snapchat

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You’ve heard me say this before, but I will say it again.  Whatever Snapchat does, you are definitely going to see Instagram do it as well.  Some even call Snapchat, Instagram’s R&D division.  Which is a bit harsh, but also kind of accurate.  But now, Snapchat has copied a feature from Facebook.  Facebook has a “Best of 2017” video, which is created automatically for you, and now Snapchat has one of their own.

To see it, simply tap on the Memories icon at the bottom of the main screen when you open the app. This is the icon you use to access saved Snaps.  At the top of that screen, you should also see a card that says “A Look Back at 2017”.  Tap on that, and Snapchat will take you on a quick slideshow through your best Snaps of 2017.  Of course, this is all determined by their algorithm, and might not actually be your idea of the best Snaps of 2017.  Just keep that in mind. Once you’ve looked through the Snaps that the app has decided on, you can tap on the “Look Back at 2017” card again to delete individual snaps.  From there, you can save the whole thing to your Stories to share with everyone else.  The downside?  If you don’t make a habit of saving your best Snaps as Memories, you won’t have any material for the slideshow.

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But that’s not the only new feature that Snapchat has been working on. They are also looking to add a feature that will allow users to share their stories outside of the Snapchat app.  The feature is to be called “Stories Everywhere”. It’s designed to boost Snapchat’s presence beyond the core mobile app, which is in part due to its competition with Facebook and Instagram. Since going public in February, Snapchat has had to deal with stagnate user growth and declining revenue.  This is mostly due to the fact that every time Snapchat creates a new feature, Instagram duplicates it.

Snap has since committed to making Snapchat more user-friendly, starting with a redesign now rolling out but only available to a small percentage of users. Part of the redesign includes a more focused Discover feed, where Snapchat users can get news and entertainment from professional print, TV, and online outlets. It remains unclear how much the overhaul will affect user growth, but it appears Snap is now putting resources toward increasing the presence of both its user-generated and professionally crafted content across the broader web ecosystem.

snapchat

This information doesn’t look good for Snapchat though.  It makes you wonder if they will be around for much longer.  I personally don’t use the platform, but that doesn’t mean I don’t think it’s of value.  In fact, I think it is of added value because it gives an alternative to Instagram.  Without it, we only have one platform, and I personally think there should be more competition in the market for these kinds of tools.  Think about it though, there is only one platform that’s comparable to Facebook.  And how is that fair?  Sure, you can turn to other platforms to get similar features, but there should be additional platforms that rival each of these to ensure some healthy competition.

 

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