What A Picture Is Worth

If I were to ask you what the number one social media platform is, your answer would likely reflect your age. For older people, it's Facebook. In your 20s and 30s? Twitter. Teens and tweens? Snapchat. Even more than TikTok, Snapchat is the favorite for Generation Z, according to recent reports.

That lines up with my experience. Most every student I know uses Snapchat as a primary - if not the primary - social media messaging platform. In fact, I don't know many other than students who use Snapchat. My own account - with about 300 friends - consists of exclusively students and former students (and Rosalie, my wife). I never friend anyone I don't know personally. Not every student is on Snapchat, but the vast majority I know at school use the platform regularly to communicate with one another.

It's probably been almost a decade now that I've been using Snapchat. When I first heard about it, I thought it was a crazy idea: who would want to send pictures to one another that disappeared? (You know, other than for obviously inappropriate reasons.) But eventually I began using it regularly after seeing it's popularity among students at school and my youth group. 

What started as a just way to keep in touch with students grew into an appreciation for the platform itself, especially the way it has been appropriated by teenagers and repurposed as a form of visual instant messaging. To me there is an increased level of connectedness when you accompany a text message with a visual image - even if it's something completely random.

Different age ranges tend to use it differently, but a common trend among students is creating Snapstreaks. A Snapstreak is when two people have Snapped each other (not chatted) within 24 hours for more than three consecutive days. Snapchat will put a fire emoji next to their name with a number indicating the days the streak has been maintained. (It's actually a genius move by Snapchat to ensure daily engagement by its users.) I maintain Snapstreaks with about 35 students and my current top Snapstreak is with a senior high student and is 703 days and counting.

In addition to instant visual messaging (which I like using it for because it seems more personal than just a text message), you can also post to your "story" which allows anyone you are friends with to see your post. This is a good way to share information with a lot of people. For me, it allows me a peek into the world of my students. I'm a lot more aware of current trends and culture than I otherwise would be.

There are certainly drawbacks and cautions that need to be observed with this and every other social media platform. Some of the "Stories" Snapchat suggests under their "discover" section are not always the most appropriate, and certainly can be a waste of time, but they're easy enough to avoid if you want.

I'm not necessarily recommending it or advocating for widespread adoption, but just making some observations here. However, if you're in youth ministry I would definitely recommend maintaining a presence on Snapchat. Like the Apostle Paul said, "I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some." Gotta go where the kids are. (And it is a fun way to keep in touch with everyone.)