Snapchat Filters Make Marketing Fun

If you haven't received a photo or video on Snapchat with your friend in some ridiculous filter, then you’re probably not on Snapchat. If you’re not on snapchat, you probably have no idea what I’m talking about in the first place. Snapchat is a messaging and social media app that allows you to send photos and videos to your friends. The only catch: they only last ten seconds or less, then it’s gone. You have the options to send these photos and videos to specific other users, or put it on your “story” where anyone you are friends with can view it up to twenty four hours. Snapchat has some extra cool features as well. You can write comments on your images, place emojis wherever you’d like, draw, and put “filters” over your face for funny effects.

What do I mean? It looks a little bit like this:

These filters are all kinds of silly ways to express yourself. Some favorites include flower crowns, ones that turn you into bees, deer, and dogs, or a multitude of other insane things. One sort of filter that stands out though are those that are branded filters. These often have a movie or brand that they are promoting through an entertaining projection of yourself. These filters have proven to be a huge success for Snapchat and the brands, with a projected 1 Billion per year made by Snapchat from these advertisers.

I even took one of myself to show you guys:

They seem to be the perfect combo for millennials. It reaches down into their level, doesn’t yell too loudly about the products itself, and essentially allows you to make your own advertisement, since the picture within the filter can be whatever you’d like. Snap Filters almost provides a template for someone to provide a word of mouth suggestion to their friends, which seems incredibly unique. It also incorporates one of the most iconic aspects of millennial life: the selfie. Branded filters gives an excuse to take a selfie with a fun, interactive twist.

Sometimes the filters are just plain weird, like this one that turns you into a taco. But that just adds to the amusement. Some are also interactive, like this one that you must open your mouth to work. When you get to be part of the advertisement, it becomes far more exciting.

It seems to be working well for Snapchat, but it’s hard to tell the effect it actually has for advertisers. Because filters are so minimal on product facts, it likely does little beyond getting your name out there, but even that is worth a lot in the marketing world. Regardless, I am sure that this is the direction that marketing will be heading in for years to come.

Because of course, filters are fun for the whole family: