Look out TikTok, looks like another platform is hopping on the short-form video content trend!
Snapchat has always been that platform known for being the first to come up with Stories, the photos or videos that you post to your live Stories feed that people can view as often as they want within 24 hours.
Back then, the platform had its golden moment when it was the only platform to utilize this type of feature, but when more social media platforms like Instagram started to mimic the idea, its growth slowed by 82% in 2016 as users started shifting their focus.
Does that mean Snapchat is slowly dying? It isn’t. Quite the opposite, actually!
Despite the many screw-ups and bumps that its company Snap Inc. had to power through, they were actually able to significantly increase daily active users by 23%, according to Forbes.
In order to keep gaining users, Snap decided to launch Spotlight and it’s finally available for MENA users!
What is Snapchat Spotlight?
Spotlight is a way for users in the region to discover the world of Snapchat in one place by sharing their own creations, see perspectives from across the community, reach a large audience, and be rewarded for their creativity.
It aims to shine a light on the most entertaining Snaps, no matter who created them.
Spotlight features include:
- Trending Sounds
- Lenses
- Topics
Where can we find this feature?
The Spotlight feature on Snapchat can be found in a dedicated tab in the app.
Just like TikTok, it can be used for promoting short viral vertical videos from the Snapchat community.
But unlike TikTok, Spotlight videos won’t have a comments section, and users under 18 won’t be able to have their names on display to other users.
How can you submit to Spotlight?
Submitting a Snap to Spotlight seems fairly simple:
- Create a Snap
- Select ‘Spotlight’ at the top of the ‘Send To’ screen
- Tap the button to submit!
Snaps that are submitted and posted to Spotlight may also appear in the Search results and Stories on or off Snapchat — now or in the future.
Empowering the Community
It seems that through Spotlight, Snapchat is able to really focus on its community; this all comes back to social media’s roots and what it means for MENA users.
In a Campaign Middle East article, Hussein Freijeh, general manager of Snap Inc. in the Middle East talked about Snapchatters in the region’s value for content creation and the desire to share content more broadly. He said, “Spotlight is thus an exciting new addition, a result of careful thought and insight into what our community wants, likes, and values. It is also built with our privacy-by-design philosophy, with the wellbeing of our community front and centre.”
Spotlight sounds like just another TikTok clone but it might just get MENA users to be more invested in the app and try out the new feature!
It is now available across the MENA region in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Palestinian Territory, Libya, and Iraq.