Snapchat is a popular social media platform, especially among millennials. This document provides 10 steps for brands to achieve success on Snapchat: 1) Adapt messaging to younger audiences by using slang and popular trends. 2) Post frequently to build loyalty and followers. 3) Avoid being overly promotional and focus on building human connections. 4) Share behind-the-scenes content to humanize the brand. 5) Run contests and giveaways to engage users. 6) Tease upcoming products/services in fleeting previews. 7) Share live updates from events. 8) Partner with influencers to reach new audiences. 9) Post exclusive content to grab attention. 10) Use Snapchat chat to provide real-time

1. SNAP SUCCESSA GUIDE TO ACHIEVING SUCCESS ON
SNAPCHAT IN JUST 10 EASY STEPS
OCTOBER, 2016
SNAPCHAT GUIDE

2. HAVE YOU HEARD?
22% of advertising executives
promoted their business on
Snapchat in 2016. Will your brand
be one of them in 2017?
Snapchat is currently valued at
$20 billion and it’s no wonder
why with averages of over
10 billion video views per day
and 150 million daily users.
Most of these users are millenials
who help account for the app’s
1 billion stories per day.
How do you tackle this
opportunity and start to
attract an audience in this
growing market? We have
all the insights!

3. ADAPT
YOUR
BRAND’S
MESSAGE
Did you know that 45% of
Snapchat users are between
18-24 years old? Furthermore,
71% of users are under 34
years old! This is a young
platform, which means you
might need to alter your
messaging to reflect that.
You don’t need to completely
change your message,
but your language and
content themes should
skew younger - this
includes using slang and
tackling popular trends.
01

4. BE ACTIVE
02
Snapchat averages over 12,000 snaps per second, which is a
pretty striking indication that to be noticed on Snapchat, you
need to post frequently.
While posting upwards of a 100-second story is not
recommended, posting a few snaps daily will help cultivate a
sense of loyalty and hopefully a growing follower base.

5. DON’T BE OVERLY PROMOTIONAL
03
This is an app primarily built for socializing through
user-friendly and interactive experiences.
Social Media was created as a human connection tool, not for
brands, and that rings true for Snapchat.
The key is to not advertise constantly, but build a following
through relatable content that humanizes your brand.

6. 04
Speaking of humanizing your
brand, featuring a private
look at how your business
operates behind-the-scenes is
one surefire way to do so.
Brands don’t want to be seen
as a corporate entity with no
tangible elements, which is why
adding a story that showcases
how things get done from Point
A to Point B will paint your
company as more than
just a business.
BEHIND-THE-SCENES CONTENT

7. CONTESTS &GIVEAWAYS!
05
A unique opportunity exists on Snapchat for brands to get
creative and explore fun opportunities, like promotions. Direct
people to follow your Snapchat account for limited-time only
promo codes or contests with winners chosen daily. Getting
people excited to follow your brand is key with such a young
audience, and no one loves free things like millennials!

8. 06
TEASERS
Releasing an upcoming
product or service and want
to build buzz? Tease a bit
of the unveiling on your
Snapchat account.
It will not only add more
exposure to your snapchat
account, but allows for quick
and fleeting previews, instead
of ones that live on social
media forever and require an
added touch of perfection.

9. 07
If your brand is heading to a
trade show or an event, bring
your phone and post live
updates on your story.
This gives real-time and
up-to-date looks at where
you are and how the event
is proceeding. Similar to
behind-the-scenes, this
is just an added exposure
tool to use that is uniquely
available on an app
like Snapchat.
LIVE EVENTS

10. 08
USE
INFLUENCERS
92% of people trust
recommendations or
suggestions from individuals
over brands. While that
might be discouraging, it
makes sense.
People trust what they
can relate to, which is why
influencers are a huge
opportunity for brands to
resonate with customers.
Send an influencer your log-in
to crash your story for a
day - it will bring the
influencer’s current following
over and possibly create a
new fan base for your brand.

11. EXCLUSIVE CONTENT
09
Still not seeing the level of engagement and following
on Snapchat compared to your other social channels?
Start posting unique, exclusive content to grab more attention.
Stop leveraging or repurposing content. Instead, use Snapchat
as a way to gain an entire new, slightly younger, audience with
content that is unique and special to the app, playing off of its
filters and interactive abilities.

12. REAL-TIME CUSTOMER SERVICE
10
Snapchat has revolutionized fairly heavily since its inception
in 2011, recently adding in a chat feature that works similar to
Facebook’s messenger app.
With 60% of Snapchat users on the app daily, some might use it
to convey their displeasure or questions, which gives you the
chance to instantly live chat with any users you see fit.
It’s the perfect chance to gain a loyal follower, instead of
losing one.

13. THANK YOU
Social Control is a full service social media marketing agency located in Los Angeles, California.
Visit us at www.socialcontrol.com