08 Sep Snapchat Maps and What You Need to Know
As social media continues to evolve, channels strive to increase their users by making updates to their platforms. Snapchat is a platform that continues to make updates in order to stay relevant as giants like Facebook/Instagram create features to rival them.
Back in August it was announced that Snapcat acquired the location measurement company as well as purchasing the map app Zenly. The purchase of Zenly it became Snapchat Maps which allows friends to see where others are on the map, once it has been enabled.
One of the best parts is that Snap Maps uses Bitmojis to showcase where users are and puts them in cars or planes depending on whether or not they are traveling. Those who have updated the app can now pinch the screen in camera to enable this feature by following the step-by-step set up instructions. Snapchat maps not only allows you to see where your friends are, but also allows you to view stories hosted on the map. It’s a heat map-like feature that alerts users when numerous Snaps are taken and submitted to ‘Our Story’ from a specific area creating an event for users to view.
Appears that we missed out on a Tiger’s game
With the recent Hurricane Harvey, this feature proved to be useful to keep track of what was happening in the affected areas. From viewing the stories available in Houston, people were able to see where people were seeking shelter, where people were being rescued, locations of power outages and the floodwaters rising and falling. During a time-period of 86 hours, it was noted that they received from 250,000 to 350,000 submissions as Harvey advanced and bashed Texas.
Snapchat isn’t the only platform that has a map feature, Facebook has a Live Map which houses the Facebook Lives from around the world and Periscope has a comparable feature for its live streams. The difference with Snapchat’s map feature is that it seems more personal to me, not only do you get the ‘news’ but you can locate your friends easily kind of like the iOS ‘Find My Friends’ app.
Finding your friends and events going on locally
Since this feature is new there are still some difficulties and bugs to work out but there are some great ways that it can be utilized. Not only with news but brands could use this feature to showcase store openings and events. It’s a great way to alert people within the area that something is going on that they may not have known about if they aren’t actively following brands on their other channels. The feature would also work well with influencers if utilizing them at a brand event as it’ll get their followers engaged, just make certain they have the map feature enabled throughout the event.
All in all, this new Snapchat feature is pretty cool and I’d keep an eye on it, there are so many possibilities. If you have any questions or would like some help on figuring out how to make this work for your brand, we’d love to help!
