Snapchat Connection, Servers Down, App Not Working - Snap CEO Evan Spiegel basically says the Snapchat redesign is here to stay

Despite a lot of backlash over a big redesign for the Snapchat app —  which to be sure is a very big deal for a product-centric company like  Snap — Snap CEO Evan Spiegel vigorously defended the redesign and  basically said people need to get used to it. 

 Spiegel said at the Goldman Sachs Internet & Technology  Conference that even people complaining about the app was a sort of  validation that the changes the company wants to happen are, indeed,  happening. Snap aimed to try to separate the idea of communication and  broadcasting with Snap into similar buckets, rather than the features  being kind of mixed up (like Stories being on a right swipe). 

“The tech is an important piece but I think the harder part you can’t  get around is the time it takes to learn,” Spiegel said. “You do need  folks to use the product, to communicate with their friends to learn how  to better provide that feed. The tech to some degree is a solved  problem, the time to… to learn is a hard problem to solve. Even the  complaints we’re seeing reinforce the philosophy. Even the frustrations  we’re seeing really validate those changes. It’ll take time for people  to adjust, but for me using it for a couple months I feel way more  attached to the service.” 

Of course, Spiegel can say these things on stage and then end up  changing his mind. But as Snap faces increasing competition from  companies looking to clone some of its products — Instagram stories,  basically — Snap has had to look at some pretty significant changes to  see if it can keep its users engaged and continue to grow. That being  said, the Snapchat app could continue to go through tweaks and shifts,  so it’s hard to tell where things will end up over the course of the  next few months. 

As with any significant changes, Snap faced a ton of backlash, but maybe found it had to stay the course. Of course, Spiegel said on stage that it’s basically flattering that people want to copy the app.