While Facebook is looking to take-on TikTok directly, via the broader launch of its copycat Reels function, Snapchat appears to be taking a different route, with a new selection of AR Lenses that have been built in collaboration with popular TikTok influencers, and encourage users to participate in TikTok dance challenges via Snap’s tools.
As reported by The Verge, these new Lenses, which are currently featured on the Lens Studio home page, are based on TikTok dance trends, and as noted, have been created in collaboration with the originators themselves.
The idea is that users can add the Lens effects to their clips on Snap, then post the videos they create with them to TikTok. That will then, ideally, help Snapchat to entice more users from the short-form video platform by showcasing its tools within the TikTok community.
It’s an interesting approach, and actually makes a lot of sense, given Snapchat’s more advanced AR tools, especially its user-generated Lens marketplace.
The main limitation in the process is that only two of the four TikTok-inspired Lenses currently have music embedded, so you need to play the related track on another device in order to interact with the appropriate sound for each. Snapchat is looking to add more music to the Lenses, however, which will make it a more functional option, and likely see more use.
It’s not the first time Snapchat has sought to further align with TikTok usage.
Last month, Snapchat began testing a new vertical swipe UX for Discover content, which is similar to TikTok’s swipe-up functionality.
The experiment underlines the massive impact that TikTok’s rise has had on social media more broadly, with several platforms looking at TikTok-like features, aligning with evolving user trends.
Indeed, aside from Reels, Facebook is also now testing a new short-form video feed within its main app too, as it looks to fill the gap left by TikTok’s removal from the Indian market.
The above image was posted by Indian user Roneet Michael on Twitter (and shared by Matt Navarra), and shows the ‘Short video’ stream test, with the familiar, TikTok vertical UX.
Clearly, the major platforms see TikTok as having a major influence on usage trends. And rather than simply trying to build TikTok in its own app, Snap is also working to align with that shift in order to piggyback on the app’s success.
Which is a tactic that most other platforms probably wouldn’t take, but it could, as noted, be a pathway to broader exposure for Snapchat’s tools within the TikTok community.
