Snapchat Marketing 101 — What You Need To Know

Blue Waves Dave
5 min readApr 28, 2021
Snapchat Marketing 101 — What You Need To Know
Snapchat Marketing 101 — What You Need To Know

Snapchat is fun, but have you ever used it for marketing? The number of social media platforms used for marketing is increasing. While some people are satisfied with Facebook marketing, you should look for other ways to market your products and services. One of those ways is Snapchat marketing.

You might find the interface of this app less intuitive, but after a while, you’ll get used to it. Plus, when you get great results from your campaigns, it’s hard to complain about clunky interfaces.

I’m going to give you details about Snapchat marketing in this guide. Then, you’ll be all set to grow your business there.

Like some other marketers, you don’t have to be intimidated by this platform. I’ll show you how to use it, connect with the users and the types of content that work.

Ready? Let’s dive in.

Why Use Snapchat Marketing?

First, let’s talk about reasons to market on this platform and demographics.

Some people hesitate to add Snapchat to their marketing arsenal. That’s why I’ve added this section. I know that you might be working on other social media like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and TikTok. But Snapchat is important as well.

Snapchat can help you connect with your audiences in new ways. Let me clear it with some statistics:

  • There are 347.3 million monthly active Snapchat users worldwide.
  • The platform boasts 10 billion daily video views.
  • Snapchat was the most important social network for 34 percent of U.S. teens. This beats the popular platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok. This shows how much important Snapchat is if your business is targeted towards younger audiences.
  • The platform has the potential of reaching 11% of the US’s entire population.
  • More 18–24 year-olds use Snapchat than Instagram.
  • Almost 8 out of 10 Snapchat users are online shoppers.

Statistics are enough to convince someone to start using Snapchat.

But let’s discuss it in terms of business.

  • Less competition: Facebook, Instagram, and recently, Pinterest are crowded with brands. I talk about these marketing channels as well because they are important. But let’s take a different route today. Let’s walk on the path no one is going. Even though the platform is getting famous, luckily, a fewer number of brands are coming on Snapchat. So it’s a great platform to stand out from the crowd.
  • It’s different: With the new type of content and audience, you can engage people in new ways. It will be a break from the normal sales letters. It can be a difficult thing to do, but if you are good at Instagram Stories, you’ll do great here. Use this platform to showcase the fun side of your business. However, you don’t want to change your brand personality.
  • It gives you a chance to reach a new audience: You can try to showcase your products that customers just don’t connect with on other social media platforms. For example, CNN found that more young audiences connected on Snapchat with them than on their website. The reason is that this platform has a high user engagement and activity.

Before you go all-in on Snapchat, you should make sure this platform is for you. Looking at the demographic can help you figure it out.

Snapchat Marketing
Snapchat Marketing

Who Is On Snapchat?

Let’s start with this: if people under 40 are your main audience, Snapchat is definitely for you.

More than 60% of people from the age group 13–34 with smartphones use Snapchat. Among this percentage, 71% are under the age of 25. 7 out of 10 Snapchat users are women. Only 2% of all Snapchat users are 55 and over.

These statistics clearly show that the trend is younger audience and female. If your entire audience is over the age of 55, your chances of getting good business are low. But hey, you gotta give it a try.​

Tried-And-True Strategies

Offer Coupon Codes

Like in other marketing channels, the old-school coupon codes work on this platform as well. But you want to do it with a twist. You can learn from these examples.

Sixteen Handles asked their audience to send Snaps of themselves with the frozen yogurt. In exchange, they promised them a coupon code that could be used in-store.

Another brand, Grubhub, also used this technique. They used the urgent nature of the platform to offer discounts.

See how coupon codes fit into your business and use them for getting more audience.

Connect With Influencers

This platform is filled with social media influencers. So you want to utilize their outreach. You might have just created your account on Snapchat, but they have gathered thousands of followers over the years.

Audi uses the power of Snapchat influencers well. The brand used ABC’s show “Pretty Little Liars” to connect to a young, female audience. Audi started posting content about this show that led to a growth in their amount of followers. The campaign was very beneficial for them.

Build Anticipation

Create hype about any future event at your company. Do you want to promote a new product? First, create hype. Use copy like “we’ve got a great surprise in store.” You’ll wonder how much it increases your sales.​

Final Words On Snapchat Marketing

If someone says that you shouldn’t market on Snapchat, they don’t have any clue about social media marketing. The 347 million monthly active users on Snapchat are here to prove them wrong.

One thing that can deter you from Snapchat marketing is the fact that it has a young audience. But even if your main audience is older, you should give the platform a try first.

What are your views on Snapchat? Are you one of those people who think that it will be dead soon? Let me know in the comments below.

--

--