Instagram made a significant announcement on Thursday with the inauguration of its Creator Lab in India during an event in Mumbai. This educational resource specifically targets creators and will showcase popular Instagram users from India. Moreover, it will be accessible in both English and Hindi, accompanied by captions in five additional languages. The Meta-owned company also revealed the unveiling of three new features on the platform focusing on enhancing engagement via stories, direct messages, and notes. Additionally, they emphasized the ongoing rollout of recent features to users.
Expanding on the Born on Instagram initiative launched in 2019, the Instagram Creator Lab is designed to provide valuable resources for content creators in India. Content for the Creator Lab will be curated from various creators, as mentioned by Paras Sharma, Director of Global Partnerships at Meta India. The Lab will incorporate insights and strategies shared by 14 creators from different parts of the country to aid aspiring creators. The content will be presented in both Hindi and English, along with captions in Bengali, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu.
One of the primary features presented by Instagram is Comments in Stories, enabling users to comment on others’ stories, visible to a broader audience. These comments expire after 24 hours unless a user adds the story to their Highlights, where they will remain visible. Additionally, users have the option to disable the comments feature on stories to manage interactions effectively. Instagram has already started rolling out this feature to certain staff members, showcasing its commitment to enhancing user experience.
Another feature introduced is Birthday Notes, aimed at fostering engagement on the platform. Users who choose to utilize this feature will notice a small hat icon in the Instagram Notes section on their birthday, allowing for personalized interactions. Instagram emphasizes that Birthday Notes will adhere to the same privacy settings as regular notes, emphasizing the importance of configuring these settings to align with individual preferences.
Apart from Comments in Stories and Birthday Notes, Instagram is expanding visual communication by introducing the ability to use cutouts of images as stickers in chats. This feature, initially available for stories, is now being extended to direct messages, enabling users to send cutouts of images from their camera roll as stickers. By incorporating such visual elements, Instagram aims to facilitate creative and engaging conversations among users, enhancing the overall experience on the platform.
Instagram’s launch of the Creator Lab in India signifies a significant step towards empowering content creators and fostering a dynamic creative community. With the introduction of new features, the platform continues to evolve, catering to the diverse needs and preferences of its users. As Instagram strives to enhance engagement and provide valuable resources, the Creator Lab is poised to become a hub of innovation and creativity for creators in India.