Viral Snapchat Campaigns: How Brands Win with Sponsored Lenses
Snapchat has become a powerful platform for brands looking to reach younger audiences. The ephemeral nature of snaps and stories lends itself well to fun, authentic campaigns. When executed thoughtfully, Snapchat delivers strong engagement and ROI for brands. This article will explore 10 case studies of impactful Snapchat campaigns across industries. The examples demonstrate diverse strategies, creative approaches and measurable results.
Taco Bell Cinco de Mayo Lens
For Cinco de Mayo 2016, Taco Bell launched a custom sponsored lens that turned users’ heads into giant tacos. It generated 224 million views in one day, exceeding views of Super Bowl ads on TV. The massive engagement demonstrates the viral potential of sponsored lenses. Taco Bell focused on creating novelty and entertainment value, resulting in organic sharing and buzz.
Gatorade Serena Williams Match Point
Over 24 hours, Gatorade released a serialized replay of a Serena Williams tennis match across Snapchat. Each snap progressed the match, ultimately ending in Williams’ match point victory. It mirrored the suspense and drama of a real tennis match. The immersive storytelling format engaged fans and showed Gatorade’s role fueling elite athletes.
Too Faced Cosmetics Beauty Tutorials
Too Faced successfully leveraged Snapchat to connect directly with customers and offer value. They posted weekly beauty tutorial stories showing products in action. These tutorials from in-house makeup artists built authority, boosted brand affinity, and drove conversions by linking to product pages. Offering exclusive tips and how-tos helped Too Faced build a loyal following.
Subway Sponsored Geofilter with Online Ordering
To drive foot traffic to stores, Subway created sponsored geofilters available only when users were inside their restaurants. When snapping selfies with the custom geofilter, a CTA prompted users to order subs online. The campaign boosted online orders by 60% in one month. Geofilters that trigger desired actions can be highly effective brand activations.
Sephora Virtual Makeup Try-On
Allowing virtual product trials before purchase is a major Snapchat trend. Sephora implemented augmented reality try-on lenses for several makeup products. Users could test out lip colors and eyeshadow virtually. This helped Sephora showcase products uniquely and made shopping more interactive and convenient.
Universal Pictures Theatrical Trailer Launch
NBCUniversal chose Snapchat to exclusively launch trailers for major movies like Jurassic World 2. Trailers debuted as Snapchat stories, allowing viewers to swipe up and purchase movie tickets directly. Reaching Snapchat’s young users early and converting them to ticket buyers was the core campaign goal.
BMW Augmented Reality Lens Campaign
To promote its M2 Coupe, BMW created an AR lens that transformed roads into racetracks. The lens was promoted with video ads showing the M2 Coupe racing at high speeds across several virtual landscapes. The immersive, gamified experience aligned with the BMW brand and engaged potential buyers through interactivity.
Amazon Fashion Modeling Lens
Amazon Fashion partnered with model Gigi Hadid on a “Model for a Day” lens. Users could snap selfies and try on virtual versions of Hadid’s outfit. Shoppable stickers then enabled seamless purchasing of her look. This showed Amazon Fashion’s ability to drive online sales by making shopping social and fun.
Marriott Hotels Sponsored Lens and Geofilters
To attract younger travelers, Marriott launched multiple Snapchat activations. They created a beach ball lens that virtually transported users to vacation destinations. Guests at 1500 hotels could also access custom Marriott geofilters. Blending entertainment and utility creatively showcased the brand world and enhanced the travel journey.
TuneIn Live Events Coverage
The audio streaming platform TuneIn used Snapchat to cover live sports, news, and music events. They leveraged Snapchat’s immediacy by sending snaps from events as they unfolded. TuneIn combined text, photos, videos and graphics to make followers feel immersed in the action. It positioned TuneIn as the place for on-the-scene coverage.
Adidas Originals Sponsored Lenses
Adidas Originals promoted its Superstar shoes by creating a lens that allowed users to virtually try on the iconic sneakers. It drove strong engagement, especially among sneaker enthusiasts who loved flaunting the shoes. Trying before buying is a compelling Snapchat strategy.
Netflix Stranger Things 2 Lens
To build hype for Stranger Things 2, Netflix created a themed lens that transformed users into characters from the show with portals into the “Upside Down”. It was an innovative way to organically spread awareness and excite fans leading up to the release.
Disney Pixar Sponsored Lens for Incredibles 2
A custom Incredibles 2 lens enabled users to surround selfies with sparks, electricity bolts and flames. The superhero power effects matched the film’s characters and theme. Partnering with Snapchat aligned perfectly with promoting a movie targeting younger audiences.
Starbucks Holiday Cups AR Lens
When Starbucks dropped its seasonal holiday cups, they created a branded lens that turned Snapchat selfies into living Starbucks cups. Users could apply different cup designs and then share or save their holiday creations. It was a playful way to spread awareness during the holidays.
North Face Sponsored Geofilters for Store Openings
When The North Face opened new stores, it implemented geofilters that could only be accessed in and around that specific store location. It helped drive local foot traffic by rewarding explorers who found the geofilters.
Covergirl Sponsored Lens for New Product Launch
Covergirl’s campaign for its Katy Kat Collection of makeup included a cat-themed lens. The lens aligned perfectly with spokeswoman Katy Perry while showcasing the new product line. Lenses that embody a campaign’s concept perform well.
Live Nation Concert Activation
For various concert tours, Live Nation created geofilters for the venues. Attendees could use custom artwork and artist-themed filters to enhance their photos and videos from the live shows. It provided an extra touchpoint between fans and artists.
NBA 2K18 Sponsored Lens
To promote the NBA 2K18 video game release, 2K Sports launched a realistic lens that transformed users into popular players from the game. Fans could role play as their favorite athletes in virtual form.
Walgreens Sponsored Lens for Flu Shots
Walgreens developed a lens that displayed virtual tissues and coughing animations to remind users to get their annual flu shots. It used humor and novelty to promote an important health service.
Benefit Cosmetics Brow Tutorials
Benefit Cosmetics leveraged Snapchat to share quick brow grooming and styling tutorials using its brow products. The short videos offered helpful tips that nurtured its community of makeup enthusiasts.
Pepsi Sponsored Lens for the Super Bowl
To engage Super Bowl viewers, Pepsi launched a lens that decked out faces in Patriots and Eagles gear depending on location. Fans loved repping their teams as the big game played out.
T-Mobile Influencer Campaigns
T-Mobile ran several influencer campaigns focused on product reviews and unboxings. The raw, authentic content from influencers helped showcase latest device launches.
Conclusion
These examples reveal best practices for executing impactful brand campaigns on Snapchat. Key takeaways include leveraging utility through interactive lenses, driving conversions via shoppable stickers, building engagement through exclusivity, and crafting creative through immersive storytelling. As Snapchat evolves, the possibilities for brands to creatively engage audiences and generate ROI will continue expanding.
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