Nowadays, the Stories format in social media is a new trend.
It is one of the top ways to share content on social media and a mainstay of most social media apps.
LinkedIn has adopted the same trend and is ready to introduce LinkedIn Stories.
LinkedIn has confirmed that it’s working on its version of Stories which will be rolled out to all users soon.
Though, they’re currently testing LinkedIn Stories internally, and there’s no definite timeline for a full rollout as yet.
With the Stories format, you can share key moments from work culture, events, and more. It also simplifies sharing tips and tricks that help you to work smarter.
This isn’t the first time LinkedIn has considered Stories. Back in 2018, LinkedIn tested its first iteration of LinkedIn Stories, though only for university students.
That version of LinkedIn Stories was called ‘Student Voices’. It rolled out to college students in the US, and the purpose was to help people at different universities interact and share their experiences. The objective then was to use Stories as a vital tool for communication among younger audiences and encourage more engagement on the platform.
There’s an entire generation growing up with Stories as a way of communication. They are more comfortable to start a conversation with a full-screen transitory format rather than to post updates. They prefer sharing content that lives as a moment in time rather than as an item in a feed.
According to Pete Davies of LinkedIn,
“Stories first appeared on Snapchat, with other platforms like Instagram and Facebook adopting them soon after. They spread for a good reason: they offer a lightweight, fun way to share an update without it having to be perfect or attached to your profile forever. Does that exist in the business world? I’d hope that most of my interactions in the break room or passing people in the hall are similarly ephemeral and light.”
Will Stories be a winner on LinkedIn? Do you think that will be effective?
Already, there are rumblings of criticism within social media circles. But then again, Instagram Stories was widely chastised too, and it now leads the way in terms of usage.
Facebook Stories is also regularly criticized by commentators, but Facebook Stories has become a trend now.
So, soon we might see Stories options on Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn, while Pinterest also has ‘Story Pins‘, which are a variation of the same.
Recently, Twitter purchased Chroma Labs, which specializes in Stories content, which doesn’t necessarily mean we’ll see Twitter Stories anytime soon. But we might.
It feels somewhat imitative for each platform to follow the other, but as noted, the trends indicate that Stories are what younger users feel comfortable with. And in that context, it’s logical that the platforms are working to move in-step.