POV: Instagram and Snap Inc. Launch New Offerings

Background:

Instagram and Snap have launched new offerings to businesses and consumers in a bid to open up additional revenue streams.

Details and Implications:

This week Meta and Snap announced new products and tools that are designed to engage consumers and drive better business results for advertisers.

Meta was first to announce its update, with two new ad types set to launch on Instagram - ads in search results and ‘Reminder Ads’. 

‘Reminder ads’ will send push notifications to remind you ahead of an event or launch. Users will receive a reminder 3 times: one day before the event, 15 mins before the event and at the start time of the event. The reminders will appear as notifications on a user’s lock screen. These are designed to make it easier for businesses using Instagram to announce, remind, and notify consumers of future events or launches that may interest them. This functionality is being rolled out to all advertisers as an option in the feed, with consumers opting into reminders.

The bigger news is that Instagram is also currently testing ads in search results. Ads will show up in the feed that people can scroll when they tap into a post from search results. The placement will launch globally in a couple of months and users will be able to tell the difference between ads and regular posts with the use of a “sponsored” label under the accounts name.

Meta says that both new ad tools will give businesses more ways to be discovered and form meaningful connections, with the search ads designed to reach people who are actively searching for businesses, products and content. At time of writing information about the charging model for ads in Instagram search results has not been made available.

Snap announced this week that it is now offering its AR tools to businesses outside of the platform. AR Enterprise Services (ARES) is a new way for businesses to integrate Snap’s AR technology into their own apps, websites and physical locations. Its first offering, “Shopping Suite”, provides tools for companies to build features that allow customers to virtually try-on items or view products from all angles in 3D. It also includes the Enterprise Manager Backend System, making it easier for businesses to build AR experiences and check out real-time performance analytics.

So far more than 300 customers are using the suites’ features. Brands like Goodr, Princess Polly and Gobi Cashmere have been early adopters and according to Snap have seen positive results.

Through this offering Snap hopes shoppers the world over will enjoy a more immersive and personalised shopping experience, that will help them to find the right product with more certainty. It could also provide a strong revenue stream for Snap.

Summary:

This week’s updates in social media land come as no surprise as both Meta and Snap are looking for new ways to prove to advertisers that their platforms and services drive revenues. It continues the trend we have been seeing of social media companies like Snap and Meta diversifying their offering to keep up in an ever-changing and competitive landscape. 

Further Reading:

Instagram | TechCrunch - Instagram  | The Verge - Instagram| Mashable | Engadget | Snap| TechCrunch - Snap |The Verge - Snap| The Business Times |CNA