Snapchat 101: Navigating the Redesign

If you are amongst the 158 million Snapchat users around the world, then earlier this month, you were in for a bit of a surprise when you opened the app. The Snapchat that we’ve all come to love and adore over the years is no more and users were far from pleased with this. Imagine taking your dog to the same groomer for years and one day, they decide to cut your dog’s hair completely different than how you’re used to. You love your dog, but you hate the haircut. Now, you can’t even look at the dog without feeling betrayed and let down by the groomer. That’s pretty much what the new Snapchat update feels like for users everywhere.

Well, fret not. The redesign is not all bad and may actually come with its benefits for brand companies and casual users alike.

Here are some key features and changes to take note of with the new Snapchat:

1.     Finding Friends
This section is the largest section of changes, but for good reason. On the previous version of the app, your friends were simply a left swipe away from the main camera screen. Now, you have to swipe right. This isn’t the worst change in the world, but it can be confusing at first. With the swipe right for likes and swipe left for dislikes on Tinder, we’re pretty sure your friends prefer to be on the right side of the finger swipe.

However, that is not the worst of it on the Friend’s Page. The true issue comes with the organization of Stories and Snaps. What used to be separated categories, your friend’s Stories and the Snaps you send/receive are all grouped together on the same page. In theory, this is better for keeping track of your friends and makes your friend’s Stories more visible, but essentially, it looks a jumbled mess.

You may have also noticed that the friends you see most often has changed. Snapchat has adopted the philosophy that Instagram has with doing away with chronological posting. Instead of updating your list based on who has the most recent story, your Friend’s Page is now organized based on who you interact with the most or who has contacted you recently. This is great for filtering out people you followed at one point just to be nice to, but people you actually do care about can get lost in this system.

2.     Managing Stories
A simple swipe from the left of your camera will take you to the Discover Stories section of Snapchat. This is where you can access stories from around the world, pages you have subscribed to, and local event stories going on. Let’s say there is a convention for ad agencies in Philadelphia to discuss the latest digital marketing trends, and you’re curious to see what is going on. People from the conference can submit their stories to the public story and you can easily view it here. This is the section of your Snapchat that has combined snaps from subscriptions, Snap Map, Our Story, TV shows, and more. Another jumbled mess aesthetically, but overall organized.

All in all, the Snapchat update isn’t what dreams are made of, but it does make sense. Your friends and the people you care about are to the right while the rest of their world and their filtered nonsense is to the left. It will take some getting used to, but as we have with every other social media app, we’ll adapt.