What Are Instagram Avatars?
Meta introduced avatars on Facebook Messenger back in 2019, and now they’ve made it Instagram as well. An avatar is your customizable persona that you can edit to look the way you want to be perceived online. In its final form, it might resemble you or have a different look altogether. The choice is yours. Instagram lets you customize everything about your avatar, from nose shape and eye color to expressions and face markings. You’ll also be in charge of picking your avatar’s outfits. Avatars are by no means a new concept when it comes to virtual socialization. Snapchat uses Bitmoji to provide similar services to its users, and iPhone users have been able to use Memoji since 2018. Samsung has its own alternative called AR Emoji. The option is a native part of Instagram and provides an important clue as to Meta’s plans for the future. The company has been pushing the idea of the metaverse for a while and even rebranded to Meta last year to make its plans even more transparent. Announcing the launch, Head of Instagram Adam Mosseri confirmed that avatars are poised to play an important role in these virtual worlds, as they will be providing the visual representation of who we are in that space. In essence, the Internet as we know it is slowly morphing into a different kind of entity, and avatars are only the beginning.
How to Create an Avatar with Instagram
You can only create Avatars using the Instagram app and can not do so from your PC. This may change in the future, however. Follow the steps below to design a 3D model of yourself from scratch.
How to Use Your Avatar on Instagram
There are two ways to use your avatar in Instagram: add Avatar stickers to Stories or send them via Direct. See how to do it below:
1. Add Avatar Stickers to Instagram Stories
Note: You can have stickers with different looks on the same Story. Just press the “Edit” button to go back to the avatar creation page on Instagram. Perform the edits and “Save changes,” follow the steps outlined above, and you can add stickers featuring the upgraded version of your avatar.
2. Send Avatar Stickers in Direct Messages
How to Create Avatars with Bitmoji for Instagram
If you’re not satisfied with the range of customization available via Instagram’s native avatar feature, you have an alternative at your disposal. You can use a third-party app like Bitmoji to create your avatar, then easily share it on Instagram. We’ll show you how.
How to Share Your Bitmoji Avatar in Instagram
Bitmoji is integrated into the Gboard app (Android | iOS), so you don’t really need to do anything extra to start sharing your creation. Alternatively, you can enable the app’s own Bitmoji Keyboard, although this option comes with some privacy risks. You may need to though, if you’re using a different virtual keyboard than Gboard. Just as with Instagram’s own avatars, you can share the Bitmoji avatar stickers via Stories and in Direct Messages.
1. Add Bitmoji Avatar Stickers to Instagram Stories
Note: it’s possible to add different avatar stickers here, too. Just go back to the Bitmoji app and tap on avatar at the bottom. Edit your avatar any way you would like. When you’re done, save your progress, then return to Instagram. Follow the steps above, and the new avatar stickers will be available in Gboard.
2. Use Bitmoji Avatar Stickers in Direct Messages
Image credit: Flaticon and Instagram | All screenshots by Alexandra Arici
