Brands have often felt confused about Snapchat because of its ephemeral nature.
Many see it simply as an entertainment app for mobile-obsessed teens and young adults. But it’s so much more than that—it holds tremendous potential for marketing!
Sure, Snapchat is different from other social media video marketing platforms, but that difference is what makes it unique.
It offers various ad formats and features that brands can use to reach a young audience with significant spending power. This is an untapped market where you can drive more conversions and boost sales.
However, you can’t rely on the usual marketing strategies here—it’s essential to understand the intricacies of the platform to market here.
That’s where this comprehensive guide comes in to help.
Here, we’ll dive into everything you need to know about Snapchat marketing—from what it is and why you should use it, to how to create an effective strategy and much more.
So, let’s jump in and discover how to make the most of this exciting marketing territory!
Image Source: Freepik
Snapchat marketing is a unique, targeted way for businesses to promote their products and services on a platform that's playful, fast-paced, and unlike other social media networks.
The key to Snapchat marketing lies in embracing animated social media videos, real-time videos, animated GIFs, emojis, doodles, and spontaneous content—because that's what works best on Snapchat.
But here's the catch—Snapchat isn’t for everyone.
It’s not a place for formal, polished messaging. In fact, that can come off as boring. So, if you're not ready to loosen up, have fun, and experiment with your digital marketing, Snapchat marketing might not be the right choice for you yet.
However, if you're open to getting playful with your content, Snapchat could be a great fit!
Before jumping into this social media marketing, though, you might wonder about its current state and relevance. So, let’s explore that in the next section.
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Snapchat marketing is growing fast thanks to the new features, ad tools, and rapidly increasing user base.
Here are some of the latest trends and statistics you should know to grasp the current landscape of Snapchat marketing:
In Q2 2024, the number of active advertisers on Snapchat doubled year-over-year. This highlights how more brands are turning to Snapchat to reach younger audiences.
Snapchat’s latest updates have boosted ad results–
Over 90% of users share videos, and 87% of marketers use video in their ad campaigns, proving Snapchat’s visual-first approach works.
AR ads on Snapchat are becoming big. Campaigns that are using AR alongside video ads are driving 1.6x higher ad awareness and 5x more attention than standard video ads.
Image Source: Squeeze Growth
Apart from making your brand feel human and building trust around it, here are some other compelling benefits Snapchat marketing offers:
Many big brands are promoting their products through humorous Snapchat ads, videos, fun filters, and engaging stories.
With 432 million daily active users worldwide, Snapchat is a fantastic platform to reach a broad audience.
The temporary nature of Snaps creates urgency. You can use this to your advantage by showcasing limited-time offers, special events, or personalized content.
This way you’ll motivate the snapchatters to engage, visit your brand, and ultimately make purchases.
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Snapchat reaches an impressive 90% of the global population aged 13-24 and 75% of those aged 13-34 across more than 25 countries. This makes it a prime platform for targeting Millennials, Gen Z, and the increasingly influential Gen Alpha.
If your target audience includes these age groups, Snapchat is the perfect place to market.
Snapchat is perfect for marketers organizing events or wanting to showcase their company culture.
With its customizable geofilters, you create unique filters for attendees, driving engagement as people share their experiences.
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While many successful e-commerce businesses have already claimed their space on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest, most haven't ventured into Snapchat yet. This means there's less competition and a fantastic opportunity for you to shine!
Using Snapchat marketing, you can establish yourself on this platform, stand out, and connect with an audience eager for fresh content and new experiences.
Animated explainer videos are a must-have for B2B and B2C brands wanting to engage their audience on Snapchat. Here are five solid reasons you should add them to your Snapchat marketing strategy-
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Explainer videos are perfect for grabbing attention and keeping viewers hooked. Since Snapchat's audience is mostly younger, using fun 2D or 3D animations in your videos can make them even more appealing.
This crowd loves creative visuals, so animations can help you keep them watching till the very end. As a result of all this, you’ll see increased engagement in your Snapchat marketing campaign.
If you want to see a boost in your other social platforms as well, check out our blog covering 12 Tips to Improve Social Media Following and Engagement.
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Explainer videos are great at breaking down complicated information into simple, easy-to-understand content.
In Snapchat’s fast-paced environment, these videos help users quickly grasp what your product or service is about.
You can add strong CTAs at the end of your explainer videos to seamlessly guide viewers from watching to taking action—whether that’s visiting a landing page or buying a product. This can turn engagement into real results.
Snapchat thrives on authenticity, and explainer videos help brands show their human side. By sharing behind-the-scenes moments or personal stories, you can build trust and create stronger connections with your audience.
These compelling benefits make explainer videos an essential addition to your social media strategy.
