If you can’t beat them, boomerang them?
The ‘Boomerang’ feature on Instagram stories and posts make them really cool and Snapchat knows that.

It seems nearly impossible to go one day without seeing someone using the ‘Boomerang’ feature on in photo sharing application. Whether it is of cheering drinks, delicious food, or even group selfies, we are always sure to find the clip-reverse-loop feature within our timelines at any given point of the day.
Snapchat has now introduced the ‘Bounce’ feature, which is pretty much the same thing as ‘Boomerang’ on their application. ‘Bounce’ allows users to select the time their loop begins and allows you to create them from new and saved clips, directly through the application. Most Instagram users are already quite familiar with how the feature works but most be glad they can create ‘Bounce’ clips from old videos without downloading an extra application such as Boomerang for Instagram.
‘Boomerang’ was always one of the most liked features of the application and it was no surprise that Snapchat recognized how much of a role that feature played in the dominating popularity of Instagram stories and decreasing use of Snapchat stories. Snapchat introduced stories a few years ago and Facebook had no issue simply copying the idea, prompting many other platforms to do the same.
Although the ‘Boomerang’ feature may be responsible for the success of Instagram stories, the feature alone may not be enough to save Snapchat from a potential downfall.
Snapchat was never seen as a proper, formal form of social media for its peak users. Its foundation and original use was that of secrecy and privacy — a way for users to discretely send messages and photos and there be little to no trace. As the application evolved, so did the user’s expectations. Once Snapchat introduced stories, the social atmosphere of the application completely shifted and users now began to treat Snapchat as a typical social media application. Some say that Snapchat may have developed an identity crisis and others were simply just bored. However Instagram stories provided users who did not crave the intimacy of a Snapchat a new platform. A platform where they can share their ‘stories’ as they were on Snapchat but also one that held the social and visual expectations that they were used to. Instagram’s ‘Highlights’ feature, where users can pick and choose stories to publicly display with no time limit on their profiles is consistently receiving praise from users and companies.
Snapchat’s ‘Bounce’ feature may users entertained for a little while, however, the company must soon come up with another more engaging feature in order to maintain its relevancy and reclaim its title as a new-age social media powerhouse.
