Snapchat has seen impressive growth during the past year, and there’s no indication that it will stop anytime soon. Despite the increasing number of attempts by users and brands to enjoy its benefits, there is still a cautiousness regarding its use, both by marketers and users. Marketers are questioning its ROI, and simple users are still trying to understand it.
We’ve compiled a list of Snapchat’s most interesting stats in 2016, in order to help you analyze its current status and most importantly, its potential growth. This will also indicate what this could mean for both users and brands.
110 Million Users
According to TechCrunch, Snapchat had 110 million daily active users in December 2015 and we’re expecting a larger number of them after 6 months in 2016. If this doesn’t sound impressive enough, how about the fact that it has grown nearly 50% in just one year?
10+ Billion Daily Video Views
Snapchat is seriously competing with Facebook in terms of daily video views and it actually might have surpassed it. We won’t know at least until we get the latest stats from Facebook. The platform now counts more than 10 billion daily video views, while Facebook had 8 billion video views per day in Q3 2015.
Even if Facebook is still ahead, it’s a very impressive number for Snapchat to serve as a serious competitor in video content, especially when considering that it only counted 2 billion daily video views in Q1 2015!
60% of Snapchat’s Monthly US Users Are Aged 13-24
Snapchat still consists of a (quite) young audience, with 60% of its US users being aged between 13-24 years old. However, there is another interpretation of this statistic, as 40% of US Snapchat users are not millennials, which means that there’s a wider audience to consider when creating content for the platform.
Image source: Snapchat
Vertical Ads: Up To 9x Completion Rate Compared To Horizontal Mobile Video
Snapchat’s vertical videos stand out for their unique format, and they also seem to be very effective. They offer up to 9x higher completion rate compared to a horizontal video. What’s more, they occupy a smartphone’s full screen, which also contributes to the increased chances of engagement – an appealing video convinces users to spend more time on it.
71% Of Users Head To Snapchat For Chat/Snap
Snapchat wants to expand its popularity among publishers, but it’s primarily a platform for instant (and casual) communication, with 71% of users admitting that they use the app to chat/snap.
34% Like Snapchat Because Snaps/Stories Disappear
Except for communication, Snapchat users have more reasons to love the app. Apparently, ephemerality is very appealing. The fact that you can send a snap knowing that it will be lost in 24 hours, makes communication even more direct and authentic. Even brands now understand the new type of ephemeral marketing, creating content for just 24 hours, making users rush to check it before it disappears.
30% Like Snapchat Because Parents Don’t Use It
Facebook has become so popular nowadays that younger users tend to avoid it, as they have ended up friending their family members, realizing that it might be losing its ‘cool’ factor. Snapchat on the other hand is still almost unknown territory for most older parents, and as long as it stays that way, younger users will continue snapping at any possible occasion.
Snapchat Expected To Surpass Twitter And Pinterest This Year
According to eMarketer, Snapchat’s US user-base is expected to jump by 27.2% to 28.6 million users, while Twitter will have 56.8 million users and Pinterest will have 54.6 million users. Although both Twitter and Pinterest are very different to Snapchat, it is still interesting to notice that US users are becoming more curious about Snapchat and more of them will try it out until the end of the year – contributing to its impressive year-by-year increase.
Taco Bell’s Cinco De Mayo Lens: 224 Million Views
Snapchat introduced branded filters, and this was a turning point for marketing on the platform, as it offered a unique promotion for popular brands. Taco Bell decided to create a unique filter for Cinco de Mayo on May 5th, which led to 224 million views during the day, with the average user playing with the filters on Snapchat for 20 seconds.
This is a great reminder for all of us that there’s always a new opportunity for advertising and brand awareness, provided that we’re willing to think outside the box and spot any new opportunities for promotion.
21% Of Buzzfeed’s Monthly Traffic Comes From Snapchat
Snapchat hopes to improve its popularity among publishers and the existing channels on Discover are already enjoying dedication from users. This is translated into content views. Buzzfeed is among the most successful cases and it’s very interesting to consider that 21% of its monthly traffic comes from Snapchat, while 27% of its traffic comes from its highly popular Facebook videos.
Not everyone is capable of having Buzzfeed’s budget and content, but this doesn’t mean that you can’t create authentic, entertaining and appealing content that Snapchat users will enjoy!
Takeaway tip
Don’t be afraid to try out Snapchat… Just make sure you understand the platform, the audience and the effective content!
[box]Also Read: How About 3D Selfies On Snapchat? [/box]