Only one percent of marketers are using Snapchat today, ignoring a huge opportunity.
Snapchat is a tremendous way to connect with younger users. That makes it especially useful for enterprises that are branching out into B2C or have new, exciting offerings for college students.
About 70% of Snapchat users are under age 25 and well over half of college students surveyed say they would be more likely to buy from a brand that sends them a Snapchat coupon.
Both Snapchat and Instagram have become well known for their ephemeral content: Content that lasts only a short while and is targeted to users who actively browse your social content.
Ephemeral content is incredibly popular among younger consumers, but many B2B marketers don’t realize they can also adapt its methods for their B2B marketing campaigns.
B2B Marketing With Snapchat and Instagram
For B2B marketers to be effective on these fast-moving platforms, they need to find ways to adjust Web content production to a “bite-sized” format.
General Electric provides a great example of a predominantly B2B brand which, because of its wide range of B2C offerings, can use Instagram to attract leads across all its verticals.
So, how can B2B enterprises with less reach still make the most of these hip platforms?
Create “Behind the Scenes Content”
Create “Behind the Scenes Content”Snapchat and Instagram provide amazing opportunities to humanize your brand by showing the people behind it. Office parties, lunch breaks, and other events will give your brand a shot of color that many others simply don’t benefit from. The combination of cell phone video and the short duration of the content makes it more authentic and “personal” to those who catch it.
Use Short-Form Educational Tips
As a B2B brand, you’re probably already producing a great deal of educational content for your leads at every stage of the buyer journey. You can distill this to even briefer and more actionable tip sheets appropriate for ephemeral “Stories.” These give viewers just two or three ideas they can use right away – and offer a CTA for them to find out more on your site.
Craft Visual and Quotable Content
Marketers know that tweets and Facebook updates with a visual component are more effective. Single-screen infographics, quotes, and even simple illustrations help your content get attention. Always build your ephemeral content around a central visual idea. Your main social timeline should also reflect those visual themes so that people are more likely to share your permanent content.
Snapchat and Instagram have great potential, but aren’t a perfect fit for all B2B brands. Before you launch your first campaign on either platform, do some research – including deep competitor research – to determine whether your target audience is waiting.