Snapchat redesign separates your friends from brand content

The social media app is undergoing changes to improve usability
New look: Snapchat has been redesigned to divide branded and organic content
Carl Court/Getty
Ben Travis30 November 2017

Snapchat has unveiled its ‘new and improved’ redesign.

The social media app has been reorganised in its latest refresh, which aims to separate your friends’ videos and photos from brand-created content.

Opening the app brings up the camera view, while swiping to the left opens snaps from your friends list.

Swiping to the right opens the Discover panel, including content from brands, creators and influencers.

“Today we’re making Snapchat more personal,” explained Snapchat co-founder and CEO Evan Spiegel in a video introducing the redesign.

“One of the complaints we’ve heard about social media is that photos and videos from your friends are mixed in with content from publishers and creators and influencers. But your friends aren’t content – they’re relationships.

“That’s why today we’re separating the social from the media and reorganising Snapchat around your relationships to make it more personal.”

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The company had previously told fans to expect a ‘disruptive’ overhaul of the app, responding to feedback that Snapchat is hard to use.

“One thing that we have heard over the years is that Snapchat is difficult to understand or hard to use, and our team has been working on responding to this feedback,” Spiegel said in a statement about the proposed changes.

“As a result, we are currently redesigning our application to make it easier to use. There is a strong likelihood that the redesign of our application will be disruptive to our business in the short term, and we don’t yet know how the behaviour of our community will change when they begin to use our updated application.

“We’re willing to take that risk for what we believe are substantial longterm benefits to our business.”

A recent addition to Snapchat is filters with image-recognition technology, offering custom designs based on what users take photos of – including pets, food, and locations.

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