With an ever-evolving social media ecosystem, the key to successful brand advertising lies in finding platforms that offer unique opportunities to connect with users on a more personal level.

Among these platforms, one stands out for its distinctive approach to communication and its ability to captivate the attention of millions of users worldwide – Snapchat.

Snapchat, initially known for its disappearing photo and video messages, has rapidly transformed into a dynamic multimedia platform, evolving far beyond its humble beginnings. It has redefined how we communicate, share stories, and connect with friends and family. 

Yet, thought to be a platform for a very young audience, its true potential as a powerful advertising tool is often overlooked – so we’re here to tell you why it’s worth it.

A captive and diverse audience

With over 500 million monthly active users worldwide, Snapchat boasts an expansive and diverse audience. Its users span across various demographics, including the highly coveted millennial and Gen Z population. In fact, Snapchat users range from 13 to 35 years old and beyond, reaching an impressive 75% of millennials and Gen Z.

So why is this a great audience to reach? Ad recall for Gen Z on Snapchat is higher than any other generational cohort, even though these users spend less time watching each ad. Over half (55%) of Gen Z can recall an ad they watched for less than 2 seconds, helping your brand stay in the forefront of a huge chunk of minds.

AR also can take your brand to new heights. Snapchat users are also 1.5x more likely than non-Snapchatters to gravitate towards immersive video and mobile games, including AR experiences, meaning a custom filter or AR game for your brand could be a perfect fit for the platform and its users.

Snapchat offers a remarkable opportunity for brands to tap into the vibrant energy of these younger generations who are known for their purchasing power and propensity for digital engagement.

Unparalleled targeting abilities

Snapchat’s advanced targeting capabilities allow brands to reach their ideal customers with pinpoint accuracy. Leveraging a wealth of user data, including location, interests, behaviour, and demographics, brands can tailor their campaigns to reach specific segments of the Snapchat user base.

In the UK, Snapchat has 22.2million active users. You can refine these through custom audiences, retargeting audiences and even use your own data to target users such as your Snapchat customer lists or even lookalike audiences based on your existing customers.

And with Snap having its very own ‘Maps’ feature, location targeting has never been more creative. More than 300 million Snapchat users engage monthly with the Snap Map, which highlights nearby stories and business listings, known as ‘spotlighting’. Last year, Snap saw a 55% increase in time spent watching Spotlight content.

Just think, got a large scale promotion coming up? Encourage your audience to upload a snap story when they are at your event and populate your snap map location with a load of free advertising!

With the ability to re-engage with users who have already viewed your website, interacted with your ads, downloaded the app or purchased in the past, Snap is a platform that shouldn’t be dismissed in reaching specific audiences.

Is it cost effective?

Snapchat advertising can be cost-effective for businesses with different budget sizes. The platform offers flexible budgeting options, allowing you to set daily or lifetime campaign budgets.

Snapchat utilises an auction system known as goal-based bidding to determine charges based on 1,000 impressions (eCPM). With this approach, you have the ability to establish a maximum price for each instance when a viewer engages in the specific action your advertisement is optimised for.

As you’re in control of the cost, you can tweak your budget to optimise ROI. Snapchat may be ideal for you if you’re on a tight budget, and we’re pretty good with numbers. Here at Arke, our average CPM for Snap is £1.41, with Snap’s average cost per thousand impressions being  £2.32!. Not to show off but we also champion the cash with other channels too, including an average CPM for Facebook of £1.18, £1.57 for Instagram and £1.70 for TikTok!

You can actually launch ads on the platform for as little as £3.94 a day. When you set up your ad, you can see estimates of reach and results based on how much you want to spend. Then adjust as you see fit. Your ads will be shown to people who are most likely to respond to them.

So, how can I utilise my Ad Creative?

Snapchat has the potential to reach over 557m people through paid advertising, so it’s important to optimise your ad creative to stop the audience in their tracks. Recently, we spoke about the rise of VR, and how advertisers may be able to utilise this in their advertising. But what about the widely available augmented reality side of advertising that already exists?

Snapchat Lenses present an impactful and unforgettable method to engage with a vast audience through augmented reality (AR). A simple tap can transport Snapchatters into your brand. Lenses deliver more than just an impression; they provide “play time,” as users spend time interacting with your dynamic ad. Snapchat users are 1.5x more likely to interact with mobile games, including AR experiences. 

In fact, 63% of Snapchat’s daily active users are using Augmented Reality (AR) filters. Whether you’re a makeup brand letting customers preview a new makeup look or a gaming brand bringing a snapshot of your app to snapchat, sponsored lenses are a great feature to encourage mass engagement from your audience.

But don’t forget about your other ad formats. Snap also offers single image and video ad formats, perfectly optimised for mobile view. Keeping your ads between 5-6 seconds drive the best performance, according to platform data. Snap also recommends that ads that feature UGC (user-generated content), with Snapchat-inspired features, while speaking to the camera, can be significantly stronger at driving view-through.

In conclusion, Snapchat is not a platform to be dismissed when it comes to your advertising. In an ever-evolving digital landscape, Snapchat has emerged as a powerful platform that enables brands to break through the clutter and connect with their target audience in new and exciting ways.

At Arke, we can really harness the power of Snapchat for your brand. If you are ready to explore the possibilities of snap, get in touch with an Arkenaut today.