Facebook Stories updates bring 3D Drawing, Boomerang, Poll Stickers

Facebook’s recent run-in with the Congress and data leak predicaments may have overshadowed other aspects of the social media platform. Since the past week, Facebook Stories updates have been boosted by fresh wind in their sails.

Now it was common knowledge that Facebook wouldn’t stop until they made Facebook Stories as cool and popular as they are on Instagram and WhatsApp, but what is the company prepared to do to achieve said coolness? Considering all the Facebook Stories updates under my observation, everything. Facebook is prepared to do everything to make Stories great (again? Not so much.)

As part of their iron resolve to popularize the ephemeral variant on Facebook’s core app, the company tried introducing Desktop viewing and uploading, cross-posting and even began to prompt users to share regular media uploads as Stories. That did not work too well.

Also Read: Cross posting Instagram Stories to Facebook Stories finally arrives

Now, Facebook has shifted their strategy towards offering more creative tools and borrowing some indigenous Instagram Stories features, throwing them together as part of a string of new experiments being spotted and reported by different sections of the media.

First, it was reported that Facebook is planning to rollout their version of Snapchat’s AR based World Lens being called 3D Drawing, although it appears to be a tentative name for now. 3D Drawing appears to be at least a step ahead of Snapchat’s World Lens as it allows users to ‘draw’ on their surroundings, both before and during recording a video.

Josh Constine from TechCrunch explains, “With AR drawing, you can scribble on the world around you, then move your camera and see the markings stay in place. It’s a fun way to add graffiti that only exists inside your screen.”

Upon rollout, this could loosen Snapchat’s grip over AR based lenses, however, far-fetched the availability of 3D Drawing significantly boosting user adoption for Facebook Stories far-fetched prospect for now.

Additionally, the company also rolled out Instagram’s user favourite Boomerang feature for Facebook Stories, although that was pretty much merely a formality since cross-posting content created on Instagram was made available months ago, which includes Boomerangs, Hyperlapse and more.

“We wanted to give people an easy way to create with augmented reality and draw in the world around them” says John Barnett, a Facebook Camera Product Manager.

About Facebook borrowing some indigenous Instagram features, the change was spotted by The Next Web’s Matt Navarra today.

Facebook has FINALLY added Poll Stickers to Stories pic.twitter.com/RQ7OfDmd0c

— Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) April 15, 2018

Among the newly incorporated features into the Facebook Stories updates are, Poll Stickers and could add clickable hashtags in order to facilitate discoverable Stories on Facebook akin to Instagram.

Users are always seeking out new content, and one of the problems with getting Facebook Stories to propel has been the scarcity of content and confusion on how to find it. Facebook Privacy Settings contradict the open nature of Instagram and hashtags could smooth things over.

What do you think Facebook should do to popularize Stories? What could get you to start using Facebook Stories? Let us know in the comments section or write to us at team@socialsamosa.com