Short-form video clips have dominated social media platforms today. Spearheaded by TikTok in 2016, billions of people engage in entertaining music videos with a minute or less in length. Instagram created “Reels”, Snapchat launched “Spotlight”, and YouTube introduced “Shorts.” Today, Snapchat adds public view counts to “Spotlight” clips.
Snapchat launched “Spotlight” last 23 November 2020. These are video snaps similar to TikTok clips. During the launch, the platform sponsored a $1 million funding for creators with the best “Spotlight” clip for the day. Winners are decided based on view counts and other Snapchat algorithms. Because view counts are an important element of “Spotlight”, Snapchat started experimenting on how to make them visible in the video snaps. As of today, Snapchat shows the view counts on the left side of a Spotlight’s bottom screen. Showing view counts to the public gives more context about the video clip’s popularity.
Snapchat adds public view counts to Spotlight clips on 14 January 2021.
Implications for Marketers:
As Snapchat adds public view counts to Spotlight, it highlights the popularity of a video snap. For marketers, this is important to show a brand’s reach. It may help considering Spotlight as another option to create ads and campaigns. Who knows, such a feature may beat the increasing popularity of TikTok in the coming days.
