At different times while I was using this, I felt like I was on a Nigerian version of Reddit and I think it has prospects which means it just might catch on while Reddit itself never really did manage to capture the attention of Nigerians.
Introduction
Over time, we’ve had mobile apps try to create platforms for sharing content and others for news aggregation but I stumbled on an app that combines both functions with Nigeria as its primary market. Enter Yaply, a mobile-first social network and news aggregation platform that allows you to create, share and consume digital media. Its interest-based approach keeps you updated with content and information that is relevant to you.
The platform has a web platform for ease but the focus is on the mobile application. The platform allows you to create a profile, then join communities so you can get content from those communities.
Features
> Community: The app has communities across a wide range of topics and categories, from funny videos to politics and even campus-specific communities. You are prompted to join a few while signing up. You can join others after joining.
> Trending: There is a trending section where you get to view the hot information on the app.
> Filter: There is a filter that allows you to search through posts based on their type like text, video, images etc. Needless to say, you can post based on those types as well.
> Upvoting: There is a part on every post that allows to upvote or downvote it based on what you think about the post. I think this helps on getting a post on the trending column.
> Karma: This is like a points system where you gain more points for engaging on the platform and the higher you go, the more perks you qualify for.
UI/UX
The app’s colour scheme is a mellow green and white which I think is not a bad idea. However, I would think blue would have been a better colour which works better with online products strictly from a colour psychology point of view.
I also think the user registration part could do with a little less information at the beginning, you can get more information as users spend more time within the app.
Thoughts
At different times while I was using this, I felt like I was on a Nigerian version of Reddit and I think it has prospects which means it just might catch on while Reddit itself never really did manage to capture the attention of Nigerians.
Also, leveraging influencer marketing the right way would go a long way in driving attention to the app because I think it genuinely needs to chip away at the potentially large Nigerian audience. Campus launches wouldn’t be a bad idea too.
The fact that it is content creator-friendly is definitely a plus any day and considering how social media amplifiers have been targeted since the election period, this is definitely a welcome development.
Conclusion
With the emergence of a few new forums like Naija Arena intent to overthrow Nairaland’s reign as the king of user-generated platforms in Nigeria, the introduction of Yaply is a welcome development and overall, it is a platform with a lot of promise and we hope it can live up to its potential.
Overall: 8.5/10.
You can download Yaply here.
