You?ve probably seen or heard about the phenomenon that is Snapchat filters. Snapchatters can take a selfie and superimpose a set of dog ears or a fairy crown onto their video and share it with friends.
These ?snaps? created with filters are viewed more than 1 billion times per day. As always, advertisers will find a way to follow the eyeballs, which is why sponsored filters have become a cash cow for Snapchat.
In a recent eMarketer report, it is projected that advertising, including sponsored brand filters, will bring in more than $1 billion in revenue for Snapchat alone in 2017, which is impressive considering the fact that Snapchat only began offering the capability earlier this year.
It?s no surprise that this format of advertising is enticing for brands that are starved for more authentic ways to reach consumers on mobile, where traditional, interruptive ad formats are failing badly. Filters offer brands a way to join consumers? conversations rather than interrupting them or, as Backchannel describes the phenomenon: ?No other mainstream ad product has convinced people to reliably, voluntarily brand themselves and then organically spread photos of their branded selves through their networks.? While Snapchat?s offering fills an important need for brands in that it is authentic and welcomed by consumers, there are some challenges:
Snapchat is, well, limited to Snapchat. Snapchat?s audience is largely a younger demographic, and brands that seek to reach a broader (or just ...