LinkedIn to Swap Fleeting Stories for Creative Video Feature

Last year, Microsoft’s LinkedIn added Stories as “a fun and casual way to share quick video updates.” According to senior director of product Liz Li, the company is now going back to the drawing board to create a “reimagined video experience across LinkedIn that’s even richer and more conversational.” In the meantime, LinkedIn announced it is shutting down its Stories feature, having received feedback that users did not want disappearing videos but rather lasting videos that showcase their expertise and personality.

ZDNet reports Li added that, “in developing Stories, we assumed people wouldn’t want informal videos attached to their profile, and that ephemerality would reduce barriers that people feel about posting.”

Users not only wanted to “create lasting videos that tell [their] professional story in a more personal way … [but also] creative tools to make videos more engaging.” Stories offered stickers and had “the question of the day” prompts, but Microsoft plans to add more creative tools.

It notes that Twitter shut down its version of Stories, Fleets, “which was intended to promote new people to contribute, but actually did not.” The company said that, “although we built Fleets to address some of the anxieties that hold people back from tweeting, Fleets are mostly used by people who are already Tweeting to amplify their own Tweets and talk directly with others.”

Twitter plans to “explore more ways to address what holds people back from participating on Twitter.”

On LinkedIn, Li wrote that the company “learned a ton” from introducing Stories. “We want to embrace mixed media and creative tools of Stories in a consistent way across our platform, while working to integrate it more tightly with your professional identity,” she said. She thanked those who used Stories, adding that it was “an easy way for you to share insights, ask for help, and react to news and industry updates.”

She added that users asked for “more ways to spruce up those videos in a professional context, and you want to do so across LinkedIn” and invited users to comment more about video on LinkedIn.

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