Snapchat is a social media platform exclusive to mobile devices where users primarily share “snaps” or photos with one another that disappear after a certain amount of time. The app evolved into including “stories” that are viewable to multiple users, additionally building a discover page where Snapchat curated content regularly appears and updates.
This study will be referencing the Android version, 10.28.6.0.
Improve ease-of-use and user interest in Story page and Discovery page. Retain the following constraints, with respect to the current version of the app:
+ Respect the established branding and general style
+ Maintain the same amount of features
+ Assume consistent functionality of the feeds (eg. Story feed determined by algorithm rather than chronology)
To understand how to improve the friend feed, I wanted to analyze what people currently like and dislike about the current app. I researched some articles and forums discussing the changes (there certainly was an abundance of that) and made some conclusions based on the most consistent points I read.
- Consistently negative feedback on the Story feeds changing from chronological order to “interest-priority” order.
- Ad inclusion when viewing Story feed
- Awkward navigation of Story, direct Snaps, and chat
People want to easily find and keep up with their friends, including those who do not post often. People are also very accustomed to the chronological order of the feed. I wanted to see what I could change to possibly make it easier for users to accept these “big changes”.
Ideas to Explore:
+Adjusting the visual structure of the Story feed to accommodate the recent change of how the feed actually works. The current list layout leads users to believe there’s a chronological order and for a long time it was, but now it’s different and the layout should reflect that with a different appearance.
+Separate Influencer/Company profiles and merge with Discover. Encourages users to check on the Discover page to keep up with the Influencers/Companies they follow. (This would require accounts to designate themselves appropriately, however)
I ultimately came up with flipping the “list” format over to a horizontal scrolling format for all Stories. Some interactions include swiping left or right to scroll through a carousal of Stories, with the more “important” stories showing first. I’m also proposing that Influencer or Company profiles make categorized accounts that would have their Stories placed within the old Discover page. This solves the issue of these popular accounts being mixed up within the Stories of normal users, as well as encourages more interaction and interest with the Discovery page.
I’m currently exploring prototyping tools that would allow me to demonstrate interactions and animations.