The ads are over, but now the ‘stories’ are here. Instagram has announced a new format for posts called ‘stories’.

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Like Facebook, Instagram has had problems with the ads it offers. The ads were often intrusive and expensive, particularly for brands. The answer has been to launch a separate ‘stories’ format where users can post their content, instead of ads.

Whilst this sounds like a great idea, the best thing about stories is that the content is user-generated, so it will be interesting to see what user prefers.

The format launched on April 25th, and will eventually feature users only. Users who regularly post content will likely find it useful, as Instagram plans to leverage this user-generated content for its advertising service. Instagram is still testing the feature, but will be rolling out worldwide in the near future.

Here’s how Instagram describes the feature:

“Starting today, you can share any moment in your day — from your morning coffee to an unexpected experience — with the people you want to see it. Whether you want to share a funny video from your trip or your daily sunrise, you can do so directly from a photo or video you take or a story you post.”

How to access the feature

The feature is primarily accessed via the story camera button, which you can access by swiping to the right.

Do you know about Picuki, this is one of the most used tools for Instagram editor and view? Picuki allows users to see any profile that is available on Instagram. You can also download the latest and any profile photos, check the location, tags, and much more. Further, use Igtools to increase unlimited Instagram views, followers, likes, and so on.

You can also access it by tapping on the “more” tab, then choosing “custom“.

It’s worth noting that stories won’t start until all of the Instagram users on a given device have been updated to the feature. This may take a while, so don’t panic if you don’t see it just yet.

Image credit: DAVIDE MONTANARO / Getty Images

The story is for you!

To start off with, you’ll only be able to share stories with people you follow on Instagram. It’s worth noting, however, that Instagram allows third-party apps to integrate with its platform, and that the feature could one day be made available for external apps to allow third-party apps to join the same ecosystem as Instagram.

Whilst this might be appealing to users who want more than just Instagram’s own app, the benefit may be limited, as once that number has grown, advertisers may begin to lose interest in the relatively small number of users who actually engage with the advertisements.