BeReal Tests Out Direct Messaging To Keep Its App Fresh & Engaging

Things are coming full circle in social media town. After apps like Instagram and TikTok first tested out a function that was suspiciously similar to BeReal’s no-fuss approach to posting photos online, it seems like the new kid on the block is now taking cues from the old-timers with its upcoming direct messaging feature ‘RealChat’.

Currently, in-app, you can only communicate with your friends via the comments section, where you will be notified each time someone writes something on your post. Unlike most platforms today, it does not have a direct messaging system.

In a new update being tested in Ireland, people you are friends with can send you messages, private BeReals, and react with RealMojis (the app’s custom emoji where you can pose for different images).

BeReal first took off with the younger generations in recent years for its novel front-and-back photo-taking ability, and a quirk that you have to post spontaneously the very instance an alert arrives. 

It removed layers of the facade that comes with being online today, with influencers filling up the likes of Instagram and TikTok, and touting lives that aren’t a genuine reflection of normal folks. Also, the younger crowd was growing tired of having to put up false fronts and presenting picture-perfect moments ceaselessly.

No frills, no filters: that was BeReal’s winning formula. People were given unadulterated access to their friends—without advertisements, celebrities, or fancy vacations to distract them. Instead, their feeds now displayed a real look into the lives of people going about their daily routines sitting at their work desks, walking their dogs, or just binge-watching Netflix.

Since posting pictures of yourself watching The Office for the thousandth time could feel dull after a while, it seems that the app is now trying to keep itself fresh with other updates—such as the integration with Spotify to reveal what you are listening as you post, and the opportunity to add more than one photo as long as your first was snapped on time.

All that tried and tested, what else could prove more engaging than the good ol’ way of sliding into someone else’s DM?

 
 
[via TechCrunch and TechTimes, images via various sources]