As a consultant dedicated to helping small and medium businesses thrive, I‘m always exploring innovative and cost-effective marketing strategies. One platform full of potential that is often overlooked? Snapchat.
While sometimes dismissed as just another social media fad for teens, Snapchat now boasts over 90 million daily active users with nearly 40% being 25-34 years old. And users spend an average of over 30 minutes per day on the platform – presenting a huge opportunity for small business marketing and engagement.
A key Snapchat feature that sets it apart is the signature timed element. Unlike other social platforms, snaps and stories will automatically delete after preset durations, creating a sense of urgency and immediacy for your audience.
Snapstreaks: Driving Ongoing Engagement
One unique Snapchat feature that small businesses should consider is Snapstreaks – shown via a little fire emoji indicating days of unbroken snap exchanges between users. Snapstreaks directly reward ongoing interactions – a key metric of follower loyalty and engagement.
Brands can aim to build Snapstreaks by consistently chatting or exchanging branded content with fans and followers. The automatic deletion of older snaps helps keep your messaging seeming fresh, authentic and in-the-moment.
Over 70% of Snapchat users report maintaining one or more Snapstreaks. Knowing your followers care about their Snapstreaks allows you to integrate streak-focused contests, exclusives and promotions into your marketing approach.
Leveraging Snapchat Stories
Stories represent an excellent opportunity for small businesses looking for a way to frequently update followers with content that conveys personality and behind-the-scenes access.
According to analytics, the optimal Snapchat Story length is about 2 minutes. This provides adequate time to showcase products, services or events without losing viewer attention. Posting at a frequency of 2-3 times per day keeps content fresh. Successful Snapchat Stories often feature employee takeovers, interactive polls and contests, product reveals and UGC content highlighting delighted customers.
Always include a strong CTA guiding viewers to swipe up and take action via your website, online shop or special landing page. Offers should have a sense of immediacy and exclusivity given the 24 hour story expiration.
Fine-Tuning Timer Duration
Snapchat‘s self-deleting concept hugely impacts overall impressions and engagement rates. Findings show snaps with shorter 1-5 second durations sees up to 30% higher completion views than 10 second snaps. However, longer view windows provide more time for branding.
Posting multiple pieces of content in a Snapchat Story allows you to use a blended approach – with hook-style opening 1 second snaps driving viewers through to 5+ second snaps placed mid-Story showcasing products, services or special offers.
For Stories, refresh content daily even if originally set to 24 hour durations. This keeps you prominently displayed among updated Stories for higher viewership.
Success Stories
Youth-focused online jewelry boutique Vanishing Inc saw over 11K contest entries after running a branded geofilter Snapchat campaign with incentives to drive users from Snapchat to their Instagram and website.
Outdoor apparel brand Cub and Cleo increased sales by 8.5x within a week by having influencers post coupon codes on Snapchat redeemable for discounts on their online store. They integrated a sense of urgency by limiting codes to first 250 uses per influencer.
Recommendations and Takeaways
For one-on-one messaging, use snaps expiring within 24 hours to maintain active back-and-forth engagement with fans and followers seeking exclusives. Promote channels for direct messaging and notifications.
Build hype and awareness using Stories with a 24 hour duration to maximize reach before refreshing content completely. Geofilters and lenses keep branding fun while direct links to sites drive conversions.
Choose strategic influencer partners and craft creative promotions optimized for Snapchat‘s unique delete-after-viewing format. Add gamification by incorporating Snapstreak mechanics and urgency via time-bound coupon codes or contest entries.
Snapchat provides a compelling channel for cost-effective marketing for startups and small businesses ready to think outside the box. By fine-tuning content approach to align with Snapchat‘s ephemeral nature, brands can drive meaningful impressions, engagement and conversions.
