‘Frustrations validate changes’: Snapchat CEO excited about redesign despite backlash

Snapchat is saying goodbye… for a short time. The app's parent company, Snap, said it will fully redesign the messaging application and make it a lot more user-friendly. "One thing that we have heard over the years is that Snapchat is difficult to understand or hard to use." Evan Spiegel, Snap's CEO, said during earnings call "We don't yet know how the behavior of our community will change when they begin to use our updated application." The announcement comes after a discouraging quarter for the compan

Earlier this month, Snapchat rolled out an update full of new designs and features. While many users weren’t too thrilled about the changes, the company seems to be happy about them.

» RELATED: 'Change it back': Snapchat users not happy about latest update

Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel recently responded to all of the backlash surrounding the platform’s latest layout. Unlike many, he says, he is “excited” about what he’s seeing.

"The harder part you can't get around is the time it takes to learn," he said at the Goldman Sachs Internet & Technology Conference this week. "Even the complaints we're seeing reinforce the philosophy. Even the frustrations we're seeing really validate those changes. It'll take time for people to adjust, but for me using it for a couple months I feel way more attached to the service."

Snapchat first announced the redesign at the end of last year, gradually introducing the tweaks to markets at the top of 2018.

» RELATED: Snapchat will disappear and return with new design

Stories are no longer ordered chronologically. Instead, they are ranked based on your most recent interactions. It also takes a few more steps to rewatch a story. The option to rewatch a post isn’t available right after viewing. You now have to go to the user’s profile to get a second peek.

Furthermore, the friends section now contains snaps, direct messages and group chats all on one page as opposed to separate ones as before. And to manage your own stories, you now have to tap the Snapchat logo to access the camera and see your story views and deleted snaps.

As the alterations appeared, many took to social media to express their displeasure. More than a million people even signed a petition on change.org in an attempt to force the company to revert back to the original setup.

» RELATED: Snapchat knows you can't figure it out and plans to fix that