Snapchat launches self-serve ad tool for brands

Snapchat is making it easier for marketers to purchase ad content with the launch of a new self-serve tool. The video-focused platform has long coveted the attention of smaller enterprises, and all brands will now be able to buy full-screen placements and access a host of analytics features to track them.

Snapchat has set its sights on opening up ads for formats such as in-app web pages, vertical video and app installs for some time now, and the centralised platform has been tested with a range of SMEs across the US. It claims that the Ad Manager tool has been created “with their business needs in mind.”

Not everybody will be able to take advantage of the new feature at launch, though, as it will be restricted to 20 select launch partners for the time being. A wider rollout to brands in the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, Germany, France and other countries is already penned in for the early summer.

While Facebook has usurped Snapchat as the de facto video platform in recent months, the latter remains an attractive outlet for marketers, especially considering recent research showing that more than a third of its 60-million-daily US user base cannot be reached on Facebook on the same day, while almost half are not available on Instagram.

There are three new Snapchat business tools in total, with the headline Ad Manager finally enabling brands of all sizes to buy, manage and optimise engaging content and make use of advanced targeting capabilities and other features designed to streamline the whole process. The two other additions are the new Snapchat Mobile Dashboard, which offers a visual overview of campaigns, and Business Manager, which allows for the configuration of permissions and roles for ad team members and the organisation of campaign assets.

Those already using Snapchat’s new tools appear to be impressed, as the platform provided a number of testimonials to coincide with the launch. “The platform gives us the real-time flexibility needed to run successful campaigns, and with hundreds of integrations, it gives us the ability to capture the data we need to better understand [return on investment],” Goat Marketing VP Sen Sugano said.