Over the past few years, Snapchat has evolved from a college students idea to a leading contender in social media. This is how it happened.

1. A Timeline of How
Snapchat Has Taken
The World By Storm

2. Evan Spiegel’s Idea
April 2011 Evan Spiegel’s Idea
December 2012 Facebook Launches Poke
July 2013
Snapkidz For Users
Under 13
August 2014
Snapchat Grows
Up
January 2015
Discovery Shares The
Wealth
June 2015
Snapchat
Pushes Vertical
Video
April 2011
Evan Spiegel stands up in his product design class to
present an idea for his final project. At first glance, the idea
of Snapchat seems silly. Pictures that disappear? However,
at a closer look, it’s a lot more than that.
What you need to understand, is his insight. People are
afraid to share because they do not want to be judged by
their content. People fear that it will live on forever. ”It’s
taken all of the fun out of communicating.” Spiegel says
Snapchat is a platform that encourages you to be who you
are and share it. Snapchat is fun.

3. Facebook Is Scrambling & Launches Poke
December 2012
Mark Zuckerberg met Spiegel in early 2012 and in Spiegel’s
words Zuckerberg told him, “We're going to crush you.“
Later that year, Facebook launched its answer to Snapchat,
Poke.
Shortly after launching, Poke quickly fell from the top 25
apps on both the Apple and Google app stores and
Zuckerberg then made a $3 billion bid for Snapchat. After
reading The Art of War, this was a no brainer for the
Snapchat team to turn down. Ever since then, Facebook has
been scrambling to keep up.
April 2011 Evan Spiegel’s Idea
December 2012 Facebook Launches Poke
July 2013
Snapkidz For Users
Under 13
August 2014
Snapchat Grows
Up
January 2015
Discovery Shares The
Wealth
June 2015
Snapchat
Pushes Vertical
Video

4. Snapkidz For Users Under 13
July 2013
When signing up for Snapchat, if your age falls under 13,
you are directed to Snapkidz instead of Snapchat. Snapkidz
allows children to create their own snaps and their parents
don’t need to worry about them sharing online.
While not revolutionary, it gives us deeper insight into what
Snapchat has accomplished. The app has essentially,
gamified story telling. Some of the best story tellers on
Snapchat push Snapchat’s features to its limits. For
example, Taco Bell made a quiz to help you decide what to
order and Cosmopolitan encourages viewers to screenshot
and add drawings or text before sharing.
April 2011 Evan Spiegel’s Idea
December 2012 Facebook Launches Poke
July 2013
Snapkidz For Users
Under 13
August 2014
Snapchat Grows
Up
January 2015
Discovery Shares The
Wealth
June 2015
Snapchat
Pushes Vertical
Video

5. Snapchat Grows Up
August 2014
For quite sometime, Snapchat was just an app where you
could take a selfie, draw a mustache and drop an emoji on
it. With the launch of Our Story however, Snapchat began to
grow up and become much more.
Our Story is a further extension of your friends stories.
Essentially, Snapchat chooses a location, allows users in
that area to upload their snaps to that story and then
Snapchat curates the content for that event or city. These
curated stories, such as a musical festival, are then shown
on all Snapchat users’ live section.
It’s truly a unique perspective to view an event or city like
this. Most importantly, it allows Snapchat to cross into the
news realm and reach an older audience.
April 2011 Evan Spiegel’s Idea
December 2012 Facebook Launches Poke
July 2013
Snapkidz For Users
Under 13
August 2014
Snapchat Grows
Up
January 2015
Discovery Shares The
Wealth
June 2015
Snapchat
Pushes Vertical
Video

6. Discovery Shares The Wealth
January 2015
Early this year, Snapchat rolled out Discovery. This new
feature allows publishers to share stories just as users share
stories with their friends. It was a big move.
Where Facebook originally failed, Snapchat has
successfully partnered with publishers on their platform and
are sharing ad revenue. Publishers receive 70% of ad
revenue deals they close and 50% that the Snapchat team
closes.
Their approach to the partnership was completely different
than Facebook’s original attempt to partner with publishers.
First, there isn’t an algorithm that decides the content that is
shown. Second, the content is complimentary to publishers
other channels. Because the user experience is contained
within the platform, it drives awareness for the publishers. April 2011 Evan Spiegel’s Idea
December 2012 Facebook Launches Poke
July 2013
Snapkidz For Users
Under 13
August 2014
Snapchat Grows
Up
January 2015
Discovery Shares The
Wealth
June 2015
Snapchat
Pushes Vertical
Video

7. Snapchat Pushes Vertical Video
June 2015
“Fifty years ago, it would’ve been hard to believe that
everyone would have a little TV in their pocket,” Spiegel
says. His solution, 3V Advertising or vertical video views is
pushing other platforms to rethink their mobile strategy.
YouTube has recently began showing vertical videos
without the black side bars on mobile which was long
overdue. However, there is still no word on a vertical video
ad product.
Then at Cannes this year, Facebook shared a new mobile ad
product. Taking a page from Snapchat’s playbook, the
product is vertically displayed and encourages viewers
explore with the swipe of a finger.
April 2011 Evan Spiegel’s Idea
December 2012 Facebook Launches Poke
July 2013
Snapkidz For Users
Under 13
August 2014
Snapchat Grows
Up
January 2015
Discovery Shares The
Wealth
June 2015
Snapchat
Pushes Vertical
Video