Among many interlinking products at Snap, mapping is an ongoing initiative. The thought is that social interaction is tied to the real world to some degree. So if Snap can add layers of social relevance based on opted-in location sharing from its uses, it can deepen user connections and engagement.
This was the thinking behind Snap’s 2017 acquisition of Placed, which it subsequently divested for other reasons. And it has since shown ample intent to carry the social mapping baton farther. Snap’s Alex Dao told us as much during Localogy 20/20, where Snap Map was a central focus.
As background, Snap Map geo-tags users and their Snaps on a map interface. 250 million people use it when they’re out and about looking for each other, or for things to do. As such, Snap Map has become an organic place for SMB promotion, which Snap has launched and continues to develop.
Speaking of which, we’ve tracked two new developments around Snap Maps in the past few weeks. The first involves a partnership with Ticketmaster to match users with upcoming events in their area. The second is a new “buddy system” for sharing location with friends. Let’s dive into both.
That’s the Ticket
Starting with the first of these updates, Snap has added a new content partner in Ticketmaster as noted. The result is Ticketmaster events delivered to Snapchat users. The way this will play out is through a new Snap Mini, which suggests local events based on user preferences.
As background, Snap Minis are essentially micro-apps that carry specific features from third-party partners. They live within Snapchat and broaden the app’s overall utility and use cases. This is one of many ongoing moves that Snap is making to approach “super app” territory.
Back to the Ticketmaster Mini, users can access it through the rocket icon in the Chat section of Snapchat. There’s a quick set-up wizard to gather user preferences (think: music tastes). It then provides a Tinder-like interface for swiping through upcoming and nearby events.
To infuse some virality, user that match with events can see if their Snapchat friends have done the same. This can then be a springboard for planning social activity in and around the event. This also builds on the existing Ticketmaster “Layer” on Snap Map, which we examined recently.
The new Ticketmatcher Mini is launching in 21 countries, including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kindom and the United States.
What’s Your 20?
Moving on to Snap’s second update, its new buddy system lets friends share live location with each other for a specified time window. This is similar to temporaral location-sharing features in Google Maps and Apple Maps (see Neal Polachek’s review of the latter). It’s all about live location tracking.
Users can share their live location for a few minutes or a few hours, depending on the preference and context. For example, if you’re on your way to visit a friend somewhere, you can let them track your position in real time, sidestepping the need for messaging (especially while driving).
Of course, Snap Map’s basic function is to see where your friends are on a map. This latest feature tracks friends with greater precision including real-time movement. That makes the temporal nature of the feature critical: Once the sharer’s designated time window closes, tracking stops.
The feature was also based on user feedback. Snap notes that 78 percent of U.S. Snapchat users say they don’t hesitate share their location on Snap Map, and that it’s a safe way to stay connected. In that sense, Snap has gained user trust more so than other players like (generally speaking) Facebook.
Meanwhile, the “buddy system” aspect also comes through in security use cases. For example, you can share location with a friend so that they can make sure you get home safely after a night out. For this reason, Snap is marketing the feature to college students among other user groups.
In fact, this feature launches as part of a broader partnership with It’s On Us, which is a nonprofit that’s focused on preventing sexual assault on college campuses. The feature went active this week, and we’ll keep watching to monitor its traction, along with other map-based moves from Snap.
