is to boost the amount of content shared, without users having to worry about being spammy.

While your loyal Snapchat users may find the feature redundant, there’s definitely potential for brands. They can use the feature to their advantage by sharing a different type of content with their Instagram followers.