Snapchat Ads: The essential guide to campaign success

Snapchat is not just an instant messaging app, but a vibrant space where creativity and authenticity combine to create meaningful connections. With over 750 million monthly users and nearly 400 million daily users, it has become one of the most popular and dynamic mobile platforms.

The essence of Snapchat lies in its ability to deliver ephemeral and spontaneous visual experiences. Snaps, short photos and videos embellished with filters, text and special effects, allow users to share unique and authentic moments with their friends and followers. In addition, Stories, sequences of snaps that can be viewed for 24 hours, encourage storytelling and community engagement in a unique way.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• 5 essential steps to create a Snapchat Ads campaign

• Explore Snapchat's creative options

5 essential steps to create a Snapchat Ads campaign

[Step 1] Set goals - where do you want to go?

Before you start creating your Snapchat ads, it's essential that you are clear about your objectives. What do you hope to achieve with your Snapchat ad campaign - are you looking to increase brand awareness, generate consideration among your audience, or drive conversions and sales?

If your goal is to generate awareness, you'll want your ad to reach as many people as possible to raise awareness of your brand, product or service. On the other hand, if you're looking to drive consideration, you'll probably want to encourage users to learn more about your product or service, visit your website or download your app.

And if your goal is to drive conversions, you'll be looking for users to take specific actions, such as buying a product on your website or downloading your app.

Whatever your goal, Snapchat offers advertising options designed to help you achieve your specific goals. By clearly defining your goals from the start, you can create more effective ad campaigns and measure their success more accurately.

[Step 2] Shaping your budget, make it count!

Once you've set your goals, it's time to determine how much you're willing to spend on your Snapchat ad campaign. The platform recommends a minimum budget of €50 per day for ad campaigns, but you can adjust this budget according to your needs and resources.

When setting your budget, you will also have the option to set daily spending limits and lifetime budgets for your campaign. A daily spending limit allows you to control how much you are willing to spend in a single day, while a lifetime budget allows you to set a total spending limit for the duration of your campaign.

This gives you the flexibility to adjust your budget based on the performance of your campaign and the results you are seeing.

In addition to setting a total budget for your campaign, you will also have the option to set a maximum bid for your ads. A maximum bid is the maximum amount you are willing to pay for each user interaction with your ad, such as a video view or a click on a link. By setting a maximum bid, you can control how much you are willing to pay per interaction and maximise the return on your ad budget.

[Step 3] Segmenting your audience, point and go!

One of the key advantages of Snapchat advertising is its ability to accurately and effectively target audiences. The platform offers a wide range of targeting options that allow you to reach specific users based on a variety of factors, including interests, behaviours, demographics and location.

By targeting your audience, you can ensure that your ads reach the right people. For example, if you are promoting a product or service to a specific audience, such as young women aged 18-24 living in urban areas, you can use Snapchat's targeting options to reach that specific demographic.

In addition to demographic and geographic targeting options, Snapchat also offers interest and behavioural targeting options. This allows you to reach users who are interested in specific topics or have certain online behaviours, which can help you increase the relevance and effectiveness of your ads.

[Step 4] Creating ads that bring your brand to life

Once you've defined your goals, set your budget and segmented your audience, it's time to create your Snapchat ads. Snapchat offers a wide range of creative options to help you create ads that engage your
audience and drive results.

Snapchat ads can come in a variety of formats, including vertical videos up to 10 seconds long, static image ads, and collection ads that allow users to explore multiple products or services in a single ad experience.

In addition, Snapchat offers a variety of creative tools, such as filters, lenses and stickers, that you can use to customise your ads and make them more appealing to your audience.

When creating your Snapchat ads, it is important to consider design and optimisation best practices to ensure your ads are effective and drive results. This includes using high-quality images and videos, designing your ads to be visually appealing and relevant to your audience, and testing different creative and messaging to see what works best.

3, 2, 1… Launch the campaign!

Once you've created your ads and are ready to launch your campaign, simply follow the steps in
Snapchat's Ads Manager to set up your ads and schedule their launch. Snapchat will provide
you with real-time data on how your ads are performing, allowing you to make adjustments on
the fly to maximise their effectiveness and achieve your advertising goals.

Explore Snapchat's creative options

1. Single Image or Video: Immediate impact

Single image or video ads on Snapchat are full-screen formats that offer an immediate opportunity to capture the user's attention. Like organic Snaps, these ads allow a great deal of creative freedom to communicate your brand's message. Users can interact with these ads by swiping up to perform a specific action, making them an effective tool for driving engagement and conversion.

Specifications:

• Image: JPG or PNG format, recommended size 1080 x 1920 pixels.

• Video: MP4 or MOV format, maximum duration of 10 seconds, resolution of at least 720p.

2. Story: Generando expectación

Story Ads appear in the Discover section of Snapchat and allow brands to create a series of 3-20 single image or video ads. This series of ads offers a unique opportunity to generate buzz and tell a compelling story about your brand or product.

Strategically placed in the Discover section, these ads can reach a wide audience of users engaged with the content.

Specifications:

• Image: JPG or PNG format, recommended size 1080 x 1920 pixels.

• Video: MP4 or MOV format, maximum duration of 10 seconds, resolution of at least 720p.

3. Collection: Showing variety

Collection Ads on Snapchat allow brands to showcase multiple products in a single ad. With a tile of four adjustable images at the bottom of the ad, users can browse and explore a variety of products without having to leave the app.

This format is ideal for highlighting your brand's product variety and encouraging exploration and purchase.

Specifications:

• Images: JPG or PNG format, recommended size of 1080 x 1920 pixels each.

• Video: MP4 or MOV format, maximum duration of 10 seconds, resolution of at least 720p.

4. AR Lenses Experiences: Memorable interaction

AR Lenses Experiences, or augmented reality experiences, are a powerful and memorable way to connect with Snapchat users. These interactive experiences appear inside the Snapchat camera and allow users to experiment with effects and filters in real time.

For brands, AR Lenses offer a unique opportunity to create interactive and immersive moments that create a lasting impact on the audience.

Specifications:

• Collaboration with Snapchat's creative team is required to develop the augmented reality experience.

5. Commercials: Immersive content

Commercials on Snapchat are video ads that appear within curated content and games on the platform. With a length of up to three minutes and the ability to skip after six seconds, these ads offer brands the opportunity to share immersive and engaging content with the Snapchat audience.

This format is ideal for telling longer stories and creating a deeper connection with users.

Specifications:

• MP4 or MOV format, maximum length of 3 minutes, resolution of at least 720p.

6. Filters: Immersion in the conversation

Filter Ads on Snapchat become part of the user conversation by appearing after taking a Snap and swiping left or right. These artistic overlays allow brands to organically integrate into the user experience and offer a fun and creative way to engage with their audience.

Filter Ads are an effective tool to increase brand awareness and encourage user engagement on the platform.

Specifications:

• Collaboration with Snapchat's creative team is required to develop the filter.

By understanding and applying these strategies and tools, you can create effective Snapchat ad campaigns that help you achieve your business goals and connect with your audience in a meaningful way on this dynamic and constantly evolving platform.