Snapchat Marketing: The Gateway to Gen Z

Why Snapchat is a Must-have Item in the Marketer’s Toolbox

#1 | Snapchat paves the way to Gen-Z

While advertising giants, such as Facebook and Google, are battling for attention of mature audiences, Snapchat is appealing to a younger generation. Millennials and Gen-Z grew up digitally connected and got accustomed to living in the social media environment, that’s why they are more tech-savvy than their predecessors and demand a more sophisticated shopping experience. For these age groups, such immersive technologies as voice assistants, VR and AR have long become commonplace, so when it comes to discovering and buying online, they are more likely to rely on their digital habits than on traditional ads.

78% of U.S. internet users aged between 18-24 use Snapchat. U.S. Snapchat usage by age 2018 | Statista

Today’s young Internet dwellers are actually shaping the future business world. Although their purchasing power may now be limited, it will be steadily increasing, alongside with the consciousness of well-being. Snapchat gives advertisers the opportunity to accumulate the long-term impact of these audiences — as challenging as it might be, the payoff can be high.

Over half of Millennials check Snapchat daily. What Makes Social Media Apps Successful | The Manifest

#2 | Human attention span is shrinking 

The average time Millennials spend viewing ad content has dropped to 5 seconds... And this is the good news! As the world goes digital, people move towards visually oriented social networks. Snapchat is a mobile-only app known for its temporary content and short captions, which makes it distinctive from other social media. The app’s philosophy is built on ?watch it now or it’s gone forever? concept: all snaps and messages disappear after a given amount of time. And, because the time is limited, users are more likely to check them out to make sure they don’t miss anything. Snapchat is cleverly capitalizing on this trait.

Snapchat users are 60% likely to make impulse purchases. Forbes

The ephemeral nature of the app creates a more natural and organic flow of interaction between users. It also allows marketers to build their presence, by weaving their brand messaging into the everyday life of their target audience. Fortunately, there are numerous ad solutions to choose from: short videos between Stories, shoppable augmented reality posts, sponsored geofilters or lenses, etc.

?Snapchat discards content to focus on the feeling that content brings to you, not the way that content looks? — Evan Spiegel, co-founder, and CEO of Snap Inc.

#3 | Snapchat allows to build a personal connection

Unlike newsfeed-based sponsored posts, advertising on Snapchat is not passive — it is engaging, creative and playful. Branded filters, ‘behind-the-scenes’ footage or live event coverage let companies develop a deep personal connection with recipients. Since Snaps are not public, they are perceived as one-to-one content recommendations, and consequently, look more trustworthy to users.

Snapchatters generate over 3 billion snaps every day. Snapchat — Statistics & Facts | Statista

Users tend to share Stories they like with their friends, even if they are sponsored. Businesses that got a knack for creating compelling, entertaining narratives, have a higher chance of getting exposure for their product or service.

The number of Snapchat daily video views has reached 10 billion a day. Marketing Land

#4 | There is a room for creativity

As Snapchat ads expire in 24 hours after posting, marketers can refresh them as often as they like. Given such space for experimentation, they are more likely to find a holistic approach to boosting conversions and revenues. Aside from this, there are other winning factors:

• Snapchat videos are played with sound by default, which makes a big difference for brands. By adding the right audio effects to their video content, advertisers can create a more memorable and standing out ad campaign.

Over 60 percent of video ads on Snapchat are watched with the sound on. Snap Inc.

?The majority of our users have sound on, the majority are used to engaging and playing through the camera. It creates a totally different opportunity for a brand to communicate.? — David Norris, Snap’s UK creative director.

• Recently, the platform launched a new feature that remains untouched by rivals — the sound-sensitive lens that reacts to both audio and visual stimulation. Touted to be the first of many more to come, this feature may be used to engage with the target audience in a new, interactive way.
• Finally, Snapchat addresses some data policy issues that many companies are likely experiencing — when information disappears, irrelevant content and potential mistakes disappear as well, and business owners don’t need to be fussing over their ads 24/7.

