This App Will Change Your Perspective on Stories

GoinOn is recreating the social experience by bringing us closer to our friends and family through something we know and love — Stories.

As of late, there’s seemed to be a very long dry spell with social media apps. You have the Big Four — Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Tumblr — and then a few others that come up every now and then but…that’s it. That’s been it for the past six years seemingly. Granted, the Big Four have all had major updates and changes that work to keep up with their audience as they change too. However, updates and new layouts won’t hold over for another six years. There needs to be alternatives. Alternatives, if not for the sole reason to say screw the big corporations, because screw the big corporations.

But now there’s GoinOn.

Goinon is a new mobile app that launched onto the iOS app store only a few months ago. Aiming for a new social experience, GoinOn has taken your typical “stories” and turned them into a collaborative way of communication with friends. If you’re looking for an alternative to the repetitiveness of social media (hello, TikTok vs Reels *eye roll*) then I suggest you give GoinOn a try with your friends.

About GoinOn

GoinOn focuses on ‘Stories with Friends’ — and that’s exactly what that app is all about. In a world where social media has become so robust and complicated (Instagram profiles now have about 6 different tabs for different kinds of media,) you’ll be surprised at how a simple update to your typical stories structure can be so engaging and actually fulfilling.

GoinOn is a fusion of all your favorite functions featured on social media, wrapped up in one, easily operated place. It’s also a place that offers many new ideas, methods, and shortcuts that haven’t been seen before. Navigating through the app is very simple and straightforward. It’s picture based, with videos able to be uploaded into public or private stories. You find your friends, give them a follow, and immediately see their stories. Maybe you get an invite to join someone’s private story.

Creating a community (or communities) is exactly what GoinOn is used for. Make public stories for your profile so all your friends can see, make private stories for certain subjects, like art, books, special interests, and start conversations in there. There has never been such direct communication between groups of friends. You can always make a comment thread on instagram or swipe up on snapchat but GoinOn offers you a direct connection to your friend groups where they can add their own content that is not limited to comments or likes, but actual posts.

The more you post, the more opportunity to get interaction from others. This, of course, is a given for any social media site — you need to be social. GoinOn has found a way to motivate its users into consistency. Admitably, in addition to checking my feed everyday, I post multiple times a day and interact with other posts by liking or commenting on them. It’s easy and enjoyable, and I actually have more conversations on GoinOn than any other social platform. Somehow more so than any other social media platform now.

“It’s easy and enjoyable, and I actually have more conversations on GoinOn than any other social platform.”

For the most part, my circle of friends is small. Personally, I spend a lot of time on this app communicating with family members I don’t get to see very often and very close friends. Although, I have branched out into interacting with friends-of-friends through larger group stories that revolve around sharing music, movies, books, or daily challenges. The sense of community that you build is almost unparalleled. A lot of the responsibility falls on you as a user to keep the engagement between others up but at the end of the day, it doesn’t feel like responsibility, it’s just sparking a conversation.

“The sense of community that you build is almost unparalleled.”

From my personal experience, I have watched the app go through its own twists and turns, growing, getting fleshed out, and testing the boundaries. I’ve gotten the opportunity to put my input in and make some suggestions which have caused changes that I’ve always wanted to see from other platforms. For example, the fact that links are included directly in posts. For me that is something I use at least once a day. Specifically in the story for sharing music, I always make sure to include a link and I always try to tap on other people’s links when they share their music too. The links were such a visceral feature that I didn’t even know I needed. Snapchat was the only other platform that included a link feature but it’s not very good and sometimes it doesn’t even work. That’s why this app will feel different and unlike anything you’ve been a part of before, because it’s an original idea that’s learned and corrected its faults very quickly.

The app is not saturated and a very refreshing break from any other platform. It’s new, of course, but how the app operates is very successful at keeping the intentions and goals, good and genuine. GoinOn was created to simply share, but the focus is making that a fun and exciting experience. GoinOn succeeds because they have stripped social media down to its main point and ran with it.

I enthusiastically recommend Goinon to anybody, whether you have a lot of friends or not. Search for anyone on the app is easy and a great opportunity to just start sharing. If you want at least one friend you can always friend me, my username is @howmuchisyourduckworth

I’m a Product Management Intern at Dark Matter Digital — a strategic product studio that specializes in helping companies create and test new software verticals.

I’m also a sophomore at Drexel University, where I study film and video production.

Follow along with my journey of being a first time Junior PM in my blog series, which you can find on the Dark Matter Digital publication.

See ya!