Back in 2011, a new form of communication was invented. Views of pictures or short videos that automatically deleted themselves became the newest form of social media. Snapchat, originally Picaboo, was thought of by Reggie Brown and Evan Speigel. Speigel, who attended Standford University at the time, even presented Snapchat as a final project for one of his classes. Despite the negative feedback, he continued to do research and developed the app. Five years later, users view 10 billion videos daily.
Using Snapchat is extremely simple, which is the beauty of the app. You can get the core Snapchat experience without needing to know about every single feature. Upon opening the app after signing up, a user has two options, both revolving around the center circle button towards the bottom. If a user clicks it once, they can take a picture, but if a user holds it down, it will record up to ten seconds of video. A lot of people have fun with the decorating step. By exploring the stickers, filters, and text options, a user can really personalize their picture or video. After editing their creation, the user then clicks the blue circle on the bottom right to post and/or send their creation. You are taken to another screen where you can chose to either post to your account where the creation is posted for 24 hours, or send to a friend. If a user sends to a friend, then the friend can only view the creation for a designed amount of time, up to ten seconds.
A user can also find friends by going back to the picture taking screen and swiping down. This home screen allows the user to add new friends. From here a user can add friends by either searching for their user name, adding by the Snapcode, finding people nearby, or even importing from their phone's contact list. My favorite way to add people is by their Snapcode. The example below is from one of my favorite bloggers, Isabella Darden. (You can click her picture to go to her blog.) To add by snapcode, a user must bring up the screen to take a picture. Instead of holding down the circle, a user can touch and hold the screen until the Snapcode is added. Once a user gets the hang of it, it becomes very easy to follow people this way!
Snapchat also has stories that a user can view, and sometimes even add to. There are certain companies that have daily articles adapted for Snapchat. There are also Snapstories. Live stories can vary by location and global events.
Snapchat certainly has a lot to offer its users in a seemingly small app. It can become easy to get distracted on Snapchat, but it also offers an authentic way of communication. Snaps tend to be in the moment, so they are great ways to connect with friends someone doesn't get to see a lot, but it is also a great way to get first hand views of events happening around the world.
Even if you do not send Snaps to any friends, I highly recommend getting the app to view current events and quick interesting articles! Click the ghost below for Refinery 29's list of the top celebrities to follow!
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