Budding Social Network BeReal Is Testing A Direct Messaging Feature

The social network outlier BeReal has announced that it's adding a feature most of its competitors, like Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat, already have: direct messaging. The addition of DMs, which the company is calling RealChat, will allow users to text back and forth with other users, provided they are mutual friends following one another on the platform.

RealChat will also launch with blocking and reporting tools to protect users from harassment and other unwanted messages, the company confirmed to TechCrunch. Users will also have the option to delete private messages from RealChat, though as of now they cannot unsend them; messages will only be removed from servers (within a month) if both users in the chat delete them. There's no word yet if a group chat feature will be added at some point. BeReal will first test direct messaging by launching it in Ireland.

BeReal was founded in France in 2020, though it jumped in popularity last year, especially among Gen Z and millennial users, before being named Apple's iPhone App of the Year for 2022. Like others, the social media platform has a feed of photos and captions from friends. However, everyone's post is prompted at the same time by a BeReal notification once a day that gives users two minutes to take two photos, one with the front camera and one with the back. The idea is that, unlike prepared, polished, filtered photos you find on Instagram and other apps, BeReal shows you what your friends are doing "in the moment," and uses this authenticity to stand out from other social media platforms. Users can only scroll their feeds once they've posted their own daily BeReal, either on time or late, preventing pure voyeurism.

The addition of direct messaging comes after many BeReal users requested the feature. The platform will want to oblige popular requests like this so that it doesn't end up like other bygone social media apps that failed to hold onto users. The company claims to have 20 million daily active subscribers. However, since there are no ads or paid premium features (yet), the company isn't generating a ton of revenue for its investors, who've already contributed $60 million in Series B funding.

BeReal is reportedly struggling with engagement, so the pressure is on to innovate and grow, or at least keep the users it has. On top of these concerns, bigger apps like Snapchat and Instagram immediately incorporated BeReal's front-and-back, real-time feature into their own apps when it was clear the trend was taking off, taking away what made the startup so unique in the first place. Another specific problem BeReal struggles with is that, since it only requires a few seconds to post each day, users aren't spending a lot of time in the app. Direct messaging can keep users engaged within the app for much longer.

BeReal has also been slowly rolling out other features so users can spend more time within the app, including letting those who post on time add bonus photos throughout the day. BeReal also collaborated with Spotify earlier this year to allow users to show what music is playing on their phones when they post their daily BeReals. It's clear BeReal wants to stick around long-term, and not just be another flash-in-the-pan trend. It's very likely that direct messaging won't be the last new feature BeReal adds to attract your time and attention if the app retains users long enough to implement these new features.