千禧一代喜欢Snapchat的真正原因

    去年12月度假的一天，我一时无聊，掏出了手机，举到面前，来了一次素颜自拍。

    这还不算完。我的手指变成了魔术棒，在屏幕上又点又划，用颜料笔修饰了自己扭曲的面庞和双下巴。没过多一会儿，我就把照片中的自己变成了有着水亮头发的巨魔娃娃。之后我按下了发送键，把我的杰作与几个好朋友分享，同时附上了一句简短的话：“loungin'.”（好吧，我还加上了一些太阳的表情符号。）这种交流方式古怪、随意，与我之前体验过的都截然不同。

    换句话说：Snapchat太棒了。

    从那时起，这个照片分享应用就成了我生活中的一部分。我拍的照片比我发的文字更多。我的朋友也常用Snapchat，她们会发一些堪称绝配的扮丑照和视频。尽管每个人在这个平台上表现自我的方式各不相同，但看到SnapChat收件箱里的每条信息时，表现却是类似的：“这TM是什么东西？！”随后便是一阵大笑。

    最近对Snapchat的新闻报道集中在这家初创公司的“阅后即焚”这一模式：照片拍下来后，过一会就会消失。如今Facebook和Twitter流行，但据说十多岁和二十多岁的年轻人喜欢这样，因为他们可以不留痕迹地分享自己的“年少轻狂之举”。我在《财富》的同事在我们最近的一期杂志中写道：“这种不留痕迹的交流工具生动有趣，突然间变得炙手可热。”完全正确。2006年，我申请大学时，Facebook还只是大学生的校内平台。而到我2011年申请工作时，连我妈妈都已经成为了Facebook的忠实用户，而我的“新鲜事”里充斥着她同事的开心农场的最新消息。现在，任何人、每个人都能轻易地使用社交网络。（我无法想象在这种环境中上高三会是什么样的情形。）

    年轻人很容易被下一个新事物吸引，这是事实。但是如果认为对Snapchat的痴迷只是因为它“阅后即焚”的特色，那显然小看了这项服务。这款应用的绘图和文字功能让它的图片和视频变得意义非凡。当一个朋友告诉我其中调色板的秘密，比如怎样用黑白两色作画时，我比七年级时在《模拟人生》（The Sims）游戏中发现“rosebud”作弊码的那一刻还要高兴。（人人都有高楼大厦！）从我的体验来看，Snapchat用户通常会把特别令人印象深刻的照片截屏发到Facebook，Instagram，Tumblr和Twitter上，结果使Snapchat的自毁功能变得毫无意义。（为什么人们永远不要用它来拍摄色情照片？这就是很多理由里面的一个。不过，说起这个显然是我跑题了。）

    Snapchat之所以很出色是因为它激发了人们的创造力。Facebook，Instagram和Twitter的用户寻求自我提升。他们修饰自己的社交形象，以获得“赞”或者新的粉丝。Snapchat和这些数字无关，它是个体之间交流的工具。这就是为什么Snapchat的用户会什么会更频繁地展现出搞怪的一面。（打个比方。）

    我怀疑，如果没有绘图和插入文字功能，Snapchat对千禧一代能否还有如今一半的吸引力。是的，图片会消失，但滑稽的绘图和伴随的评论无疑会被看到，同时还会在其他无数平台上被人们分享。越搞怪越好。目前来看，Snapchat只是一个娱乐工具。这很好。不过营销人员需要注意：人们一度认为社交媒体经理这个岗位前途渺茫，但这个头衔和职位却出人意料的坚挺。如果有一天“常驻拍照员”出现在招聘岗位的名单里，我也不会感到吃惊。（财富中文网）

    译者：严匡正   

    One day last December, while on vacation, I whipped out my cell phone in a moment of boredom, held it in front of my face, and took an unflattering selfie.

    It didn't end there. My finger became a magical stylus, tapping and swiping my phone's display to decorate my contorted face and double-chin with streaks of color. In moments, I transformed my digitized self into an aqua-haired Troll doll. Then I pressed send, transmitting my masterpiece to several friends with only this explanation: "loungin'." (Okay, I included some sun emoji, too.) It was weird, random, and unlike any form of communication I had ever experienced.

    In other words: Snapchat was awesome.

    Since that moment, the photo-sharing app has become a regular part of my life; I snap more than I text. My friends use Snapchat as frequently, sending a perfect mix of self-destructing pictures and videos. Though each person expresses themselves differently on the platform, there's a common reaction when viewing each message in my SnapChat inbox: "WTF?!", followed by a laugh.

    The recent wave of news coverage of Snapchat focuses on the startup's photo ephemerality: Pictures are taken, and then they disappear. In the age of Facebook (FB) and Twitter (TWTR), twentysomethings and teens are said to like it because they can share their "youthful indiscretions" without a trace. "A racy communication tool that left no fingerprints suddenly looked attractive," writes my Fortune colleagues in our most recent issue. They're totally right. When I applied to college in 2006, Facebook was only for people with university e-mail addresses. By the time I applied for jobs in 2011, my mom was an avid Facebooker, and her co-workers' Farmville updates crowded my Newsfeed. Today, anyone and everyone easily uses the social network. (I can't even imagine being a high school senior in this sort of environment.)

    There is some truth to young people gravitating toward the next new thing. But the obsession with Snapchat on the basis of its ephemerality sells the service short. The app's drawing and text capabilities make its pictures and videos worthwhile. When a friend clued me in the palette's secrets -- like how to draw in black and white -- I was more excited than when I discovered the "rosebud" cheat for The Sims video game in the seventh grade. (Mansions for everyone!) In my experience, Snapchat users often take screenshots of particularly impressive snaps and post them on Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, and Twitter, rendering Snapchat's self-destructing aspect moot. (This is one of many, many reasons why people should never snap-sext. But I digress.)

    Snapchat is great because of the creativity it fosters. Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter users look for self-reinforcement, curating their social appearance to gain "likes" and followers. Snapchat isn't about numbers; it's about individual communication. Which is why, more often than not, people who use Snapchat let their freak flags fly. (So to speak.)

    Without Snapchat's drawing and text overlay features, I doubt the service would be half as sticky with millennials. Yes, the pictures disappear. But a hilarious drawing or comment accompanying a picture will undoubtedly be captured and shared on countless other platforms. The quirkier, the better. For now, Snapchat is nothing more than entertainment. That's fine. But marketers should take note: There was a time when social media managers were considered dead, but the title and job remains surprisingly resilient. I can't say I'd be shocked if, in the future, "Snapper-in-residence" makes it onto the job requirements list.