The Wall Street Journal reported last month that 14 percent of U.S. smartphone users over age 35 now are on Snapchat. With a rapidly growing user base, the four-year-old app is more than ready for mainstream adoption.
Younger fans of the app likely are cringing at the thought of sharing this space with their older counterparts. But, this is good news for those in the PR, marketing and branding world who are looking for new ways to reach their audience.
One of those ways is with Snapchat Stories.
When you take a snap, you either can send it to select friends that follow your account or add it to “My Stories.” When you opt for the latter, you’re adding content to a longer thread for your audience to view over 24 hours. Individual photos and video, each up to 10 seconds long, can be pieced together in sequential order to form a multi-part story.
Stories offer an excellent opportunity to share quick news bites, show a spontaneous side of your brand and form more meaningful connections with your audience.
It can also be a bit intimidating.
If you want to dip your toes in the Snapchat waters and need inspiration, here are 8 ways to regularly captivate your audience and inform them about your brand.
1. Create an explainer series.
Snapchat’s fast-paced, visual nature makes it a perfect platform for an explainer series. For instance, if there’s a major news story or trend impacting your industry, break down important facts into a series of images overlaid with Snapchat captions offering context.2. Ask a trivia question.
Who doesn’t enjoy a good trivia question? Start your day by asking a true/false or multiple choice question. The question could be tied to a product you recently rolled out. Or, it could be about your brand history/culture to give viewers a better look at who you are. Build suspense by posing a question and spreading hints over a few pictures or video snaps before the answer’s big reveal.
3. Offer exclusive access.
If you’re looking to build your Snapchat following, provide something that can’t be found on other channels. Reveal the design of an upcoming product or tease out a “top secret” new project. Your Snapchat viewers will feel as though they are part of something special.
4. Poll your audience.
Remember that Snapchat started out as a messaging app; audience interactions are essential. Ask viewers to chat back a comment or send a snap that visually shows how they’re feeling about a particular subject. Because you can see who is taking screenshots of your content, you can even ask them to screenshot what they like from a series of snaps. This can help you connect with followers and find out what sort of content resonates the most.
5. Conduct quickie interviews.
Rapid fire Q&A sessions can be an exciting way to use Snapchat video. Do a quick series of questions with an influencer or brand advocate. Or pull in your staff to ask them what they’re working on, their favorite things and more.
6. Have fun with product how-tos.
Put a twist on the traditional product demo with a series of how-to snaps. The key is to tap into the experience your product creates. Make these snaps entertaining and throw in a few tips that will help customers make the most of your product.
7. Host a Snapchat takeover.
Invite a person of interest or importance to run your account for a few hours. The host could be someone from your own department, a brand ambassador or a representative of a company you’re partnering with. Already a popular activity on Instagram, takeovers can expose your audience to new content, expand your reach, and help foster community. If all goes well, you may get some fresh ideas for your own team on how/what to share going forward.
8. Bring audiences into your world.
Audiences appreciate seeing the personality of a brand — especially on Snapchat — and what better way to show it than through a personalized journey with you. Take people behind the scenes to an event you’re attending or inside your office at a team meeting. Showing the work you do (and who does it) builds credibility.
Of course, all of the above ideas can end up looking like the same stuff you publish elsewhere if you don’t do it the Snapchat way. Here are three bonus tips to prevent Stories from falling flat on Snapchat.
Push your creative boundaries: Play
around with Snapchat stickers, filters and the drawing tool. While
jokes, ironic hashtags and puns might not work for other channels, they
may be appropriate here and help you implement a more conversational or
humorous tone.
Aim for a beginning, middle and end to your story: In
a social world that’s dominated by selfies, concert videos and pictures
of food, a story that operates as a narrative has a better chance at
standing out. Multiple layers to your story can pique viewers’ curiosity
and keep them watching to the end.
Watch for what works: Snapchat
Stories not only encourage your audience to stay engaged longer, they
will also help you determine what keeps people looking at your
content. Pay attention to whether viewers dropped off after the
third part of your story or stayed the whole way through. Then apply
those observations to future content.
Because of communication channels like Snapchat, today’s audiences expect more from your brand storytelling.
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