1. A WAR OF WORDS
Who’s winning the battle for chat app supremacy?
© 2014 TBG

2. SOCIAL CHAT APPS

In April last year we reviewed the movers and shakers
in social chat apps: WhatsApp, Kik, Snapchat and
Path

See ‘Chat, sharing and the future of social
media’ here

8 months on, we’ll take another look and see how the
landscape has changed and if there are any
opportunities for branded content

We’ll also see how the major social networks have
responded
© 2014 TBG

3. WHATSAPP
WhatsApp is steadfastly a
messaging app
No extended
platforms, games or
advertising – and no place
for brands
© 2014 TBG

4. WHATSAPP
48 billion messages per day,
up from 20 billion in April
16 billion sent and
32 billion received
Source 1, © 2014 TBG
Source 2

5. WHATSAPP
© 2014 TBG

6. WHATSAPP
MONETISATION
$0.99 a year after a free trial period of one year but
those who installed prior to the subscription payment
model will not be charged
If 50% of their 400 million active users are
subscribers, then that’s $200 million a year revenue
© 2014 TBG

7. KIK
For brands, Kik is a more
interesting prospect, as they are
building a platform where shared
content is viewed within the app
This means more user time within
the platform, and more opportunity
for advertising and the
distribution of branded content
© 2014 TBG

8. KIK
Kik has doubled in size from
50 million to 100 million
users since April
640 million messages are
sent per day
Source
© 2014 TBG

9. KIK
Recently One Direction
partnered with the
platform to promote
their latest album
© 2014 TBG

10. KIK
MONETISATION
Kik’s founder said that he sees a future for monetising
within Kik’s Cards via advertisements and mobile
shopping, while he hopes to keep the core messaging
service a “pure” experience
© 2014 TBG
Source

11. SNAPCHAT
Snapchat, the self-destructive
image sharing app is growing fast
but it has some image problems
Security leaks, hacks to save images
and its ‘sexting’ reputation means it’s
a no-go for most brands
© 2014 TBG

12. SNAPCHAT
Users share 400 million
snaps per day, up from 150
million in April
The app has around
60 million installs and
30 million monthly
active users
© 2014 TBG

13. SNAPCHAT
Snapchat has unveiled
Stories – a kind of news feed
where users can post a snap
that expires in 24 hours
This opened up the platform for
brands to broadcast messages
to followers in a more traditional
way (and the possibility for
Snapchat to eventually charge
brands for this)
© 2014 TBG

14. SNAPCHAT
MONETISATION
Snapchat will struggle to attract the big advertisers
because of its slightly dirty image.
Brands that use the platform and are comfortable
with this image (like Taco Bell and MTV’s Geordie
Shore) could eventually pay to reach Snapchat’s niche
demographic.
© 2014 TBG
Source

15. PATH
Path isn’t a dedicated chat app,
but it does have messaging
features
Tt also caters for users looking
for a more private social
sharing experience, limiting
friends to 150
© 2014 TBG

16. PATH
Doubling its registered users
since April, Path now has 20
million users
Path, like Whatsapp is
resolutely ad- and
brand-free
© 2014 TBG

17. PATH
They’ve recently added
new features allowing
users to create an ‘inner
circle’ of friends
© 2014 TBG

18. PATH
MONETISATION
Users can buy in-app items or sign up to the premium
subscription service
Users pay a hefty $14.99 a year to access the full suite
of stickers for chat and filters for shared photos
© 2014 TBG
Source

19. SOCIAL CHAT APPS
To see how Facebook, Twitter and Instagram have
responded to the rise in chat apps and find out how
Twitter is involved in developing a cross-platform
native ad server visit Inside Social:
inside-social.tumblr.com
Get the insider’s view on all things social
© 2014 TBG