Instagram Stories are now accessible from the web

Instagram Stories has become an integral part of the Instagram experience. Inspired by Snapchat, ‘Stories’ is used by over 250 million people every day. Instagram announced that from 31^st August you can view stories from your desktop.

How to view Instagram Stories from your desktop

You can view Instagram stories the same way you would on your mobile.

• Simply log onto Instagram.com and you’ll see stories at the top of your feed.
• Click on the round icon of the person whose story you’d like to watch.
• To skip or go back a story, click the left or right arrows that are on the screen, or simply use your keyboard.

Post stories from the mobile web

Instagram has also announced that it will be possible to post stories from the mobile web in the coming months. This is great news for those who go the extra step by editing their content before they post (our own social-media guru threw her hands up in pure joy when she heard).

This is a common exercise among videographers, photographers, and of course, bloggers. This may seem like a minor addition, but the ability to view and post stories from the web broaden Instagram’s accessibility, and therefore users.

A game changer for businesses

This new format could also be a game changer for businesses who connect with their customers via Instagram. It was recorded that 1 in 5 Instagram stories posted by a business received a Direct Message reply. These numbers could improve with the ability to post directly to the web.

Instagram first launched their stories in August 2016 and it lets users create visual posts over a 24-hour period. When the last hour is up, your stories will simply disappear. You can also edit them with stickers, emojis, or your own free-hand drawing.

Instagram Stories is not a one-trick pony

Instagram has been steadily updating the stories function and has introduced everything from live video to Direct Messaging, geostickers to sticker pinning, and quite possibly the most favoured update by selfie-takers the world over:  the hands-free timer.

The hands-free timer was Instagram’s shining solution to the common problem faced by most social media users – their selfies are too obvious. . With the hands-free timer, users now have the ability to get into position when capturing a portrait shot of themselves and their surroundings.

Instagram not the only app to introduce the ‘Stories’ feature

Instagram’s head of product Kevin Weil said that the company believed it wouldn’t be the last to adopt the stories feature, and they were quite right. The feature appears everywhere these days, from Facebook to Skype and even certain dating apps.

However, none of them have come close to Instagram’s success. As a social-network that uses visual communication to connect users, the stories function just seems to make more sense.