Overview of Snapchat’s uses
Snapchat started out as a simple photo sharing tool, just like the share button on Facebook, or the retweet button on Twitter. It was as simple as that. Take the photo, share the photo. Then it implemented a messaging feature, just like Instagram did, and now it’s developed into a whole word of photo and video madness, with many big businesses such as the Cosmopolitan using it as an effective way to share news with their audience.
Snapchat is very simplistic if you strip it back. You take the photo and send it to the recipient for a maximum of 10 seconds. This means that the picture literally has to paint a thousand words. Once those 10 seconds are over, you cannot see the picture again, unless you use your one daily replay option to review that particular snap. This makes for a very concise snap, especially in the marketing world.
Snapchat’s marketing features – News
Snapchat has many marketing features, some of them being more noticeable than others, and some of them having a bigger effect than others. One in particular is the updates and news posts from companies such as IGN, Cosmopolitan, and many others. This is one of Snapchat’s most used features, and it makes for a very predominant viewing too. By allowing companies to advertise at the top of the user’s “Story” page, it allows them to be easily drawn into viewing the stories above, and I can personally agree that this does indeed work. I’ve found myself reading articles and watching videos from the catchy titles at the top of my app.
Snapchat’s marketing features – Snap Codes
Snap Codes are something that are very new to snapchat, but have been used on other apps such as Blackberry Messenger and QR Codes. It is a simple box, made up of the snapchat logo and a series of dots, which represent the user’s snapcode. These snap codes can be placed anywhere, such as on YouTube videos, on websites, and even on printed leaflets. This makes it easy for the customer or someone with an interest in the company to easily engage with it. Snap Codes are more predominantly used by YouTubers who want to grow their audiences across all social media platforms, however companies are starting to use them more.
Snapchat’s marketing features – Snaps and Videos
Now this is a simple one, but actual pictures and videos are one of the best marketing strategies a company can use on the app itself. Snaps and videos can be uploaded to the user’s story, which can be viewed by anyone who has added that account to their “Friends List”. This means that your story can be viewed by every single user on your list. And you know what’s best about stories? They can be replayed as many times as you want, for a 24 hour period. This means that a story is a very effective way to promote whatever you want on your account.
Utilizing the length of the snapchats are also very important. If you want to catch the eye of your audience, then I suggest using a 10 second snap, and adding a text caption to give the audience something to read to keep them engaged, just in case they were about to tap off your snap.
However, one quick note to make about snaps and stories. Don’t spam the user with a story that is going to take them an eternity to watch. Make sure you are concise in what you post, so that it utilizes just one or two snaps, and get the message across.
Words by Kieran Cullinan
