TikTok Adds Instagram Notes-Like Feature to Inboxes
Because originality is overrated. Or sensitivity around it is. I donât know.
Either way, this week, TikTok has launched a new option to share a short, text-based âthoughtâ in the app, thatâs then displayed in a speech bubble type display on your Stories bubble at the top of your inbox.
As you can see in this example, shared by Jonah Manzano, some TikTok users are now being prompted to add a thought, which is then displayed in their inbox in the top Stories feed.
It’s also shown on your profile image:
Look familiar?
Thatâs because itâs essentially Instagram Notes, under a different name, and in a different app.
Yes, TikTokâs essentially copying IGâs Notes option, which has been a hit with younger users. But TikTok canât call its version âNotesâ because thatâs what itâs already named its separate photo sharing app, which you might argue is also a replica of IG.
I mean, itâs not really, the format and UI are different. But the focus on sill images harks back to Instagramâs history, and could be viewed as another effort by TikTok to branch into whatâs traditionally been Instagramâs territory.
But really, both TikTok and IG are pretty much the same app these days anyway.
Sure, people use both TikTok and IG differently, and different audiences will gravitate towards one or the other. But with 50% of the content you see on Instagram now coming via AI recommendations, which are predominantly video clips, the two are very similar in their offerings. Though TikTokâs algorithm is still a little better at responding to your interests.
But the two apps have been copying each other back and forth for so long now that feature replication almost expected, so itâs no surprise to see TikTok also incorporating IG Notes into its experience.
So will it work?
I mean, it has on IG, according to Metaâs reporting anyway, and that may well indicate that itâll be a winner for TikTok as well. So why not add it, and at the least, try it out?
TikTokâs currently testing the new option out with some users.
