We’re hearing it non-stop, video is on the rise – in fact, it’s on track for total online domination.
Snapchat and live broadcasts on Facebook and Instagram have become an increasingly popular tool for marketers and brands to connect with their users and raise awareness of their product or service. And now with so many platforms offering live-streaming, it looks like it’s not a passing fad.
Here are 8 creative ways you can use Snapchat and live-streaming tools to market your business.
Irish pub, Sober Lane, held a recruitment campaign on Snapchat. In it, they encouraged people to ‘forget discretion’ and to ‘make an impression, if you want a profession’.
Sober Lane owner, Ernest Cantillon, said in an interview with the Irish Examiner that they received about 200 Snapchat applications within an hour of posting the ad. He said Snapchat was his choice for recruitment as it allows people to showcase their personality in a way that’s not possible in a standard CV.
“First impressions are everything in our game. Sober Lane is quirky and different. It’s all about fun, and it’s driven by our staff who pick the music. If someone has a good personality, it will come across on Snapchat and we’ll invite them in for a chat,” said Cantillon.
A Danish branch of the World Wildlife Fund took advantage of the disappearing nature of Snapchat’s content to illustrate how quickly an endangered species can be wiped off the planet.
A video for the #LastSelfie campaign tells us: “In a way Snapchat is a mirror of real life. The images you see are transient, instant, unique, yet only live for a few seconds. Just like these endangered animals.”
The campaign featured photos of endangered species such as tigers, rhinos, polar bears, orangutans, dolphins and pandas.
It continued: “If we don’t take action, they too will disappear right before our eyes.”
The WWF encouraged users to screenshot their selfies before they disappeared, and post the images to Twitter alongside their quotes.
This was an extremely powerful campaign, made even more so through the use of Snapchat. The disappearing aspect of the platform – Snapchat photos and videos disappear after 10 seconds – meant the concepts aligned perfectly and so the campaign took off.
Snapchat and Facebook Live are great tools for giving users access to events they would not otherwise have a chance to attend. For example, New York Fashion Week is one of the hottest tickets of the year. With Snapchat, users get to see all the action. Photos and videos are shared by models, publications such as Refinery29, and fashion designers – featuring behind-the-scenes and on-the-catwalk footage.
Facebook Live is also being used to bring readers along to events such as movie premieres. The premiere of ‘Captain America: Civil War’ was broadcast live on Facebook by various news publications. Users got to be part of the premiere, and watch the stars walk the red carpet, stop for pictures, autographs and interviews. The comments section was active. A live Q&A on Facebook allowed users to ask the stars some questions.
Take inspiration from this. Use Snapchat and Facebook Live to give users the virtual VIP treatment at events that you’re hosting or attending. It’s a fun way to engage with your followers and open up your business world.
Snapchat and Facebook Live are great ways of announcing new products or services. These tools allow businesses to have fun and create a buzz around their events.
In preparation for the launch of the bacon clubhouse burger, McDonald’s took to Snapchat to prepare users for the arrival of the new burger. They posted snaps of their delicious fries spelling out ‘Stay Tuned’ to generate some excitement around the announcement. McDonald’s allowed athletes, such as LeBron James, to take over the company’s Snapchat in a video that unveiled the latest addition to the menu.
Facebook Live is the go-to platform for Q&A sessions.
Actress Sarah Michelle Gellar and her husband, Freddie Prinze Jr, held a live Q&A session on Facebook for the recent launch of Freddie’s new cookbook ‘Back to the Kitchen’. In the live session, fans commented on reviews of the book and asked questions such as what was Freddie’s favourite recipe, and why did he decide to write a cookbook? The session helped engage fans directly and raise awareness of his cookbook.
Consider similar tactics to create brand awareness. By engaging with your followers in this way, you build your credibility as a brand. You could, for example, host a live Q&A on common SEO problems and expert tips to fix them.
Tastemade, Sweeten and Tasty are some of the most popular pages on Facebook. And they’re a great example of how to use Facebook in the best possible way.
Tastemade host a live latté art session, where viewers post latté art requests and watch them appear before their eyes in this Facebook Live session.
Sweeten and Tasty use Facebook Live sessions to do cooking tutorials. It’s a great way to engage viewers and show them how to cook dishes and bakery treats that look difficult but are actually quite easy.
Don’t be afraid to show off your talent. It’s fun, easy, and viewers love it!
Doing a demo of your product on Snapchat and Facebook Live is a creative way of showing followers how your product works.
In Snapchat you can create an entire story, showcasing different features in each 10-second slot. You can have fun with the different geofilters, making for an entertaining experience.
With Facebook Live, you can hold a longer demo session. It also allows you to answer viewers’ questions about the product in the comments section. It also allows instant feedback via comments and likes.
Who doesn’t love the chance to win something?
Instead of old school entry forms, Snapchat and Facebook Live offer creative new ways for people to enter competitions.
Sweet company Mondelez ran a competition in which $10,000 was up for grabs. All participants had to do was snap a photo of a TimeOut chocolate bar, modify it using Snapchat Human Growth Hormone buy in UK drawing tools, and send it to TIMEOUTAU.
Facebook Live can be used to livestream competitions. All it takes is a few questions, and the user who responds with the most correct answers in the fastest time wins. This is a simple way of raising brand awareness and increasing your social media following and credibility in one.
– This post was written by Emma Vince – former Digital PR Lead at Tinderpoint.