Did you think Snapchat was dead? This is not true. According to a Médiamétrie/Snap study released on April 13, the white ghost is stalking its competitors more than ever. Among 15-49 year olds it was even online social most used in France in January 2022. Thanks 12.9 millions users in this age group dominates the top ten social networks. Behind him, Facebook records 12.3 millions daily users, Instagram 10.8 millions and whatsapp 10.5 millions. Chinese giant TikTok ranks last place this top with 5.7 millions daily users in France. If Snapchat’s success is so surprising, it’s because its reputation for low-quality service sticks to its shoes, Challenges explains. However, there are users.
The first information app for the little ones
Snapchat owes its success primarily to the youngest users. They use the app as a messaging service. Because Snapchat has an advantage (which can also be a big disadvantage): messages are ephemeral, disappearing within minutes of being sent. Teenagers are having a great time, both for the better (confessions between friends) and for the worse (harassment without a trace). First of all, Snapchat has become the first information portal among the youngest. “The company has launched a service called Discover, which works in partnership with media outlets that create special content for the app,” explains Challenges sociologist Margot Deage, a long-time contributor to the service. After a difficult start, Discover won public young people for whom the smartphone has become the first tool for information. In 2021, 50% of people under 30 were informed via their phone. It’s huge.
Fragile economic model?
If Snapchat has sunk into oblivion for someone, it is because the network social often declared dead by an economic model that is considered fragile. Snap decided to provide son the app is free, like most of its competitors. Therefore, its economic model is based on exclusive features that are paid for but little used. In fact, most of the app’s revenue comes from ads. Between 2018 and 2020, advertising accounted for between 97% and 99% of the company’s revenue. A fragile model, as revenue depends on the number of users. So far so good: Snapchat has 319 in 2022 millions daily active users worldwide and 500 millions monthly users. BUT menace ghost.
