When we think about the next generation of social media challenging Meta’s supremacy, we often think about TikTok and Snapchat (Snapchat isn’t so much new as just incredibly popular with Gen Z). But there are other social platforms out there giving Facebook and Instagram a run for their money. One of these apps is BeReal.
With BeReal, once a day users are sent a notification that it is time to BeReal. And users take a photo with both their front and back camera at the same time, showing what they’re doing during their day. The idea is that we see what our friends and family are doing in their day-to-day lives. Their real lives, not the manicured version we see on Facebook and Instagram. And BeReal is taking off amongst Gen Z and Generation Alpha.
BeReal’s value proposition is quite different to TikTok. While TikTok prioritises discovery and serves up the most viral content from around the world, BeReal is focused on your personal connections and getting an insight into the day-to-day lives of your friends and family. In many ways, it is a return to the early days of MySpace and Facebook, where personal connection mattered more than virality.
BeReal is currently the number 1 social network app in the Apple App Store and it has been downloaded 28 million times. Add this to the list of challenges Meta and Mark Zuckerberg are facing.
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