Instagram is making big changes to Stories
You can now do a lot more with Instagram Stories.
In an effort to increase engagement with the feature, the photo app added tagging, links and Boomerang support to Stories in an update rolling out Thursday.
With the update, users can tag accounts within their Stories just like they'd tag accounts in a photo or video post. When an account is tagged in a Story, tapping their username will link to their account page.
Interestingly, unlike photo tagging, being tagged in a Story will notify you within a direct message with the person who tagged you (if a friend tags you in a normal photo post, the notification will appear in your main activity feed.)
Tags aren't the only new way you can interact with Stories. Instagram is also adding the ability to link to web pages within Story posts -- for verified account holders. (Instagram says this feature is for verified accounts only for now since it's still a test but that could change at some point in the future.)
Finally, the app is integrating Boomerang -- Instagram's app for one-second videos -- directly into Stories. What's more, Instagram's built-in version of Boomerang will have a couple of features not part of the main app, like the ability to switch between the front and rear-facing camera and the ability to capture a shorter clip.
Instagram is hoping these features will help users build "deeper connections" and "tell a richer story," says product manager Nathan Sharp.
More broadly, the company is also likely looking to boost engagement with the feature, which has been more successful than other efforts the company has made to copy Snapchat's feature of the same name. Facebook is also testing multiple Snapchat-like camera features in its main app as well as a new standalone app in Brazil. The company may even be eyeing a Stories-like feature for WhatsApp.
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Topics Facebook Instagram Social Media
Karissa was Mashable's Senior Tech Reporter, and is based in San Francisco. She covers social media platforms, Silicon Valley, and the many ways technology is changing our lives. Her work has also appeared in Wired, Macworld, Popular Mechanics, and The Wirecutter. In her free time, she enjoys snowboarding and watching too many cat videos on Instagram. Follow her on Twitter @karissabe.
