Instagram looks to be adding a ‘Nametags’ feature soon to allow for quick following. You can think of nametags like QR codes in a sense, and work very similarly to Snapchat‘s snap codes. Users will be able to scan a nametag and once done users will be following the person or account who the nametag belongs to. Scanning is handled with the internal Instagram camera, and namtags are created using a specific button that will sit at the top of the user interface alongside the bookmarks and discover people buttons. At the moment nametags only seem to be available for some users as the feature is currently in testing with no mention of when it will roll out.
With the feature not yet available on a global scale to all users it’s unlikely that it will show up in the app for the majority of Instagram accounts, though when the feature does go live the nametags button can be found on a person’s account page. After hitting the nametag button the feature will reportedly prompt the user to create a nametag using an emoji or an image that is created by the user. Shown in the video below, users will be able to select from a fairly wide pool of emoji to use, though it also appears that Instagram is enabling the ability to take a selfie to use as the nametag if users prefer.
In addition to being able to take selfies and pick the emoji you want to use for the nametag, it’ll also be possible to choose the background color to be used with the nametag as well, so it seems there will be a small amount of customization available with the feature once launched. This is good news for users who enjoy personalizing whatever they can to stand out and make their profiles more unique, and it could play out well for brands too which have Instagram accounts and will end up using nametags to become more recognized.