Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel announced that Snapchat will be introducing “Sponsored Snaps” from brands, which will be placed next to chat threads from friends. These sponsored messages will appear as unread messages in the main Chat tab of Snapchat, making them visible above messages from a person’s contacts until they are interacted with. This move marks the first time Snap will be displaying ads in the most widely used part of its app.
According to Spiegel, the introduction of Sponsored Snaps will allow advertisers to engage visually with the Snapchat community, leveraging the core functionality of the platform for advertising purposes. Spiegel emphasized that while advertisers will have access to this new feature, conversations with friends will remain private and will not be used for advertising.
The decision to incorporate Sponsored Snaps into the app comes at a crucial time for Snap, as the company’s stock price continues to struggle and its ads business remains relatively small compared to competitors like Meta. Despite boasting over 850 million monthly users globally, Snap is still not profitable. Spiegel acknowledged that the growth of the digital advertising business is essential for Snap’s long-term revenue potential, and investors are eager to see faster growth from the company.
In his memo, Spiegel highlighted the importance of expanding Snap’s digital advertising business and addressing investor concerns about the company’s growth rate. As part of this strategy, Snap will also enable advertisers to promote locations in the Map tab, where users can view the whereabouts of their friends. This move aims to diversify Snap’s revenue streams and attract more advertisers to the platform.
Overall, the introduction of Sponsored Snaps represents a significant shift in Snapchat’s approach to advertising, allowing brands to engage with users in a more visually appealing way. While this move may raise concerns about the user experience and privacy implications, it is clear that Snap is focused on driving growth and profitability through innovative advertising solutions. As the company continues to evolve its ad offerings, advertisers and users alike can expect to see more changes to the platform in the future.
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