Social Media
Is your Tyler, Texas business socially relevant?
In the world of digital marketing, there are obvious giants of social media that have not only changed how we interact with each other today but have become major cornerstones of the internet itself. Social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest have their own unique spin on the news feed, all serving huge audiences in different ways and becoming extremely successful by doing so. Snapchat is one such network that has positioned 
itself to be the next social juggernaut, with millions of people (including the White House) within their user base that’s growing rapidly just a few short years.
If I’m being honest, I didn’t get the hype when I first downloaded the app. I thought the user interface was confusing, the approach seemed childish, and it didn’t make sense to communicate with people with such brevity. But after some time learning the app, playing around with it, and finding out how other users were engaging on it, I was quickly hooked. More than just an entertaining app, Snapchat just released a powerful way for your business to get the attention of people in your area without breaking the bank.
Meet Snapchat
Just in case this is your first time hearing about it, here’s a quick primer. Snapchat is a mobile (only) smartphone app that connects you to friends, family, and fans through a mobile number or user name. Snapchat’s main functionality
is the way it enables users to take pictures that remain visible for up to 10 seconds or record short videos. There is an attractive filter functionality that does more to decorate than create a mood a la Instagram. To keep things interesting you can also opt to draw on top of them with a unique colored pencil before sharing them to friends privately or saving them for your 24-hour public “Story”.
This so-simple-why-didn’t-I-think-of-it idea brings a unique approach to interacting with others that feels very casual. Snaps you send to your story today will expire the same time tomorrow, while private messages disappear shortly after you read them. Before you think that an automatically deleting app couldn’t possibly bring value to your audience or create powerful ambassadors for your brand, think again.
It’s More Useful Than You Think
If you think Facebook is good for getting attention, prepare to be blown away. Because of the way Facebook always changes their algorithm and controls what you see, there are some friends posts that you never know exist. Even worse, your business page has an even smaller visibility due to the small percentage of your audience that is served your posts. It makes sense for Facebook, but it should make a lot of sense for you, too.
Snapchat empowering its users to select their preferred content rather than scroll endlessly to find something relevant is a breath of fresh air. Swiping left to see the users you’re connected to provides for a great user experience, one that they could associate with your business. This unique feature also means that even casual fans will see your latest updates, even if they don’t react to them on Facebook often. Those who love to keep up with what you’re doing will have access to every update for 24 hours without having to type it in a search. The days of depending on an algorithm to get your business exposure are over with Snapchat.
Many discount Snapchat because of its lack of in depth marketing analytics and call to actions. There aren’t any buttons or ways to take people from the app to your site (yet). The only way you know you’re reaching people is by clicking on your Story and seeing the names of who’s viewing your story and the total number of views on each Snap.
Depending on what you’re trying to accomplish with your marketing strategy, this isn’t a bad thing. Attention is the most valuable thing someone could give your business. That’s the reason we spend time posting on social media, advertising, and creating a web page in the first place. We want our product or service to be known. Because Snapchat is still relatively new, people are still learning how to use it and are curious to see what friends and others are doing with it. The average user is spending 30 minutes a day on the app, and over half of them are logging in every day.
If you’re an East Texas business trying to get some exposure, you should be where you know you’ll be seen. Taking into account that Snapchat’s 100 million users consume only 1 billion less video content than Facebook’s 1.55 billion users, the likely hood of being noticed is huge. This is especially true if you hope to attract people ages 18-24, which is 45% of Snapchat’s audience. Creating great content on this app will not only allow you some of their eyeballs for free but also give you a step ahead of your competition by being the first to develop a relationship with customers through something they enjoy. That’s just scratching the surface. If you’re interested in taking your social awareness to the next level with Snapchat, there’s a new way to do that available right now.
How Snapchat Advertising Could Work for You
Advertising on any social platform works best when they are relevant to the and delivered with the spirit of the platform they are in. Snapchat’s vibe is quick, friendly, and fun. Implementing Snapchat into your social strategy makes a ton of sense, especially considering it only costs you a bit of time and creativity, but that’s not the only way to connect with your fans.
Just recently the company created a way for businesses and brands to advertise within the app in a way that could really change the way your audience engages with you. Before learning how you could start uploading your own custom filters to Snapchat, you should probably know why you’d want to in the first place.
Because of the prevalence of sponsored ads, many are ignored as they become more commonplace in the news feed. Advertising on Snapchat allows you to better engage those using the app and actually compliment their use of it instead of just interrupting it.
The Possibilities Are Endless
Between image filters, text overlays, video, and the ability to draw on top of your content, the creative possibilities are endless with Snapchat. There are many free ways to engage with your audience, increase your brand recognition and provide value despite your post disappearing shortly after. Now, there’s an affordable way to take it to the next level.
Similar to a Facebook ad, Snapchat recently released a new way for your business to advertise to users in your area. Snapchat filters are graphic overlays that can border or lay on top of your future photo, instantly creating a different feel for what you’re capturing. Think of it as a mobile photo booth that you see at weddings, but the props are digital. As a business owner (or an individual) you can now upload a custom filter that is geographically specific to your business, area, or location of your event.
For example, say you own a women’s clothing store and you’re planning a huge sales event. You could upload a filter that has your business name and perhaps a fun set of sunglasses or hat a user could “try on” and take a picture of themselves.
Or, you could have a filter that doubles as a coupon only available within your store, and encourage shoppers to use it for 10% off. Not only will your customers appreciate the savings, the photo on their story will be visible to everyone that they are connected with, giving your business exposure to a new audience.
Because this feature has only been available for a few months, many aren’t utilizing so it’s not as costly at the moment. At $5 per 20k square feet, per hour, you can’t lose.
If you’re serious about your business, you should be intentional about your presence online. Implementing a social strategy and leveraging these free and affordable tools can take make a real difference in today’s world, and staying relevant with the way people communicate has never been more important.
At Spade Design, we understand that learning how to make an effective Snapchat graphic, uploading it, and effectively roll it out through your social channels can be difficult while running a business. That’s why we’d be honored to help your brand gain recognition in a totally new way. As creative people dedicated to your success, we’d be more than happy to design a graphic that matches your business and meets your goals.
If you have any questions about Snapchat or why social media is important for your business, let us know or use the comment section below.
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