Instagram Stories Create New Haven For Snapchat Stars

Instagram Stories has officially launched, giving the photo-sharing giant a “snappy” make-over. Yes, Instagram took Snapchat’s disposable post idea and ran with it; presenting the fear of missing out to its 500 million monthly active users.

Like Snapchat Stories, Instagram Stories disappear after 24 hours and allow users to draw directly onto the image. Unlike Snapchat, however, Instagram offers attractive features like more privacy options, searches, pausing and the ability to view a Story without following the poster. Instagram Stories takes the best of “in the moment” posting and user-friendliness, appealing to a much wider audience.

If you’ve already invested a lot of time into Snapchat, the good news is that those posts will translate nicely onto Instagram. Influencers who have seen success on Snapchat can reuse content or utilize tried and true methods of engaging with fans with Instagram Stories. Followers will now need to check the app more often to make sure they don’t miss a moment, which will no doubt result in an increased rate of interaction.

The biggest draw for influencers seems to be Instagram’s search and Discover features, a common complaint among those who use Snapchat. In fact, graphic designer and Snapchat star, Cyrene Quiamco names this frustration as a big reason she’s looking to Instagram Stories now. While she’s not planning to abandon Snapchat, “It’s all up for grabs,” she told Business Insider. “I’m up for grabs.” Quiamco reports earning between $1,000 to $10,000 per Snap and has partnered with such brands as Groupon and Disney.

For brands who partner with influencers, this is especially good news. Over one in four digital marketers have a plan to invest more money in Instagram over the next twelve months, per Business Insider. Snapchat, as popular as it is with its millions of viewers, is still the less-preferred choice for advertising, as tracking return on investment proves next to impossible. In other words, marketers who were planning to invest in Instagram marketing anyway can now take advantage of influencers who flock to Instagram Stories.

Social media has become a bit of a ground war lately, with Snapchat outing Facebook’s video stats and now, Facebook-owned Instagram straight-up copying Snapchat’s format. Facebook is out to beat Snapchat at its own game, and thus, the battle for social supremacy continues. While we wait for Snapchat’s inevitable retaliation, users will just have to post those disposable messages, eat popcorn and watch the drama unfold.