Dive Brief:
- Snapchat is charging advertising a minimum of $40 CPM for interactive video ads, Digiday reports, even if no one engages with the interactive aspect of the ad.
- The move boils down to charging four cents for a 3Vi ad, which is a vertical video format with an interactive element.
- Snapchat’s 3Vi format is in testing and joins its also high-priced sponsored lens ad format that, according to Digiday, is currently running over $700,000.
Dive Insight:
Snapchat’s relationship with advertisers has been rocky at best. On one hand, marketers love the idea of reaching Snapchat’s user base that heavily skews toward millennials and Gen Z. On the other hand, Snapchat hasn’t made life easy for marketers in targeting audiences or measuring campaigns on the app.
To be fair, the messaging app has made recent moves to correct both issues. It's also becoming an even more enticing marketing venue for brands after recently announcing it is getting 10 billion daily video views, hitting a sweet spot that combines mobile and video. As it becomes clear that online video is increasingly becoming a lucrative investment for brands, platforms like Snapchat have more room to take bold steps, such as with pricing.
About Snapchat’s pricing for interactive video ads, Jill Sherman, svp of social strategy at DigitasLBi told Digiday, “This is going to be tricky for Snapchat in that they are up against very robust video products like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and it is likely hoping that post-campaign attitudinal studies will prove out the validity of the pricing model. Snapchat recognizes it is in a power position and that this is a shiny object that brands want to try.”
