Is your business on Snapchat yet?

Many online retailers initially feel intimidated by Snapchat since it’s so different from other social media sites. However with nearly 200 million daily users (which is more users than Twitter), over 75% of which are online shoppers, Snapchat campaigns can be a valuable addition to your digital marketing strategy. This is especially true if you target a younger demographic, as 78% of 18-24 year-olds are regular Snapchat users.

One of the major advantages to marketing on Snapchat is that fewer brands are making use of the platform. So, if you’re one of the few who is optimizing the unique features of the platform, you can really stand out from your competition. Also, because Snapchat is so different, it’s an opportunity to reach a new audience in a new way.

If you want to get started, here are four best practices to improve your digital marketing using Snapchat in 2020:

1. Make Use of Snapchat’s Distinctive Features

You want authentic, engaging visual content for Snapchat. This includes images taken on your smartphone (ideally photos in portrait format, as this is the only way to view them on the platform). You can also share videos that are up to just 10 seconds long.

Both photos and videos on Snapchat can be edited using drawing tools, emojis, and the addition of text – it’s not just imagery, but your commentary on that imagery too.

When you’re creating a profile for your business brand, you’ll want to be sure to change your settings to public so that “Everyone” (not just “My friends”) can view your posts and contact you.

Now – think about how your ideal customers can create Snapchat posts that engage with your brand. For example, many successful digital marketing campaigns give out special coupon codes in exchange for users sharing snaps of themselves using the brand’s product.

Snapchat is all about transparency. Unlike Instagram where many users create highly edited and filtered feeds, Snapchat is built around quick, casual, fun shots done on your phone.

It’s a good idea to use a mix of both photos and short videos for novelty and variety. Also, now that Snapchat automatically plays the next post in a sequence, you can build a narrative across multiple posts, which can be useful when you want to tell a longer story but can only do so in quick bites.

3. Experiment with Content in Private Snaps

Snapchat can be an excellent venue to experiment with original and unique content. Because the platform is different, you might want to test out content with just a small portion of your audience – one of the best ways to do this is to use private snaps.

You can A/B test different content ideas with small groups of users, sending private snaps and monitoring engagement. It can be a great way to get sizable audience feedback before scaling up to a wider audience.

4. Create a Sense of Urgency

Urgency is a good practice for marketing campaigns generally, but is particularly effective on Snapchat where posts disappear so quickly.

Special discounts, flash sales, and exclusive limited-time only content are a natural fit with the user experience on Snapchat. Your posts can be especially effective when they drive engagement on the platform itself – for example, recently a business significantly boosted brand awareness by offering a giveaway to 10 random snaps by end of day.

Snapchat for Business

One of Snapchat’s latest initiatives is a game-changer for businesses: Snapchat Ads Campaigns. Businesses can now create targeted ads utilizing images, video, and messaging to become part of the everyday conversations that users enjoy on the app.

With Snapchat’s Ads Manager, you can select an objective (awareness, conversion, or consideration); define an audience, budget, and campaign duration; and upload/design your media-rich ads, and in just a few minutes your highly targeted marketing campaign can be up and running. You’ll also get real-time reporting so you can test and optimize different campaigns.

Some companies have reported as much a 3X return on advertising spend using Snapchat ads. Or, check out more success stories from the platform.

JXT Group’s Founder & CEO, Menachem Ani, observes, “Our initial campaigns using Snapchat have been very promising. I’m excited to see how this new marketing possibility will help drive revenue and brand performance for our clients.”

Curious about incorporating Snapchat as part of your digital marketing strategy? Now is a great time, Snapchat is currently giving away $1,000 of advertising to new advertisers. To learn more about the $1,000 of advertising or cutting-edge social media marketing for your business, give our JXT Group experts a call at 718-690-7302. Or use our contact form to submit questions online.