Snapchat Circles
Cultural relativism blew my mind when I first learned about it.
A Big Mac in every restaurant in the western hemisphere, but a McAloo Tikki sandwich in India? Genius. McDonald’s simply wouldn’t work in the country if they came in with their beef patty hamburgers.
Transferring the same learning to software: sure you can translate to different languages and get relevant celebrity endorsements, but what about the strategy behind your features? You have your core product, but should you introduce a version that considers culture? A different colour scheme, UI pattern, or even a new pseudo-killer feature that would work better in different markets. Most apps definitely don’t have this problem, again, I’m just talking about the McDonald’s of the software world.
Google tried to make ‘circles’ happen, and I actually understand their thinking behind that. I find a lot of my social groups ‘circled’ off — it is unlikely that my parents will find humour in the same jokes I say to my friends. Therefore, separate the two into distinct circles (spillovers possible). Unfortunately, Google has been very unsuccessful in building any true social network besides YouTube, and that was an acquisition. Facebook tries to get us to label our friends as Acquaintances, Close Friends or even Family, but who really does that? I think Snapchat could be benefit the most by taking a page from cultural relativism by implementing ‘Circles’ in their app for the western world where our groups seem to be a lot more segmented than family oriented cultures where there’s a lot more transparency. I’m really just sick and tired of scrolling to find and select coworkers of mine, one by one, to send a funny snap.
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