Clubhouse rocked the pandemic-era. But the spell didn’t last any longer and after quite some darling days, the company noticed a downhill. Likewise, the social media startup earlier this year announced that it was laying off over 50 per cent of its workforce.
The company had previously reportedly started working on a pivot app – “Clubhouse 2.0.” and now it comes live. This redesign isn’t some fancy revamp or adjusting the aesthetics of an app, rather Clubhouse is becoming something closer to a messaging app.
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Clubhouse noted in a blog post that the audio app is shifting from open, live-streamed conversations to friend-oriented voice chats, now encouraging users to join groups with familiar people, referred to as “chats.”
These chats enable friends and friends-of-friends to exchange voice messages, with a focus on quick updates similar to Instagram Stories. Additionally, the app is replacing text-based direct messages with private audio messages, termed voicemails or VMs.
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As to how the change will be implemented and whether the app will again see rocket highs of the pandemic era, it is soon to have an opinion on this. However, this pivot isn’t silly either. If implemented rightly, it could give an edge to platforms like Snapchat, Twitter, and even Instagram, where people are always in search of meeting new people. “It’s not about passively listening to people speaking,” Clubhouse hints at engaging in conversations and being a part of it.
Clubhouse explains this even better in a blog post, “You can listen to great conversations on podcasts, YouTube, TikTok, and a lot of other platforms. It’s about talking with people … and becoming real-life friends with your friends’ friends, and people you never would have met otherwise.”
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