Yet, despite sharing similar features, Instagram and WhatsApp are independent platforms with different use cases. Instagram users follow and interact with a range of different accounts from friends to influencers, celebrities, publishers and brands. In a January 2019 Facebook-commissioned report by Ipsos, 66% of Instagram users worldwide considered the platform a place to interact with brands. Engaging with celebrities and influencers was also a top-cited response when respondents were asked what they associated with Instagram.
Meanwhile, WhatsApp interactions—including those on Status—are limited to contacts in a phone book, which are primarily friends and family. “Even where we’ve built features that allow for broader sharing, [WhatsApp] is still a less public experience [than Facebook’s other apps],” CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a March 2019 Facebook post.
Some advertisers have also compared WhatsApp Status ads with Stories ads on Snapchat, called "Snap Ads."
“I would say that Snapchat is probably the best analogy of what exists today in terms of how to understand WhatsApp Status ads,” said Joe Yakuel, founder and CEO of digital marketing firm Agency Within.
That’s because both apps were originally created for one-to-one messaging, and they keep their messaging functionality separate from Stories. On WhatsApp, users have to open a different tab to view Status updates. The same is true for Snapchat, while Stories on Facebook, Instagram and Messenger appear at the top of a user’s feed or chat log.
With that in mind, advertisers are generally optimistic about the upcoming launch of WhatsApp Status ads. Some initial consumer pushback is expected, but users should come to accept them as they have other forms of digital advertising.
“It’s going to be similar to any new platform when ads become available," said Liz Cole, vice president and group director of social strategy at Digitas North America. "The first bad ads and the first best ads will really stand out, but eventually, most ads won’t be remarkable in either a positive or negative way.”