Key Advice on Using Snapchat for Marketing

As has been said, Snapchat is fairly unique in terms of advertising features, and traditional strategies may not always be applicable to this platform. Hence, businesses need to rethink their old habits and try to adjust content to fit the stories format and the app’s audience.

Depending on specific goals — whether it be a product launch announcement, featuring giveaways/discounts, event coverage, an exclusive look at the company’s workspace or whatever — marketers can leverage different Snapchat tools:

• Snap Ads

10-second full-screen videos with ‘swipe-up’ feature are the most popular ad format on the platform. They are widely used by SMBs to encourage users to take further actions: open an external website or a longer video, read an article, download an app, etc. Snap Ads are the most affordable and easy to set up ad format that can be used by small and medium businesses of any categories - mobile games, e-commerce, etc.

Snap Ads are the most affordable and easy to set up ad format that can be used by small and medium businesses of any categories - mobile games, e-commerce, etc.

• Sponsored Geofilters

This is a special graphic overlay that can be accessed in a certain geographic location only. This ad type is mostly used by larger brands tied to location (for example, airports or shopping malls), or during major events (such as music festivals, industry conferences, etc.). Such filters can be targeted to a specific audience within the given radius during the event.

Snapchat promoted geofilters come in handy for large events and location-based, brick-and-mortar businesses

• Sponsored Lens

Snapchat Lens is a special effect that users can access by augmented reality, and add to their picture or video. Sponsored lenses work best for nation-wide brands to bolster their image, as well as the launch of new products. Having their brand message in front of the target audience, business owners achieve top-of-mind awareness for their product or service.

Snapchat sponsored lenses are commonly used by big-name brands to promote upcoming movies, new product lines, and other high-cost projects.

So what are the basic tips for Snapchat marketing? Here are 4 simple yet powerful tips:

1) Get creative

This may sound obvious, but it’s a fundamental part of the marketing strategy. Snapchat is all about fun, spontaneous emotions, and sometimes awkward content. If you manage to stand out from your competitors, chances are potential customers will notice your brand and eventually, get hooked. Try to get the most out the Snap’s toolkit (3D stickers, filters, bitmojis, intricate editing tools, etc.) to create unique, quirky, and memorable ads.

Taco Bell’s Cinco de Mayo Lens was viewed over 224 million times in one day, which made it the top campaign in Snapchat’s history. Adweek

2) Feel your audience

Teens value the opportunity to make their own choices and decide whether or not a brand is worth interacting with. Use Snapchat for building a long-term connection with your audience rather than just selling your product. Learn about your users as much as possible to figure out what kind of things they might be interested in. Tailor your content accordingly to ensure it is going to be meaningful to viewers.

Phil’s Donuts utilizes sponsored geofilters in a playful and engaging way to drive brand awareness at scale. University of Brighton Blog Network

3) Keep things short

Remember, you have just a few seconds to capture users’ attention and make them want to learn more. Make sure your content is laconic, concise, and straight-to-the-point. To increase your Snaps’ viewership, spread out several shorter stories throughout the day.

In May 2018, Snapchat rolled out shorter, 6-second unskippable ads. AdAge

4) Be casual

If you want your stories to look authentic, don’t stress about making them perfect. Avoid professionallooking and buttoned-up content and cultivate the ?homegrown? feeling — you’re going to have a much better response from your audience. Some celebrities use Snapchat to reveal new music albums or movies, or to share some internal information with users in the form of casual, unpolished videos

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Facebook post about the Terminator-2 Snapchat filter gained almost 52,000 likes and 3,000 shares. Complex.com

Snapchat’s potential for brands that know their audience is endless, and there are huge untapped opportunities ahead, as the platform releases new features on a consistent basis. Not sure you’ve got skills for snapping, or don’t entirely understand how it works? That’s OK. Our experienced team can help you run successful Snapchat marketing.

Visit our website: https://appness.com/