How Big Brands Are Using Snapchat to Reach New Customers

Ever since its inception back in 2011, Snapchat has cemented its place as the top go-to social media platform for Gen Zs. After having edged out competition such as Vine, and had to deal with new entrants such as Facebook and Instagram, this addicting social media platform is perfectly suited to the under 25s. This, however, does not mean that other demographics aren’t welcome, as some millennials utilise Snapchat. It must have been doing something right, given that Facebook quickly moved to copy Snapchat’s unique appeal which is its disappearing message with a “stories” feature. There are over 174 million Snapchat users that use the app on a daily basis.

What Is the Target Demographic for Your Business?

Given that Gen Zs have flocked to Snapchat, brands and marketers targeting them have also done the same. Brands are always searching for ways to leverage the app to reach its customers. It is particularly telling that 24% of adults are on Snapchat and 77% of college students with a buying power of $30 billion use the app. To be able to tap into the growing market that Snapchat offers requires intimate knowledge of the platform and the demographic it attracts. Leveraging this audience will require setting up a successful strategy. Next week the team at adQuadrant will host a virtual masterclass where just about anyone is able to learn how to leverage Snapchat using proven ad strategies. The virtual masterclass will be held on the 25th of August and you can learn more about it here. For brands interested in including Snapchat into their marketing strategy, here are a few examples of big brands utilising the platform for their marketing.

Brands that are using Snapchat for Marketing:

Taco Bell

Taco Bell is perhaps one of the earliest adopters using Snapchat for marketing. Taco Bell, typically uses its funny Snapchat channel to promote its menu items which can engage young social media users. It was actually one of the first brands to make use of on-demand geofilters. One of its campaigns involved creating a filter for Cinco de Mayo. The filter got over 224 million views in a single day.

Birchbox

Birchbox is perhaps one of the best Snapchat brands. As a subscription service for fashion and beauty brands, Birchbox aims to engage Snapchat users by requesting that they interact with the company’s stories either by taking a screenshot or taking a picture with its products. The brand also uses Snapchat Stories to welcome in new products, providing its audience with an inside look into industry events.

Grubhub

GrubHub has been a leader in the world of Snapchat marketing and it has made the social media app a cornerstone of its digital marketing strategy. GrubHub creates strategies that increase audience interaction, enabling its followers to be aware of new promotions and deals via its Snapchat Snaps. It also does this by encouraging Snapchat users to send items in for an opportunity to win free food.

Strong Snapchat Marketing Strategy

If you have not made Snapchat an integral part of your brand’s social media marketing strategy, you are likely limiting your audience reach. In the space of a year the monthly active users on Snapchat doubled from just 100 million to 200 million, which showed a higher faster growth rate that Instagram, Twitter or Facebook. Given that an estimated 75% of all Snapchat users are active on the app daily, according to Statista, the potential target audience for any brand is too huge to not consider.

Below are a few ways you can use the app for your brand:

Run exclusive Snapchat promotions

With this strategy, your brand must have already grown a following on Snapchat, given that the more followers you have, the larger your potential reach can be. To do this, you will have to post content regularly, including the occasional coupon code or discount. The primary aim of this strategy is to convert your followership into sales. It also serves a secondary purpose, which is to ensure you gain more followers. This can be done by advertising snapchat promotion on your brand’s other social media accounts which can cause people to follow your snapchat in order to take advantage of any future promotions.

Daily Snaps

While this might not make as much of an impact on your brand’s bottom line, it has the opportunity to increase your visibility. This is particularly useful when a new unique product is being launched or your brand is just starting out. Daily Snaps are important for a host of reasons, for one it can help cement your brand in the minds of your followers ensuring that it remains at the forefront of your follower’s mind. It can also help to increase the value your Snapchat has, given that followers would be interested to see simply more than just discount codes, promotions and professionally shot product images.
You can move to include stills and clips from behind the scenes, showcasing what your brand’s culture is or even enlightening your followers on your products and how they can be utilised.