Can Snapchat really help me Build my Brand?

So anybody following my social channels lately will have seen me jumping on the Snapchat bandwagon and I have been encouraging my clients to do the same ever since.

The biggest question I get though when I bring it up is:

How will it help me find new customers?

and my answer… it won’t!

Snapchat is not a tool for growing your numbers and reaching new people.

There is absolutely no way to discover new users within the app and there are little sharing features for virality.

You can’t even pay Snapchat to promote your account!

In fact, the only organic way to build your Snapchat audience is by siphoning off followers from your existing channels.

So why have so many marketers lost their heads and suddenly become so bullish on this platform when on paper it sounds ludicrous?

That’s simple:

There are over 100 million active users, 86% of which are 13–37 year olds and more than 8 billion daily video views.

With this much attention it would be ridiculous not to get excited about the potential for brands.

These are deeply engaged eyeballs too, as when you watch somebody's snap, you give it 100% of your attention. There are no pop-ups or competing visuals to distract from the story. It’s an immersive full screen experience.

But what good is that to me if it can’t help me find new customers?

You’ve probably heard the old adage that it cost’s five times as much to attract a new customer, than to keep an existing one.

Well this is what should make Snapchat a no-brainer for brands.

It’s a ridiculously effect channel to build what feels like a one to one relationship with your customers and form a deep connection.

Make them part of your tribe with authentic, engaging content and watch your retention rates and positive word of mouth sore!

So what’s the attraction? I thought it was just for teens sending dick-pics.

According to Snapchat there are 8x as many 13–34 year-olds in the U.S that would prefer to watch Live Stories vs. TV for similar events.

Having myself consumed both London & New York Fashion Week this year through Snapchat I can easily see how this claim stacks up.

Not only was I able to watch Snapchat’s curated Live Stories but I also followed influencers attending the events and got to see my favourite shows played out from different perspectives.

I was with the models and stylists backstage before joining the fashionistas in the front row, hopping between accounts to get the best views.

Then once the shows closed they brought me along to the after party where they excitedly announce that A-Trak was DJing. So I hopped across to his Snapchat and joined him behind the decks!

How insane is that!

Just read that last part again and let the potential of this platform sink in for a minute!

I hope this paints the picture of how valuable and immersive an experience Snapchat can be, and best of all it’s free to execute. All it will cost you is your time & creativity.

For 13–34 year-olds in 2016, Snapchat is the new TV. What will be showing on your brands channel?

Thanks for reading!
If you enjoyed this then please give it a heart below. I would really appreciate it and it helps other people to see this story!

And of course, you can follow me on Snapchat…