{"id":7865,"date":"2014-07-05T13:30:00","date_gmt":"2014-07-05T17:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wework.com\/creator\/?p=7865"},"modified":"2020-03-30T19:00:38","modified_gmt":"2020-03-30T23:00:38","slug":"startups-small-businesses-pay-attention-reddit-snapchat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wework.com\/ideas\/professional-development\/startups-small-businesses-pay-attention-reddit-snapchat","title":{"rendered":"Why startups and small businesses should pay attention to Reddit and Snapchat"},"content":{"rendered":"

These days, most social media advice for small businesses really translates as advice for using Facebook and Twitter.<\/p>\n

Are you as sick of hearing about those two platforms as we are?<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no doubt that businesses can leverage tremendous value out of those two behemoths. But what about other forms of social media\u2014social media that has just as much traffic, just as much \u201cviral-fuel\u201d potential, but less overall competition?<\/p>\n

Enter two less-conventional ways to market your small business:\u00a0Snapchat<\/a> and Reddit<\/a>.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re not familiar with these two, don\u2019t fret. They\u2019re easy to learn.<\/p>\n

In this post, you\u2019ll not only learn what they do, but the right way to use them for your own small business.<\/p>\n

The Newb\u2019s Guide to Snapchat<\/h3>\n

Snapchat is an app that people use to send pictures to one another on their smartphones.<\/p>\n

You might be thinking \u201cwell, why would anyone use that? There are plenty of ways to send photographs.\u201d<\/p>\n

True. But Snapchat\u2019s innovations include ease of use, customization, and time limits.<\/p>\n

Snapchat allows the user sending the photo to attach a \u201cself-delete\u201d feature along with the picture. After some period between 1-10 seconds, the photo is removed from the receiver\u2019s phone and deleted from the Snapchat servers.<\/p>\n

This might seem like an odd platform for businesses to market to their customers, but there\u2019s so many people on Snapchat (especially in the younger demographic) that companies have begun experimenting.<\/p>\n

McDonald\u2019s is one such company\u2013 the fast food giant attracted users to its Snapchat account with two key steps:<\/p>\n

Using their Twitter following to advertise their Snapchat account.<\/h3>\n

McDonald\u2019s simply asked its followers to add them on Snapchat by providing their username (mcdonalds) with the promise of surprises to follow\u2014or, as McDonald\u2019s put it, a \u201ctasty surprise.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"mcdonaldssnapchat\"<\/h3>\n

Using Snapchat to offer \u201cbehind the scenes\u201d material.<\/h3>\n

McDonald\u2019s had an agenda\u2014rolling out a new sandwich\u2014but didn\u2019t spam its Snapchat friends with advertisements. Instead McDonald\u2019s offered unique behind-the-scenes content including a picture of celebrity endorser LeBron James.<\/p>\n

\"lebronjames\"<\/p>\n

You have to admire McDonald\u2019s for its simple approach: giving out its Snapchat profile username and then offering some cool exclusive content. Snapchat is simple to use, so don\u2019t let your unfamiliarity with the platform prevent you from exploring\u00a0its full potential.<\/p>\n

How Businesses Can Use Snapchat<\/h3>\n

Because Snapchat is such an unconventional platform, it\u2019s easy to use it to separate your business from the crowd.<\/p>\n

Notice that McDonald\u2019s didn\u2019t really have a specific goal in its Snapchat campaign other than to raise awareness for its new product unveiling. The New Orleans Saints ran a similar campaign during the 2013 season, offering its fans behind-the-scenes looks at locker rooms and apparel that the team wasn\u2019t sending out anywhere else.<\/p>\n

It is, after all, the short lifespan of each picture that makes Snapchat unique.\u00a0Because each picture only has a small shelf life, there is something inherently \u201cspecial\u201d about each picture sent. A Tweet can live on forever on a Twitter profile, but a Snapchat photo only sticks around for a hot minute.<\/p>\n

Rather than try to mold Snapchat into a new form of Twitter, successful companies recognize Snapchat for its individual strengths and weaknesses as a platform. It is the ideal way to send out \u201cexclusive\u201d content that you can\u2019t find anywhere else.<\/p>\n