Two new studies have revealed that Snapchat is one of the happiest and positive social media channels, in an industry often weighed down by negativity, abuse and hate speech.
One study, by Mindshare, called “Platform Need States”, has uncovered the six consumer need states when using social media, and each platform’s strength in fulfilling them, with Snapchat identified as the main platform most associated with “joy.”
And another report from Alter Agents, called “Real Relationships, Real Impact”, demonstrated why Snapchatters feel more happy when using the app than other platforms – and explains how these positive emotions influence how people view brands – as more memorable, relatable, playful and likely to recommend to friends.
Among the key findings we the fact that not only is Snapchat the best app for connecting with friends and family, but Snapchatters have more fun and feel more social, happy, connected, creative, and joyful when using Snapchat than competition.
Some 76% of social media users agree that Snapchat makes them feel connected with friends and family, and the same number said that Snapchat has features that allow them to have fun with their friends, and family, free of any judgement.
Moreover, 71% of social media users feel net positive emotions when using the app. These positive emotions influence how people view both the brands and ads, with brands on Snapchat being seen as more relatable and less dated, and ads as more playful than competition.
They found that ads on Snapchat are viewed as 1.3x more playful than ads on other social apps. Because of this, not only are users more likely to remember ads on Snapchat, they are also more likely to say they will purchase from brands advertised than key competitors, and they are more likely to recommend the brand to friends.
The studies also found that Snapchat improved brand recommendations 3x over an average of competitors among those who report feeling more connected to others while using the app
Snapchat improved brand purchase intent 1.3x over an average of YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram among those who report feeling more connected to others while using the app
Platform Need States
There are 6 “need states,” which explains why consumers engage with social media: Exploring, Joy, Learning, Time Waste, Progression and Connection.
The way in which consumers engage with Social Media has evolved across generations, with each requiring a different “need state” for each platform to suit their needs.
When it comes to tapping into platforms where users feel happy, Snapchat stands out as a top platform most associated with “joy.”
Behaviour across platforms vary, demonstrating a need for marketers to adapt their advertising communication and messaging to connect with users through their behaviours on each platform. On Snapchat, users are utilising the camera features, playing with filters, and messaging their friends.
“We know that Snapchatters feel more connected and pay more attention to the content they’re seeing on our platform because they’re engaging with their trusted circle of close friends and family,” said Alexander Dao, Global Head of Agency Development & Sales Partnerships, Snap Inc.
“The findings from our research reinforce the fact that the joy Snapchatters feel when using the app influence how they view business messages in a positive way, ultimately driving business outcomes for brands.” –
Core Snap Stats:
- Scale & Growth: Snapchat has 406 million daily active users; over 750 million monthly active users, and over 21 million monthly active users in the UK
- It reaches over 90% of 13- to 24-year-olds, and over 75% of 13- to 34-year-olds in over 25 countries.
- Snapchat has grown rapidly over the past few years, recording at least 10% year-over-year DAU growth for over fifteen quarters in a row, and is on pace to reach 1 billion MAU in the next 2-3 years.
- Unique Audience: The platform’s unique approach has led to a unique audience: daily Snapchatters aren’t on other platforms everyday – including TikTok (43%), YouTube (53%), Twitter (69%), Facebook (39%), etc. (2023, Source).
- 43% of daily Snapchatters age 16+ do not use TikTok every day
- 39% do not use Facebook every day
- 53% do not use YouTube every day
- 69% do not use Twitter every day
- 75 percent of people come to Snapchat to interact with their closest circle, and staying connected with friends and family is the #1 global reason for using Snapchat (2022, Source).
- Engagement: More than 5 billion Snaps are created every day on average.
- Happiness: Snapchat is ranked the #1 happiest platform when compared to other apps.
- Over 90 percent of Snapchatters say they feel comfortable, happy and connected when using our service (2022, Source).
- AR: Over 250 million Snapchatters engage with augmented reality every day on average.
- Spotlight: Total time spent watching Spotlight increased over 200% year-over-year.
- Snapchat+: reached over 5 million paying subscribers, one year after launch. This resulted in related revenue growing more than 250% YoY.
- My AI: Since launching My AI, our AI-powered chatbot, over 200 million people have sent over 20 billion messages, which we believe makes My AI among the most widely used AI chatbots available today.
- Content: Year-over-year growth in global content time spent accelerated versus the prior quarter. In the US, time spent trends continue to improve, with total time spent viewing content in the US increasing quarter-over-quarter.