Snapchat debuts desktop version without ads

This week, after Snap announced that it’s rolling out Snapchat for Web, a few headlines left some advertisers scratching their heads: Both CNN and Yahoo speculated that Snap’s new desktop format could put it in competition with Zoom.

But social media marketers that Marketing Brew spoke with aren’t quite convinced that Snap is rebranding as Zoom’s latest competitor. Instead, they told us the desktop feature seems more likely a play for optimism ahead of what could be a tough earnings call for Snap on Thursday.

Specifically, the desktop version could make Snap a (slightly) more appealing option for users, potentially driving interest in Snap’s $3.99-per-month subscription tier (Snapchat for Web is rolling out for paid subscribers in several countries, but will eventually be available to all users).

Snapchat for Web does not currently have ads, though, making it less relevant for marketers who told us they were hopeful about desktop-ad insights.

Zoom in

Brendan Gahan, partner and chief social officer at independent creative agency Mekanism, told Marketing Brew that because Zoom “by and large” has an enterprise audience, he doesn’t think Snapchat for Web will directly compete with Zoom. The company said it built Snapchat for Web with friends in mind.

“Is there a feature that’s comparable? Sure. But does that mean they’re going after that market? I don’t think so,” Gahan said of Snap and Zoom.

He explained that Snap wouldn’t be the first platform to try to juice up a subscription tier in an effort to potentially diversify revenue and rely less on ads. Gahan and others we spoke with said that they’d spent fewer (if any) ad dollars on Snap this year than in the past, though they did not provide exact figures.

During Q1, Snap said its daily active users grew by 18%, a slight drop compared to the 22% bump during the same period last year. Revenue increased 38% year over year to $1.06 billion, marking slower growth than the 66% experienced the year prior. On its Q1 earnings call, CFO Derek Anderson cited factors like inflation, supply-chain problems, and labor shortages as challenges that could lead to “advertiser budget reductions.”

What if?

If Snapchat for Web did open up ad inventory, however, some marketers said it could make Snap a slightly more appealing place to advertise. Annelise Campbell, CEO and founder of influencer marketing agency Campbell Francis Group, told us placing ads on Snap’s desktop version would “definitely be a selling point for advertisers.”

If Snap could say it drives “20% of ad impressions to desktop users,” for instance, or if desktop users became more likely to spend more time on site after clicking an ad than mobile users, “that changes things,” Campbell explained. Those are the types of data points that any marketer would find useful, she said.

“I think it would be useful…you’ve got more ability to measure,” Doron Faktor, group director, connections and social at VMLY&R New York and Miami, told us. But as Faktor and other advertisers pointed out, all of this would hinge on whether or not Snapchat users actually end up spending time with this new desktop feature. That, of course, remains to be seen.