What does the Snapchat logo mean ?

Snapchat now has over 300 million active users worldwide. Thus, Internet users quickly recognize the brand’s logo as well as the icon of famous applications such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or YouTube. The origin and the meaning of this ghost remain unknown to the general public. Discover the essence of Snapchat’s visual identity !

Why the Snapchat logo is a ghost ?

The Snapchat ghost refers to the basic concept of the application created in 2011. The goal was to send ephemeral photos or videos that would then disappear from the recipient’s phone. The project was originally called Picaboo.

This term can be translated as cache-cache in French. It is also an interjection used to scare children at Halloween. The ghost is part of the emblematic disguises of this time of year.

The creators of the application have even kept this funny reference by making the logo appear and disappear. The animation crystallizes both the concept of the platform and the “Picaboo” effect ! ” wanted. Since then, Snapchat has made some changes to its ghost named Ghostface Chillah.

This nickname parodies the stage name of the rapper Ghostface Killah from the American group Wu-Tang Clan.

The ghost was originally smiling and sticking out its tongue. This face allowed to evoke the light and friendly side of the media sharing network. The members actually sent each other ephemeral images to have fun, tease each other, scare each other… In 2013, the logo lost its tongue, mouth and eyes to avoid drawing attention to this character.

The change also allows to optimize the display of the icon and to encourage the users to appropriate the image of the brand.

Why a grey square on SNAP ?

On Snapchat, the gray symbolizes the failure of the sender’s desired action. The gray arrows indicate for example the refusal of a friend request. On its side, the grey square means that a Snap sent is either expired or pending.

This status may be due to the fact that the person has declined your friend request. The other user was also able to block you or delete you from his contact list.

To be sure, look at the recipient’s score in the popup displaying his name on Snapchat. This indicator shows the number of Snaps exchanged with members of the social network. If you don’t see any score next to the name, the individual in question has blocked you or deleted you from their friends list.

So your Snap has little chance of reaching its destination.

A pending Snap can also be explained by the deletion of your friend’s profile. After closing the account, the user’s name does not immediately disappear from the lists of friends. However, you will no longer be able to send Snap.

You’ll only see “on hold” next to your contact’s name. This profile will eventually disappear over time.

What is Snapchat’s slogan ?

During its early years, Snapchat used the slogan “Life is more fun when you live in the moment.”. This leitmotif can be translated as “Life is more fun when you enjoy the moment. Sometimes you can also see the translation “Don’t worry about what happens after the fact”.

In any case, the platform values living life to the fullest and sharing every moment with others. You can still find this idea in the currently favored slogan “The fastest way to share a moment”. This phrase literally means “The fastest way to share a moment”.

For its part, the company prefers the tagline “Snap Inc. is a camera company “. This slogan marks the difference with other social networks displaying the news feed first. So you have to exit the interface before taking a selfie and publishing images. Conversely, Snapchat gives access to the camera from the home screen. Thus, you can immediately take and share photos.

Where did Snapchat come from, what is its history ?

Snapchat was conceived by Frank “Reggie” Brown, then developed with Evan Spiegel and Robert “Bobby” Murphy. The latter refined and presented Picaboo as a study project to Stanford University. The original idea was to be able to share compromising photos with friends, without leaving any trace.

The application thus promotes the right to be forgotten on social media.

Picaboo changed its name to Snapchat when it launched in September 2011. Since then, the concept has been transformed into a publicly traded company by Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy. Reggie Brown was ousted from the project in the meantime, but settled out of court for $157.5 million in compensation before the IPO. The company currently has several notable shareholders, including :

The Chinese group Tencent (about 15%);
Robert Murphy (9.58%);
Evan Spiegel (8.66%);
The Vanguard Group (4.81%);
Tybourne Capital Management (3.19%);
Fidelity Management & Research Co (2.18%);
OppenheimerFunds Inc (2.12%);
First Trust Advisors LP (2.01%);
Institutional Venture Partners (1.76%);
Susquehanna Financial Group LLLP (1.51%).

Since its creation, Snapchat has refused several takeover offers from technology giants such as Facebook, Google, Tencent… The company indeed wants to keep its independence and pursue its own development.

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