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“Events are as much about social sharing”: Sydney events tech company acquires Snapchat printing service

Sydney-based social engagement agency, Social Playground, has acquired the global rights to the world’s first Snapchat printer, Tap2Print, to help marketers who are struggling to engage with millennial users of the service.

The four year old, Sydney based company is adding the product to its Toy Box line of social media booths available for hire by events managers.

“We’ve acquired this company in the US called Five Celsius,” founder and director of Social Playground Annabelle Davidson, told Mumbrella. “They are an events technology company that developed the Snapchat printing software and they originally got in touch with us to discuss licensing the product in Australia.

“Several conversations later they could see the software was growing in popularity, they are very much tech guys and not events people so they approached us to take over the distribution and global licensing from them.”

Aimed at engaging event attendees, Tap2Print is a compact printer for Snapchat photos.  Each user has to follow the brand’s Snapchat account to send and print their snap. As well as generating an increase in Snapchat followers for the brand, programmable geofilters ensures that every snap captured and shared at the event carries the product’s logo or branding.

Despite claiming 4 million daily users in Australia, Snapchat has proved difficult for brands to and Davidson claims her product will create genuine audience engagement. Tap2Print gives brands an opportunity for engagement by inspiring consumers to share branded Snapchat content from events.

“Nowadays I think events are as much about the social sharing than just who is in the room,” she says.

When asked by Mumbrella if Snapchat is being eclipsed by Instagram, Davidson was coy: “”I think there’ll always be a place for it, Instagram is snapping at its heels. Definitely the millennial audience is ready for it and still really engaged on it. It’s also increasingly positioning itself as a media platform as well as a social platform following the deal with Time Warner and a lot of the content they push out. It’s definitely got a place in the market.”

“We’ve worked with The Iconic, Girlfriend Magazine and the launch of Chicken Fingers. We’ve helped launch a number of brands,” says Davidson, claiming The Iconic event in May saw a 50% increase in the brand’s Snapchat following over the four-day activation due to Tap2Print’s live in-store printing.

Tap2Print joins Social Playground’s toy box, which includes a range of socially-driven on site products including s a Live Hashtag Printer, GIFGIF, Social Photo Booth, Social Mosaic and more.

Now in it’s fourth year, the ten person company has generated over five million dollars in revenue by helping brands and businesses creatively engage consumers at events and drive reach and engagement on social media.

“From a consumer-perspective, it’s a fun alternative to the traditional photo activation. Millennial consumers are already taking snaps – this just ensures the snap is tied back to the brand and increases the brand’s following organically” says Davidson.

“All of our products are designed to engage consumers at events and get them sharing photos and video content via social media. Our products vary depending on which platform they target but all of them are underpinned by social media and driving social media reach and engagements.”

 

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