If businesses and marketers want to know what’s on Gen Xers’ minds in 2019, they need look no further than Snapchat.
Snap Inc. has identified the top games, tech, beauty, slang, memes and celebs that are trending upward on its flagship app as a way for its business partners to “get inspired for your upcoming products, creative and messaging.”
“Minecraft” is expected to remain popular next year, as are Apple’s wireless AirPods. Meanwhile, marketers might want to familiarize themselves with such slang as “YKTV” (“you know the vibes”), “on a date, kinda nervous” and “born day,” as well as the “you had one job” and “my last brain cell” memes.
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Here’s what else Snap (NYSE: SNAP) has been up to recently:
Snap’s to-do list for 2019: Add more users before it runs out of money
CEO Evan Spiegel [has] quite a long to-do list for 2019, to say the least. He’s said in earnings calls that he still thinks Snap can turn a profit in 2019 — but it will be a serious stretch goal. Here’s what will need to be at the top of Snap’s to-do list in order to make that happen. (VentureBeat)
Snap reportedly turned down Facebook a second time
Snap Inc. CEO Evan Spiegel famously turned down a $3 billion offer from Facebook to buy the then two-year-old Snapchat in 2013. If ever he regretted that decision, he reportedly had a second chance three years later to sell his hot ephemeral messaging app to the social media giant. (L.A. Biz)
China’s WeChat is the latest to get Snap-like ‘Stories’
WeChat, the Chinese messaging giant with more than 1 billion monthly active users around the world, just added a Snap-like ephemeral video feature as part of its biggest overhaul since 2014. (TechCrunch)
Snap CEO Evan Spiegel was at the heart of a Wall Street Journal company profile this week.
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Snap CEO Evan Spiegel was at the heart of a Wall Street Journal company profile this week.
MIKE COHEN/THE NEW YORK TIMES
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Evan Spiegel’s imperious style made Snapchat a success — until users fled
Snap, once seen as a viable competitor to Facebook, is struggling after the CEO ignored warnings about a redesign that proved unpopular.” (The Wall Street Journal) Subscriber content
Snapchat changes specs to look past the iPhone generation
As [Snap] looks back on 2018, where it recorded losses of more than $1 billion on revenues of just $791 million in the first three quarters, the clear target is to improve revenues and head towards profitability. It aims to do that in two ways: by getting more users who own smartphones running Google’s Android software; and by delivering more adverts to all its users through “programmatic” advertising bought automatically by ad agencies. (The Guardian)
Juul’s $12.8B deal is the biggest U.S. funding ever. Here’s the rest of the Top 11
Last week’s funding deal in which Marlboro cigarette maker Altria Group Inc. bought a 35 percent stake in San Francisco vape startup Juul Labs Inc. is by far the biggest investment ever in a U.S. venture-backed company. Two of the Top 11, including Snap Inc., involve Los Angeles-area companies and five of the top deals all came in 2018. (Silicon Valley Business Journal)
These were Snapchat’s most popular lenses and Bitmojis of 2018
Lenses led the pack in 2018 when it came to one of the most used features in the Snapchat app, with [a] Snap spokesperson saying, “augmented reality and our Lenses continued to take one of the most central roles in the Snapchat experience.” (Fast Company)
Snap employees won’t get bonuses again this year
With Snap Inc. shares closing at an all-time low, it probably should come as no surprise that the social media company won’t be giving its employees cash bonuses this year. The Snapchat maker didn’t give out bonuses last year, either. (L.A. Biz)
More details here: https://www.bizjournals.com/losangeles/news/2018/12/27/minecraft-airpods-yktv-top-snapchat-s-2019-trends.html