Snapchat is a stand out in the world of social media. It has captured the attention of Gen Z like no other app. According to Oberlo, Snapchat’s success is formidable. It is the second most used mobile app in the world with more than 220 million users. Half of 15-25 year olds are engaged. Many of them are highly engaged - 63% log on daily and the company claims they open the camera in the app 20 times a day.
95% of Snapchat users say using the app makes them feel happy.
Snapchat’s success is even more surprising considering Facebook had already cornered social media when it was launched in 2011. The firm’s stock has still not recovered to its $US 27.09 IPO price in March 2017. It closed at $US 21.77 yesterday, having powered back from a low of $US4.99 in late 2018. The low point came after a $100M lawsuit with shareholders and slower-than-expected post IPO growth. Snapchat is now back on track. So what is the secret of its success?
Some Snapchat success statistics
Snapchat’s core customer value proposition is ironically based on a rock solid value of impermanence. Users post photo or video ‘Snaps’ viewable only for 1 to 10 seconds by recipients. After viewing each Snap deletes automatically. In addition to limiting the duration of user posted content, feature sets have continued to evolve.
‘Stories’ were introduced in 2013. These are a series of sequential snaps lasting for 24 hours, but users (Snapchatters) can now save these as ‘Memories’ in private storage areas if they wish. The ‘Crowd Surf’ feature was developed after location tagging was added to Snaps. This lets Snapchatters see videos of the same subject from different spots when other users are filming the same event simultaneously. Snapchat has also continuously experimented with radical changes to its user interface. So much so the app does not have a user manual. And in 2018 the platform started to add in professional original content from various video production houses including NBC, the BBC and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The video below is an example of one of these ‘Snapchat Originals’. In 2019 outsourced content was expanded to include Buzzfeed and social gaming ‘Snap Games’. This was a turning point. But the most interesting aspect of Snapchat is how it has launched upsell product options.
Snapchat defines itself as a camera company, not a social media platform. ‘Spectacles’ retail from the site for $US 380. They are a wearable 3D video camera with limited storage. Neither Facebook nor Instagram have been able to find a way to add on their own products for sale within their platforms. But Snapchat has. The camera glasses look cool and make it easy for Snapchatters to capture live content on the fly. This works because the transient nature of Snaps means users don’t have to worry much about whether or not something they post will cause future blow back.
Spectacles are Snapchat’s 3D camera glasses
Snapchat is differentiated because of its commitment to continual change. This seems to have side-stepped direct competition with image giant Instagram. Remarkable considering the two platforms are so picture content heavy. Gen Z loves Snapchat because it offers novelty, safety and the chance to have 15 seconds of fame, every day. Compelling value for a group of consumers with remarkably short attention span and a social life spanning between the real and virtual worlds.
Robert Dew is a Founding Partner at CapFeather Global with more than 2o years of corporate consulting and university lecturing in Innovation, Customer Strategy and Customer Experience. His PhD related to improving creativity in strong corporate governance environments. He has also done 60+ start-ups.