Snapchat still works because marketers haven’t ‘wrecked’ it yet, say millennial entrepreneurs
Two young Aussies who started a global teeth-whitening company have said there are still large opportunities for big brands on Snapchat, mainly because marketers haven’t “wrecked it yet”.
Gold Coast duo Nik Mirkovic, 21, and Alex Tomic, 23, began their business ‘Hismile’ 18 months ago, and have grown it to a $10m business in that time using influencer marketing, most prominently with Kardashian clan member Kylie Jenner.
Kylie Jenner is HiSmile’s most prominent influencer to date
Speaking at McCann’s ‘The Truth about Youth’ event, Tomic said: “Snapchat is where the attention of millennials is at, at the moment.
The reason why is because us as businesses and marketers haven’t destroyed it yet; we haven’t really attacked it too much and we don’t really understand it.”
Mirkovic added the lack of direct ROI has caused big brands to avoid the platform: “There’s no direct ROI on Snapchat, there’s no way to link out of Snapchat.
“For us, that is why it is so beneficial. No marketer has wrecked Snapchat just yet.
It’s where the big brands aren’t really going so we can play and have fun and connect with our customers.”
The pair said they believe Snapchat is not the platform to sell your brand, but rather a platform to push lifestyle and connect face-to-face with customers.
Tomic and Mirkovic believe that by pushing lifestyle the brand can produce empowering messages about “positivity, happiness and laughter”.
Tomic said: “This (Snapchat) is really where we need to test the waters and push as much content out on. Content that is relative and empowering; you want to get your customer emotionally engaged, give them more value than you take from them.”
Mirkovic added: “As soon as you open Snapchat it opens up to fit your full mobile screen, it’s got the full attention of the person who clicked on that post for 10 seconds. Snapchat’s the key to attention.”
The pair who have used more than 1,000 influencers globally, allow the influencers to take over Snapchat and let customers explore the world.
However, Tomic believes brands with larger budgets should find it easier to maximise reach on the platform, with bigger funds for lenses and other Snapchat features.
Speaking on how to keep up with the changing social media landscape, Mirkovic attributed HiSmile’s success to adaptability and diversity of platforms, the company using Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, Youtube and emerging service, Musicly.
He said while the company had built its early success on Instagram it was now the last platform it thinks about to distribute its content, with Facebook at the front of the queue and Youtube an emerging channel.
“It goes back to not being romantic with what got you there. Don’t be set in your ways, move early but don’t forget what works,” he said.
“We got to the top. We figured out influencer marketing and we maximised on it. That’s when we really tested ourselves to try the next thing.”
