Predictions 2023: Snapchat
Snapchat’s personalizable nature and cutting edge tech stack allows advertisers to connect with audiences directly, and in an authentic way.
As part of our Predictions 2023 Series, Mina Salami (Head of Strategic Partnerships, Rise Interactive) discussed all things Snapchat with Nadav Geft (Global Agency Development, Snapchat), and what they see on the horizon for the platform in 2023.
Want to know more? Watch the full interview below, or get the facts in our recap!
Geft started with the key stats that introduce just how impressive Snapchat’s growth was in the past year alone:
According to Geft, this can be attributed to the success in how their audiences interact with the platform. “Our growth is best reflected in where our audience is engaging across our five core tabs: Camera, Chat, Map, Discover and Spotlight categories,” said Geft. Here are some fast facts:
- The Camera — and Augmented Reality (AR) in particular — draws in over 250m daily Snapchatters.
- Discover saw over 40% YoY increase in average daily time spent for those 35 and older engaging with shows and publisher content.
- Spotlight highlights the most entertaining Snaps created by the Snapchat community and provides a place to share user generated content broadly on Snapchat: It saw a 55% YoY increase in total time spent in Q3.
- Snap Map is now one of the most used digital maps in the world, with over 300m monthly users. This represents an almost 100% YoY increase in Place opens in Q3.
These core offerings on Snapchat are only part of the picture, however. Snapchat also boasts an audience that has two unique traits:
- Unduplicated reach. Of their 363m daily active users, nearly half of all Snapchatters are not active on TikTok, YouTube or Twitter, while one third cannot be found on Instagram.
- Privacy-first design that creates happy users. Snapchatters almost exclusively use Snapchat to connect with close friends and family, leading to a sense of security and contentment over competitor platforms.
“I have to say, I really loved your outline of the emotional influence, and how that links to privacy and how your users are happy. It’s honestly very welcoming to hear,” said Salami. “Do you think there’s a connection between that and advertising effectiveness on the platform?”
“Absolutely. There is certainly a halo effect where that feeling of happiness and safety permeates or extends to the ad experience on Snapchat,” replied Geft. In fact, Snapchat yields 1.6x greater engagement scores versus other platforms tested.
2022: Immersive Experiences Yielded Mighty Results
Salami was curious to dive into the advertising side, and to hear more about what Snapchat learned from their 2022 approaches in regards to empowering advertisers. “Were there certain verticals that saw growth or success this past year on Snap?”
“Snapchat is a true full funnel solution, so we really do see success everywhere across all major categories. One area in particular, though, where we’ve seen strong growth is in AR, unsurprisingly,” Geft replied. While there are certain verticals (like beauty, footwear, apparel, or home goods) that are high fit categories for AR try-on experiences, Snapchat really sees this kind of advertising being a fit for everyone.
Beyond this, Snapchat sees great success across commerce at large on the platform. In fact, over half of its revenue comes from advertisers looking to drive direct response (DR) action. Geft attributes this to the fact that Snapchat creates a uniquely organic commerce experience through:
- Full screen, immersive ad formats that are designed to drive action
- An audience that has fully adapted to commerce on their phone
This audience-centric approach has some astounding results: 74% of Snapchat’s AR audience reports using commerce — and that interacting with products that rely on the AR experience — leads to a 94% higher purchase conversion rate. It’s no wonder why Snapchat’s shart of DR continues to grow for the business.
Considering Snapchat’s immersive advertising experiences, Geft noted that Snapchat’s most successful product launch in 2022 was Catalog Powered Shopping Lenses, which allow brands to marry the scalability of a product catalog with the personalization of AR try-on.
“They work, which Rise knows that better than anyone. Ulta Beauty was an early adopter, and using these lenses saw a $6m lift in incremental sales,” recalled Geft. It’s clear from the data that brands need to start playing in the AR space.
2023 Will Bring More AR and More Performance Advertising
With 2022 learnings under their belt, Snapchat has two big bets for 2023:
- The continued growth of AR and the community using it
- Doubling down on performance advertising
2022 was a true turning point for AR becoming a real utility for many consumers, and Snapchat is committed to driving value through AR, especially in expanding the in-store experience to more places.
“Looking at how consumers have been expressing their want to have a more omnichannel shopping experience, or an immersive try-on — having that technology right in the app is very helpful,” added Salami.
So, what should advertisers (who have not yet activated on Snapchat) know about Snapchat? Geft outlined the most important things that advertisers should consider, and take advantage of:
- A large, growing and diverse audience that feels happy and safe — a feel-good effect that then extends to brands and the effectiveness of their advertising.
- Ad products that are immersive, full-screen, and allow advertisers to engage their audience throughout the funnel, all while being equipped with unique features like AR.
- A focus on driving performance for advertisers, which means a focus on bringing the right tools to the table to enable a sturdy measurement framework.
When Salami asked for a sneak peek into Snapchat’s Product Roadmap for 2023, Geft spoke to their plans for continued innovation and sense of community. Snapchat will:
Ready, Set, Activate!
Snapchat’s privacy-first, audience-centric platform allows brands to directly interact with their audiences and drive stellar conversion, all while implementing fun yet cutting-edge technology like AR that personalizes the experience. Knowing how your brand can leverage the powerful reach and engagement of Snapchat’s platform will level up your paid social strategies in 2023 and beyond.
Ready to activate on Snapchat and authentically reach your target audiences? Contact us today!