Ep.9 Using Snapchat for Student Recruitment

Video Transcript

Brendon:

So, Pip. To get us started, how would you describe Snapchat in the current market? And what’s all the hype been about recently in the media?

Pip:

Well, Snapchat’s come leaps and bounds since it first came out in the market a few years ago. It’s overtaken Facebook and Instagram now as the social media app of choice among teenagers.

I think around 58% of teens now open Snapchat first before they open Facebook or Instagram or any other social media app.

So, that’s a lot. And they spend around half an hour per day on the app so it’s a big chunk of their time, their daily hours.

Brendon:

Yeah, absolutely. I feel that the platform itself has been underutilised to date. Do you have any advice for people that haven’t got started on a Snapchat strategy or campaign yet?

Pip:

For universities in particular I think there’s a big opportunity there to utilise Snapchat as a marketing tool for students; prospective students and current students.

So, number one, you need to set up your Snapchat account which is pretty straightforward. Number two, you need to use your QR code which is your Snapchat barcode and just get it out there.

So get people following you, whether it be through competitions, incentivising students to follow you on Snapchat to win a prize, things like that.

Get the Snapcode around campus or at events. Just get people following you. And then number three, using a Snapchat analytics platform, like Mish Guru, is really helpful.

You’re able to see how your campaign’s rolling, look at analytics, reuse posts and get some user generated content out in the campaign.

Brendon:

Yeah, that’s fabulous. I’ve seen some great content coming out of the United States and New Zealand recently especially around the new swipe up feature.

Do you want to discuss a little bit more about that and how we can implement that into campaigns?

Pip:

Yeah, so that’s a really, really new feature which is really exciting because up until now Snapchat’s been really limited in what you can do in terms of looking at analytics and also marketing.

Now, what’s available is that you are able to use your standard Snaps and users can swipe up or swipe straight to your lead capture page or event registration page or website. So, really getting to the point of the campaign.

Brendon:

Yeah, fantastic. And do you have any additional tips for our audience before you go?

Pip:

Just get out there and start using Snapchat. Especially for universities, it’s a big platform that’s going to really benefit your student acquisition campaigns going forward.

I think there’s going to be a lot happening in that space in the coming months and years.

Brendon:

Fantastic. If you’re curious about Snapchat and how to get started, feel free to contact us at Social Garden. We’ll be happy to help. Thanks for your time.