Instagram\’s release of a \”Stories\” feature left many of us wondering whether to post video snippets of our daily lives on Instagram, or whether to remain loyal to Snapchat, the company that founded the idea of sharing a \”story\” with our friends, family, and followers. But personal use of these features is basically up to the individual\’s taste and preferences.
Businesses, on the other hand, use social media to communicate their message, content, and products to consumers. Deciding whether Instagram or Snapchat is better suited to address your company\’s needs is thus a much more important choice. The numbers confirm how powerful it is for businesses to utilize these social media giants.
Statistically, \”Snapchat has a higher ratio of millennial users but Instagram more active users (700 million monthly active users compared to Snapchat\’s 166 million daily users).\” On the other hand, although Snapchat\’s numbers are higher on a daily basis, a recent study found that \”32% of millennials list Instagram as their most important social network – an impressive percentage when you\’re up against social networking veterans like Facebook and Twitter.\”
So it\’s been proven that both platforms are extremely effective at reaching large numbers of consumers and at very regular rates. But it can still be challenging to figure out which one your company should use. Below, we offer a brief analysis of the key differences between the features offered by each platform\’s Story so you can more easily decide what\’s right for you.
- Offers permanent content as well as the time-limited Story
- Can make Boomerang videos in your Story, which can be easily turned into a permanent post
- Has a more polished editing style, similar to its regular filters
- Integrates the power of hashtags; users can create them, click on them, and turn them trending
- Promotes businesses with full-screen advertisements that play between users\’ stories
Snapchat
- Only offers Story feature, though this encourages timely engagement
- Has a wider variety of interactive photo- and video-editing tools
- Allows hashtags to be written by users, but does not integrate them in any way
- Provides businesses with a choice between Snap ads that users can click on for more information and the massively-popular Geofilters or sponsored Lenses
Using either one of these social media tools to promote your business means you\’re already a step ahead. Narrowing down exactly which option is best to tell — and sell — your story will require you to evaluate your brand and how you want to communicate it to consumers. Still having trouble deciding what\’s best for your business? Give us a shout. We\’re experts at this social media thing, and we\’re happy to help.