Once you have your Snapchat business account and know what your marketing goal is, follow these steps to create an effective Snapchat marketing strategy–
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Before starting your marketing efforts, it's important to dive deep into Snapchat's audience. Learn about their interests, behaviors, and most importantly, their age. This platform predominantly has a user base under 35, so you’ll need to create content that appeals to this age group.
Video content is a very powerful marketing tool on Snapchat. You can use videos to tell your brand’s story and stay authentic.
With effective video marketing, you can help humanize your brand, build connections with your audience, and convert potential customers into actual customers.
Here are different video types you can experiment with on your Snapchat account:
Apart from videos, you should also try out custom filters. They are a fun and easy way to engage users. Create a filter that stands out, is memorable, and reflects your brand’s personality.
Hashtags may not be as popular on Snapchat as on other platforms, but they’re still useful for helping new people discover your content. They can connect you with like-minded businesses, creating opportunities for future partnerships.
Source: AgencyAnalytics
You should use Snapchat’s analytics tools to see what’s working for you and what’s not.
If your audience engages more with certain types of content, post more of that. Keeping an eye on engagement will help you adjust your strategy and make more social media viral videos.
Now that you're familiar with the steps to create a Snapchat marketing strategy, let’s dive into some best practices to make your efforts even more effective.
Snapchat thrives on creativity, so your ads need to be visually dynamic and eye-catching to capture users' attention.
Here are some of the best practices for Snapchat marketing to create engaging campaigns-
Use these practices and you’ll start seeing more engagement and conversions.
To be honest, Snapchat isn’t the right fit for every brand. It’s not as popular as some other social media platforms, but if your target audience includes younger consumers, it’s definitely for you.
Brands that thrive on Snapchat are those that have a youthful vibe and focus on authenticity, creativity, and a sense of “realness.” If your brand has a very formal image or if your marketing efforts are bogged down by red tape, you might want to explore other platforms.
Typically, lifestyle brands, fashion labels, beauty products, entertainment companies, and tech brands find success on Snapchat. However, the platform also offers opportunities for any brand willing to use its features to create engaging, immersive content that resonates with users.
Some top brands marketing on Snapchat include Google, Taco Bell, SHEIN, Acura, Mashable, and Bumble.
As Snapchat keeps growing and more users engage with visual content, incorporating social media videos into your Snapchat marketing strategy is a must!
To make it work, you need to create relevant video ads with the right specs and placements that resonate with your audience. Here’s a break down the main Snapchat video ad placements you should consider—
Single Video placements are full-screen ads that pop up between user-generated content, Publisher Stories, and Our Stories. These ads are excellent for boosting brand awareness and engagement. You can even add attachments to your videos that encourage viewers to take action, like visiting your website or downloading your app.
Since these ads take up the entire screen, you’ll have your viewer's full attention. You just need to remember that viewers can skip your ad and make sure to hook them in the first few seconds!
Ad Specs:
A pro tip is to avoid placing logos or text in the top and bottom 150 pixels, as app elements might cover them.
You can place Story Ads in the Discover tab, where users can find new content. These ads consist of a branded tile that opens a collection of 1 to 10 videos or images, creating a narrative experience for viewers. This format is perfect for telling a story while showcasing your product.
Ad Specs:
For an extra boost, try user-generated content (UGC) videos— have people speak directly to the camera or repurpose Single Video ads as part of a Story Ad. You can also use dynamic styles like stop-motion or animated videos to capture attention!
These commercials appear between Snap’s curated content and games, reaching a broad audience.
Ad Specs:
Commercials allow for attachments like Web Views and AR Lenses. They’re unique because they are non-skippable, giving you a chance to tell a story in a more engaging way. Keep your message simple and aim to grab attention in the first five seconds.
By understanding these ad specs and placement types, you can create effective Snapchat marketing campaigns that resonate with your audience!
It's important to track key performance indicators (KPIs) to gain insight into your user engagement, reach, and overall impact. Measuring them can tell you if your campaign is successful or not.
Here are some simple and effective ways you can measure the impact of your Snapchat marketing campaigns–
Snapchat comes with built-in tools to help you monitor your campaign. Analyze these Key metrics with the tools:
Understanding how your ads drive action is key. Focus on these:
Look at how users engage with your content:
Track how far your content goes:
To dive deeper into your data, consider third-party analytics tools. They can provide more detailed insights than Snapchat’s native analytics.
By keeping an eye on these metrics, you can adjust your strategy and get the most out of your Snapchat marketing campaigns.
And that wraps up our exploration of marketing on a platform that many brands are still hesitant to dive into—Snapchat.
It is home to a massive and vibrant young user base. This is a user base that is more than likely to make a purchase after watching a video ad.
This is an untapped opportunity that you must capitalize on. Start by getting to know your audience, then craft an effective Snapchat marketing strategy using our step-by-step guide.
So, kickstart your Snapchat marketing and carve out a space in a marketplace that’s not yet crowded with competitors.