Snap Inc. had a lot of explaining to do after disappointing Q1 results sent its stock plunging 25% after its first-ever earnings report on Wednesday.
But the company's conference call with investors was also important because it was the public's first real chance to hear from Evan Spiegel, Snapchat's reclusive 26-year old cofounder and CEO.
Spiegel's reputation as a product visionary who has his finger on the pulse of the millennial generation has given him iconic status in the tech world.
While his big debut didn't impress everyone — CNBC's Jim Cramer blasted the young CEO by calling him "arrogant" — Spiegel's comments provide valuable insight into Snapchat's views of the competitive landscape, the big opportunities ahead and even the importance of puppy faces.
Here are some of Spiegel's best quotes from Snapchat's call:
Spiegel on old people: "...We do tend to market our products directly to younger people because, frankly, they are more interested in learning how to use new technology products. And that's sort of -- is partly inspired by trying to teach my grandma how to use email; and she'd really prefer to just talk on the phone. So I think now a lot of grandparents are using email, but 20 years ago it was a little different."
Spiegel on being a camera company: "When Google came along, everyone really felt like they needed a search strategy. When Facebook came along, everyone felt they needed a social strategy. And now I think with Snap, with our company, we believe that everyone is going to develop a camera strategy."
Spiegel on Snap's slow user growth versus competitors: "I think one of the reasons why it's such a popular question is because there's a lot of this thing in our industry called growth hacking, where you send a lot of push notifications to users or you try to get them to do things that might be unnatural or something like that."
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