Challenge
Video platform Snapchat and agency partner VaynerMedia wanted to understand what types of branded content stopped users scrolling, captured attention and drove impact. With different ways for creators and brands to reach consumers, Snapchat wanted deeper insights on which types of content and which add-ons performed best.
Considering creative is the primary driver of sales in a media buy at 47%, it is imperative to get it right.
Thanks to social media, ads can be captured in the moment or shot by a creator on their phone. It’s never been easier to create content, partner with experts and trial new strategies.Â
Considering creative is the primary driver of sales in a media buy at 47%, it is imperative to get it right. Snap wanted to help its brand partners better understand the foundation of great content creation.
Key Takeaways
The study produced some interesting results that reinforced some of Snapchat’s best practices.
- Authentic DIY content generates 19% higher happy reactions and 13% more attention, foundational to engagement and brand outcomes
- Premium Snap creators drive 33% more attention
- Snapchat-branded AR lenses generate 40% higher brand recognition and 32% higher recall
Snap wanted to help its brand partners better understand the foundation of great content creation.
Be Authentic
User generated content that feels authentic, along with surprises performed best.
Authentic-looking native brand content performs better. The former generated 19% higher happy emotions and captured attention for at least 13% longer than the study average.
While authentic videos drove significant attention, that didn’t mean videos with branding didn’t perform well. Content that explicitly sold products and services and brand-polished content also performed well: 17% increase in ad recall than the average. As with videos Realeyes has measured on additional platforms, branding early is a great way to improve persuasion.
Example: Indeed, featuring protagonist who ironically acts out what the professional voice over describes.
Educate & Entertain
Another successful type of content is videos that meet at the convergence of education and entertainment. “Edutainment” content captured attention 30% longer, and yielded 17% higher persuasion.
Content that “breaks out” of its placement dimensions/specs performed exceptionally with Gen Z. Overall, its ad likeability was 14% higher and persuasion was 9% higher.
Example: Removery, featuring someone ‘guiding’ the viewer about the laser tattoo removal service.
Hack the Platform
Brands captivated audience attention with “thumb-stopping” content that made full use of the platform with dynamic edits, lenses etc.Â
These types of videos performed especially well with Gen Z audiences. They increased ad likeability (14% higher) and persuasion (9% higher) versus study norms.
Example: Diageo, Baileys Chocolate featuring high frequency of dynamic edits.
Partner with Stars & Experts
Another key learning is the importance of partnering with expert creators. Brands that partnered with Snap Stars, premier content creators that are hand-selected by Snapchat’s talent team, captured 33% more attention than the study average. This was especially true for females and Millennials.Â
In addition, the Snapchat branded AR lens generated 40% higher brand recognition and 32% higher recall (vs. study avg).
Example: Nicky Champs partnership using Levi’s AR stylist.
Outcomes
Since all brands have access to the same abilities to generate massive amounts of creative and consumers encounter thousands of ads a day, brands that understand what best drives attention and engagement have a strong competitive advantage.
Leaning into best practices such as partnering with creators that can produce authentic or groundbreaking content and use Snapchat Lens gives brands a leg up on the competition. Especially when they incorporate the brand in a thoughtful way early in the video.
brands that understand what best drives attention and engagement have a strong competitive advantage.
Methodology
Snapchat partnered with Vayner Media and Realeyes to get some definitive answers. Realeyes conducted an in-context Human study among ~5,000 opted-in US Snapchatters between the ages of 16-49. The Realeyes PreView technology measured the Snapchatters’ second-by-second attention and reactions while they browsed Snapchat.
A post exposure survey measured impact on brand metrics and a custom survey also explored consumer motivations behind viewing content on Snapchat – all to reveal today’s modern video best practices for brands.
Onboarding Sample
Consent & Quality Checks, using Realeyes’ proprietary verification
Ad
Exposure
Attention & Reaction measurement while browsing Snapchat
Memory
Tasks
Brand and Ad recognition
Full Screen Exposure
Attention & Reaction measurement while watching target video
Post-Exposure Survey
Ad Likeability, Brand Trust, Persuasion, and Custom Reasons, Type of Content, and Platform Comparison
Source: 2024 Snapchat Content Best Practices in partnership with Vayner and Realeyes, July – August 2024, US ONLY, N = 5146Â
1Percent Sales Contribution by Advertising Element, Nielsen Catalina Solutions; 500 campaigns across all media platforms (2016-2017)
2Kantar (Millward Brown) Resonance Study, Nielsen (NCS) ROI Sales Lift study for a Beauty campaign on Snapchat, Q4 2023