Instagram copying Snapchat isn’t a surprise, or a bad thing

All social platforms want to be different but are influenced by each other

Instagram made headlines this week by launching their new feature, Stories, which can’t be dressed up as anything other than a blatant copy of Snapchat’s own stories feature.

It’s not like Instagram are trying to hide it either, with Kevin Systrom acknowledging the fact and giving a nod to Snapchat — “They deserve all the credit,” he told TechCrunch. “This is about a format, and how you take it to a network and put your own spin on it.”

Which straight away makes you think of those famous Picasso words so loved by Steve Job “Good artists copy; great artists steal”

There is a great side-by-side demo of both platforms stories feature on Casey Neistat’s vlog, which really make you think what liberties Instagram have taken here.

After all, Instagram’s parent company Facebook wanted to buy Snapchat after it’s own attempt at disappearing content failed in Poke. This time around it would appear more time has been spent developing Stories than Poke.

And while at it, might as well make improvements, which is exactly what even the most diehard Snapchatters have to acknowledge Instagram has done.

Instagram’s effort is much more user friendly, makes it much easier to send messages, create and share stories.

But the one thing, which instantly stands out, is that after years of growing whom you follow on Instagram, you’ve now already got a rich environment of stories content to see — whereas on Snapchat there is no easy way to discover new content.

There clearly is no need to pay credence to the Snapchat is dead argument that some sensationalists have implored. It’s still an incredible platform and within the first few Instagram stories I’ve seen from at least half of those I follow, they have all used it to encourage adding them on Snapchat.

What is the more interesting thing for me is how closely all the social platforms look to each other for what’s working with people using it. None more so than the two changes made by Instagram and Snapchat recently.

Instagram has been a place for polished; this is what I want to project to the world content. It’s the perfect you. Deletion rates are high among a younger demographic that will take down their snaps if they don’t receive a high level of engagement.

Now they’ve added a layer, which makes the content rawer, more authentic and natural which has made Snapchat so popular. People don’t need to fawn over the right position and lighting for that perfect shot — simply take it, add a filter or draw over it and post without the need to look back in a few years and worry about how you looked at that time.

Already I’ve seen higher engagement on my own Instagram stories, which will no doubt be the case for others; the interesting bet is if or when this levels out a bit after the initial surge.

Snapchat on the other hand also recently flipped the script on what the core of their platform is about by releasing Memories. By taking over your camera roll they are allowing for more polished content to be posted, something particularly of interest to brands who apart from the savvy few, have been resistant to go all in on the platform when their content has such a short shelf life and requires the immediacy of posting most aren’t set up for.

So on one hand we have a polished platform going rawer, on the other hand we have a rawer platform going more polished.

The more we want to see ourselves as individuals the more we have to realise we are actually quite similar.

Facebook adopted hashtags, which failed to take off, while Twitter added native video after Facebook. Live video gained momentum with Meerkat and Periscope, but Facebook have taken it to the masses. Both Twitter and Instagram have added algorithms to varying degrees to organise content.

Instagram copying Snapchat stories is the most blatant copy, but it’s not the first nor will it be last time a social platform has peered over the fence at their neighbour and copied as they all vie to become someone’s go to platform.

It won’t be long till the next change makes us go, “haven’t we seen that somewhere before?”.

Warren Dell is a Content and Social strategist in the UK, working with large and small brands to bring them closer to people via content. He is also way too optimistic about his football team QPR’s chances of success.