It may lack the user base of Facebook, but Snapchat has quickly become one of the world’s fastest-growing social media networks. Launched September 2011 by former Stanford students and entrepreneurs by Evan Spiegel, Bobby Murphy, and Reggie Brown, it focuses on image and multimedia messaging for mobile devices. As a business owner, you can use Snapchat to promote your products, services, and/or brand – but you’ll first need to build a strong following.
Adding Friends Manually
There are several different ways to build a larger following on Snapchat, although one of the easiest is to add friends manually. This can be done either by searching for the person’s username, (launch the Snapchat app and tap “Add Friends,” or by using your snapcode. For the latter, you’ll need to take a picture of the person’s snapcode with your phone, at which point you can add him or her as a friend via the “Add by Snapcode” option.
Post Your Username on Social Media
But what if you don’t know anyone who wants to follow your account? Well, there are other ways to attract followers on Snapchat, one which involves promoting your username on other social media networks. Assuming you already have a following on Facebook and/or Twitter, try posting your Snapchat username here and asking users to follow your account. Granted, not everyone is going to oblige and follow your Snapchat account, but it’s all a numbers game: if just 10% of 10,000 users follow your account, that’s 1,000 new followers, all for just making a quick post on social media.
Via Flickr Commons
Post Username on Website
In addition to posting your Snapchat username on social media, you can also post it on your website to attract more followers. Groupon, for instance, recently used this tactic to build its Snapchat following, and it worked surprisingly well. The company created a page on its website, revealing its Snapchat username while also asking users to send in snaps. You can follow a similar approach with your website to build a stronger following on Snapchat.
Content Matters
Of course, you can’t expect users to follow your Snapchat account unless you publish engaging content that’s relevant to their interests. Without content, there’s no reason for users to follow your account, nor is there any reason for your existing friends to continue following your account.
Here are some tips on how to create effective content for Snapchat:
• Experiment with different filters. Snapchat supports the use of dozens of different filters, each of which has a unique effect.
• Think about what your followers are hoping to see, basing your content around their expectations.
• Post content that’s relevant to holidays and other timely events.
• Avoiding highly commercialized content.
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