Snapchat has revealed new enhancements to its advertising platform, aimed at providing advertisers with advanced tools to reach a broader audience, create more effective ads, and drive better performance. These updates highlight Snap’s commitment to evolving its ad offerings, making it an increasingly attractive option for marketers.
In its Q2 2024 earnings report, Snap emphasized progress in its Direct Response (DR) business, driven by investments in larger machine learning (ML) models, enhanced signals, and more effective ad formats. These improvements have resulted in a significant year-over-year increase in active advertisers on Snapchat, more than doubling the previous numbers. Snap’s focus is on offering a comprehensive suite of solutions that cater to every stage of the customer journey, from demand capture to demand generation.
Snapchat has made substantial updates to its Lead Generation suite, making it easier for businesses of all sizes to capture unique audiences on the platform. Recent integrations with Zapier, improved signal usage, and enhancements to reporting and usability have led to a 69% reduction in cost-per-lead (CPL), a 62% increase in lead form submissions, and a 21% boost in click-through rates (CTR).
App-based advertisers, particularly in the mobile gaming sector, have also seen improvements with the introduction of new bidding capabilities. Notably, partners like Roblox have reported a 30-50% improvement in return on ad spend (ROAS) on Snapchat. Additionally, the Value Optimization offering, which allows marketers to bid based on the basket value of purchases, has shown promising results, with Lancôme achieving a 38% increase in average purchase cart size and a 4.4x ROAS.
E-commerce and web advertisers have benefited from Snapchat’s Landing Page View optimization, which has driven a 34% increase in CPM efficiency and a 212% higher ROAS for brands like Wrangler.
Snapchat’s new top-of-funnel takeover products, such as First Lens Unlimited and State Targeted First Story, offer advertisers powerful new tools to capture attention and drive engagement. First Lens Unlimited, now available globally, has shown a 25-45% increase in incremental impressions, while State Targeted First Story enables US advertisers to deliver state-specific campaigns with tailored creative.
Snapchat continues to leverage its AR capabilities, with AR Lenses being played billions of times daily by users. The introduction of AR Extensions, which will roll out globally in September, allows businesses to extend AR experiences beyond the camera, integrating them into various ad formats like Dynamic Product Ads and Collection Ads. Research shows that combining AR ads with video ads on Snapchat results in 1.6x higher ad awareness lift, highlighting the effectiveness of this strategy.
Snap is also pushing the boundaries of creativity with its ML-powered tools. The new GenAI Copy Generator simplifies the creative process by allowing marketers to quickly generate headlines, making it easier to localize ad copy for different markets. As Snap continues to develop its ML models and scalable ad formats, it remains dedicated to helping advertisers optimize their campaigns across the entire marketing funnel.
Snapchat’s continued investment in AI and ML-powered tools, along with its focus on expanding AR capabilities, underscores the platform’s commitment to providing marketers with cutting-edge solutions that drive performance. As the digital advertising landscape becomes increasingly competitive, Snapchat’s evolving ad tools and creative options position it as a strong contender for brands looking to connect with their target audiences in innovative ways.
