Super is a new visual communication network. People in networks naturally want to reference one another. As we watched Super grow from beta to app stores, we expected to see, and did see, this desire. However, our, “Visual First” approach lead us to think about the traditional @mention differently. Instead of old-fashioned hyperlinks, we took another direction.
When you begin to @mention someone on Super, it autocompletes names along with profile pictures. When you choose the person or persons you want to reference, the name animates into an interactive profile image — inline with your text. Super renders the face of your friend as if it were a letter or emoji in your post. However, it’s an interactive element.
This appears simple (which is great) but technically, it’s pretty darn significant and opens doors for many other interesting ideas going forward. What I like best about this approach is legibility — a driving force behind facetags. We pull hashtags out and render @mentions as images. By doing this, Super messages shine through both brief and clear.
We’re building Super because image and text mashups produce levels of both cognitive and emotional comprehension far greater than that which is produced by either alone. This is an evolution of digital communication — more visual, more nuance, and more emotion. The transmission of emotion, and by extension, empathy, is best served by combining words and imagery.
