Sunday, November 17, 2013

Advertising on Snapchat

Many advertisers are wary of Snapchat, and for good reason.  Snapchat messages disappear after 10 seconds, which means that advertisers have a very short window to make an impact on potential customers.  Snapchat collects basic user information during signup, but is unable to track and/or gather any additional information that advertisers might find actionable.  Additionally, the company has been reluctant to disclose the number of unique users, which makes it difficult for advertisers to determine its reach.

With all of that said, there have been many suggestions of ways that advertisers might be able to find success on Snapchat.  One that is worth mentioning involves "stories", which can be stitched together by a user that has received multiple snapchats from another user.  These "stories" remain visible for 24 hours, and can be made visible to other Snapchat users.

Stories could provide advertisers with a creative way to reach a much-sought-after demographic (teenagers) during major publicity pushes.  Snaps could be sent to users over the course of the day, and could be weaved together to create a story that is engaging, creative, and shareable.

This is just one way that advertisers could use Snapchat as a vehicle for the delivery of ads to users.  More than 350 million "snaps" are sent, daily, which presents an advertising opportunity that cannot be ignored.  The challenge will be to create content that will make a lasting impression - that will eventually impact purchasing behavior - and to weave this in without annoying/alienating users.  With only 10 seconds to make this impression, advertisers have their work cut out for them!

No comments: