Snapchat for businesses: how retailers can draw in creatives

People often underestimate Snapchat as a social network. Unfairly so – given its engaged user community, Snapchat is a promising social commerce channel for retailers. 
Snapchat is the odd one out among the social media channels: unlike Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, there is a greater emphasis on creating rather than consuming content on Snapchat. Accordingly, Snapchat users are creative and expressive, and the platform achieves exceptionally high engagement rates. With these attributes, Snapchat draws more fans than many people think.
 

The appeal of Snapchat for retailers

Snapchat offers companies an exciting target market. The majority of users are aged 13 to 34 – the consumer group with the greatest future purchasing power. Unlike most other social platforms, Snapchat does not automatically deliver content outside of the advertising formats. This means that interested users have to actively search for other Snapchat profiles in order to view the content there. Accordingly, a user that looks at a company profile on Snapchat has a genuine interest in that area. For retailers on Snapchat, this represents a unique opportunity to showcase themselves and their products.  
 

Snapchat for retailers: sales opportunities 

Snapchat offers a number of social commerce features that retailers can use to sell products directly. 

Deep Linking

Through Snapchat’s Deep Linking feature, interested users that swipe up on a profile’s content can be redirected to a product landing page where they can purchase a product directly. 

Augmented reality

By introducing augmented reality (AR) as a social commerce feature in 2020, Snapchat ventured further than many other social networks. Thanks to immersive 3D effects, potential customers can now “try on” products. This virtual fitting is linked with the “shop now” feature. If a product proves a winner, it can be purchased immediately. US department store chain Kohl’s and luxury brand Gucci were some of the first brands to try out this feature. 
 

How Snapchat can benefit the stationery industry

Many sectors have already discovered the AR feature for themselves. One possible usage for the stationery industry is the placement of products virtually in the potential customer’s office via AR. Retailers have a greater chance of making a sale when their offerings are presented in this visually appealing way using Snapchat’s AR feature. 
What’s more, AR effects are very popular among Snapchat users and therefore also frequently shared. This makes them a really effective means of reaching the target group. Although the AR technology has strong visual appeal, it does not require any IT skills or major investment on the part of retailers, making Snapchat attractive for small and medium-sized retailers as well.
 

Snapchat for retailers: it pays off

No matter their size, retailers should not underestimate Snapchat as a social commerce platform. Snapchat offers many creative product placement opportunities for the stationery industry in particular. With minimal effort, retailers can build a genuine bond with their target group and not only market their products but also sell them directly.