Snapchat has launched a new 'Dynamic Ads' option which will essentially create your Snap ads for you based on your uploaded product catalog. The system will then display your products to relevant audiences as it sees fit.
As explained by Snapchat:
"Advertisers on Snapchat already have access to a sophisticated offering, from tracking campaigns with Snap Pixel, to optimizing campaigns towards purchases, and syncing of product catalog. Dynamic Ads now brings automated personalization to the platform, opening new ways to scale and drive impact very easily."
As you can see in the above image, based on the product images and information you upload, Snap's Dynamic Ads will use in-built templates to create variations of different Snap ads in vertical view format. Advertisers will be able to choose from various templates, which will guide Snap's systems in building the relevant ads.
You then select an audience for prospecting or re-engagement, and then enable Snap’s system to deliver your ads in real-time.
"As changes to products occur (i.e. price or availability), the ads will adjust accordingly so you can run ‘always-on’ campaigns, to continuously tailor the shopping experience to Snapchatters’ preferred interests."
The process will make it easier for more brands to advertise on Snap, taking the hassle out of not only the creative process, but also with respect to updating your listings. If you want to keep your campaigns running all the time, because they're driving great results, you just maintain your data flow through to Snap and its systems will keep running your ads with the latest, relevant info.
Of course, that does reduce the amount of creativity and originality in your Snap ads approach, which could be a significant factor when trying to engage the Snap audience. But Snap says that, in early testing at least, the results for its Dynamic Ads have been promising:
"When using Dynamic Ads, online fashion boutique Princess Polly saw early successes with a 66% decrease in cost per purchase and a 171% increase in ROAS, compared to their similar pixel campaign, while Vitaly, an accessories brand, was able to re-use existing product feeds to create high-quality and full-screen ads. Dynamic Ads have driven a 21% decrease in cost per purchase and a 29% increase in return on ad spend for Vitaly, compared to a similar Vitaly re-engagement campaign simultaneously running in the U.S."
Similar options are available on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest, enabling businesses to upload their entire product catalogs in order to fuel their promotion efforts, though Snap's offering goes a step further in that it also combines these creative templates to better showcase your content, as opposed to adding it to a generic listing.
Again, there is a question as to how effective that can be, especially as more brands take up the option, and more of the displayed ads start to look the same. But it does have potential - and for businesses that have been struggling to find a way to tap into Snapchat, and reach its young audience, this could be an ideal solution, or an introduction that can help to measure your advertising potential on the platform.
But it's not available to all just yet. Snapchat says that its Dynamic Ads beta will begin in the coming weeks for US advertisers, with support for additional regions planned in the coming months. You can contact Snapchat for more info on avalability.
