????去年12月度假的一天，我一時(shí)無聊，掏出了手機(jī)，舉到面前，來了一次素顏?zhàn)耘摹?/p>

????這還不算完。我的手指變成了魔術(shù)棒，在屏幕上又點(diǎn)又劃，用顏料筆修飾了自己扭曲的面龐和雙下巴。沒過多一會兒，我就把照片中的自己變成了有著水亮頭發(fā)的巨魔娃娃。之后我按下了發(fā)送鍵，把我的杰作與幾個(gè)好朋友分享，同時(shí)附上了一句簡短的話：“l(fā)oungin'.”（好吧，我還加上了一些太陽的表情符號。）這種交流方式古怪、隨意，與我之前體驗(yàn)過的都截然不同。

????換句話說：Snapchat太棒了。

????從那時(shí)起，這個(gè)照片分享應(yīng)用就成了我生活中的一部分。我拍的照片比我發(fā)的文字更多。我的朋友也常用Snapchat，她們會發(fā)一些堪稱絕配的扮丑照和視頻。盡管每個(gè)人在這個(gè)平臺上表現(xiàn)自我的方式各不相同，但看到SnapChat收件箱里的每條信息時(shí)，表現(xiàn)卻是類似的：“這TM是什么東西？！”隨后便是一陣大笑。

????最近對Snapchat的新聞報(bào)道集中在這家初創(chuàng)公司的“閱后即焚”這一模式：照片拍下來后，過一會就會消失。如今Facebook和Twitter流行，但據(jù)說十多歲和二十多歲的年輕人喜歡這樣，因?yàn)樗麄兛梢圆涣艉圹E地分享自己的“年少輕狂之舉”。我在《財(cái)富》的同事在我們最近的一期雜志中寫道：“這種不留痕跡的交流工具生動有趣，突然間變得炙手可熱。”完全正確。2006年，我申請大學(xué)時(shí)，F(xiàn)acebook還只是大學(xué)生的校內(nèi)平臺。而到我2011年申請工作時(shí)，連我媽媽都已經(jīng)成為了Facebook的忠實(shí)用戶，而我的“新鮮事”里充斥著她同事的開心農(nóng)場的最新消息。現(xiàn)在，任何人、每個(gè)人都能輕易地使用社交網(wǎng)絡(luò)。（我無法想象在這種環(huán)境中上高三會是什么樣的情形。）

????年輕人很容易被下一個(gè)新事物吸引，這是事實(shí)。但是如果認(rèn)為對Snapchat的癡迷只是因?yàn)樗伴喓蠹捶佟钡奶厣秋@然小看了這項(xiàng)服務(wù)。這款應(yīng)用的繪圖和文字功能讓它的圖片和視頻變得意義非凡。當(dāng)一個(gè)朋友告訴我其中調(diào)色板的秘密，比如怎樣用黑白兩色作畫時(shí)，我比七年級時(shí)在《模擬人生》（The Sims）游戲中發(fā)現(xiàn)“rosebud”作弊碼的那一刻還要高興。（人人都有高樓大廈?。奈业捏w驗(yàn)來看，Snapchat用戶通常會把特別令人印象深刻的照片截屏發(fā)到Facebook，Instagram，Tumblr和Twitter上，結(jié)果使Snapchat的自毀功能變得毫無意義。（為什么人們永遠(yuǎn)不要用它來拍攝色情照片？這就是很多理由里面的一個(gè)。不過，說起這個(gè)顯然是我跑題了。）

????Snapchat之所以很出色是因?yàn)樗ぐl(fā)了人們的創(chuàng)造力。Facebook，Instagram和Twitter的用戶尋求自我提升。他們修飾自己的社交形象，以獲得“贊”或者新的粉絲。Snapchat和這些數(shù)字無關(guān)，它是個(gè)體之間交流的工具。這就是為什么Snapchat的用戶會什么會更頻繁地展現(xiàn)出搞怪的一面。（打個(gè)比方。）

????我懷疑，如果沒有繪圖和插入文字功能，Snapchat對千禧一代能否還有如今一半的吸引力。是的，圖片會消失，但滑稽的繪圖和伴隨的評論無疑會被看到，同時(shí)還會在其他無數(shù)平臺上被人們分享。越搞怪越好。目前來看，Snapchat只是一個(gè)娛樂工具。這很好。不過營銷人員需要注意：人們一度認(rèn)為社交媒體經(jīng)理這個(gè)崗位前途渺茫，但這個(gè)頭銜和職位卻出人意料的堅(jiān)挺。如果有一天“常駐拍照員”出現(xiàn)在招聘崗位的名單里，我也不會感到吃驚。（財(cái)富中文網(wǎng)）

????譯者：嚴(yán)匡正???

????One day last December, while on vacation, I whipped out my cell phone in a moment of boredom, held it in front of my face, and took an unflattering selfie.

????It didn't end there. My finger became a magical stylus, tapping and swiping my phone's display to decorate my contorted face and double-chin with streaks of color. In moments, I transformed my digitized self into an aqua-haired Troll doll. Then I pressed send, transmitting my masterpiece to several friends with only this explanation: "loungin'." (Okay, I included some sun emoji, too.) It was weird, random, and unlike any form of communication I had ever experienced.

????In other words: Snapchat was awesome.

????Since that moment, the photo-sharing app has become a regular part of my life; I snap more than I text. My friends use Snapchat as frequently, sending a perfect mix of self-destructing pictures and videos. Though each person expresses themselves differently on the platform, there's a common reaction when viewing each message in my SnapChat inbox: "WTF?!", followed by a laugh.

????The recent wave of news coverage of Snapchat focuses on the startup's photo ephemerality: Pictures are taken, and then they disappear. In the age of Facebook (FB) and Twitter (TWTR), twentysomethings and teens are said to like it because they can share their "youthful indiscretions" without a trace. "A racy communication tool that left no fingerprints suddenly looked attractive," writes my Fortune colleagues in our most recent issue. They're totally right. When I applied to college in 2006, Facebook was only for people with university e-mail addresses. By the time I applied for jobs in 2011, my mom was an avid Facebooker, and her co-workers' Farmville updates crowded my Newsfeed. Today, anyone and everyone easily uses the social network. (I can't even imagine being a high school senior in this sort of environment.)

????There is some truth to young people gravitating toward the next new thing. But the obsession with Snapchat on the basis of its ephemerality sells the service short. The app's drawing and text capabilities make its pictures and videos worthwhile. When a friend clued me in the palette's secrets -- like how to draw in black and white -- I was more excited than when I discovered the "rosebud" cheat for The Sims video game in the seventh grade. (Mansions for everyone!) In my experience, Snapchat users often take screenshots of particularly impressive snaps and post them on Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, and Twitter, rendering Snapchat's self-destructing aspect moot. (This is one of many, many reasons why people should never snap-sext. But I digress.)

????Snapchat is great because of the creativity it fosters. Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter users look for self-reinforcement, curating their social appearance to gain "likes" and followers. Snapchat isn't about numbers; it's about individual communication. Which is why, more often than not, people who use Snapchat let their freak flags fly. (So to speak.)

????Without Snapchat's drawing and text overlay features, I doubt the service would be half as sticky with millennials. Yes, the pictures disappear. But a hilarious drawing or comment accompanying a picture will undoubtedly be captured and shared on countless other platforms. The quirkier, the better. For now, Snapchat is nothing more than entertainment. That's fine. But marketers should take note: There was a time when social media managers were considered dead, but the title and job remains surprisingly resilient. I can't say I'd be shocked if, in the future, "Snapper-in-residence" makes it onto the job requirements list.