Snapchat: Using Augmented Reality Filters & Going Viral

Social Media & Using Augmented Reality

Over the past few years social media has been on the rise, especially for brands and companies. Brands of all industries are taking over different social media platforms to further themselves and promote products. The most up and coming example of brand takeover is brands creating augmented reality or “AR” experiences on apps. Some brands have their own apps for products such as L’Oréal’s Modi face, which they later expanded beyond their app to Amazon. The Modi face feature allows consumers to virtually try on makeup to see how it would look in person or to match shades to their skin tone. Augmented reality experiences on apps have become extremely popular over the last few years especially with snapchat. Snapchat started with simple filters, like the famous dog filter, just to add something on top of your face. Recently snapchat has progressed to being able to completely alter your face and make you look completely different with their filters and the filters have become more popular for day-to-day use. With the popularity of these snapchat filters rising, brands have decided to take advantage and seize the opportunity to create their own filters.

Brands Using Snapchat Filters

According to Statista, Snapchat had 319 million daily users at the end of 2021, and while it is not the most popular social media app, it reaches a very large audience. Brands like Gatorade, Taco Bell, Gucci, and many more have created filters and lenses on Snapchat to promote their products. When these filters are active anyone who goes to take a picture on the app can put one of these filters over their face before they take the picture. Some filters are more interactive and can insert objects into the photo outside of your face, such as adding an object in the frame or having a border around the photo. Recently, Gucci added a filter to promote their Flora Gorgeous Gardenia line and the filter altered your face to look like a cartoon with the word Gucci across the top. The makeup brand Nars also included a filter to promote their foundation where each different shade changed the filter over your photo and if you switched to the back camera, it showed a bunch of pillars with models wearing the makeup and pictures of the foundation. Papa Johns created a filter that said, “Papa Johns” and put a pair of sunglasses on your face, and if you switched to the back camera, it would show a pizza box, it then prompts you to pick a slice of pizza and it gives you a dare. Filters that are more interactive tend to increase engagement more than filters that just alter your face.

Benefits of AR Technology & Viral Nature

These interactive filters do not only increase engagement on the app, but they also create awareness about brands. These brands are increasing exposure and conversion through these filters by having them on such a large platform and including links within the filter that lead to their company’s website. This direct link makes it simple for snapchat users to go directly to the website to look at and purchase the products being advertised. Along with increasing engagement, these filters also have the potential to go viral on snapchat.

Some filters are sponsored and are pushed to the front of the list, while others can be searched for within the app. If a popular snapchat user with a public account creates content with this filter, their followers are likely to use the filter or check out the company and this can cause the filter and company to go viral on snapchat.

Going viral on social media apps has become increasingly popular and easy since TikTok was created. TikTok created an algorithm that allows anyone to potentially go viral, causing people who aren’t celebrities to gain a large following and that following often transfers to other apps. Companies have been doing the same thing and trying their luck at going viral across many different social media platforms, especially snapchat through the use of these augmented reality filters. These filters not only get users interested in the products, but they get the users interested in how they will look with the filters on. So even if users don’t end up buying products but use these filters and post them for other people to see, the brand is creating more engagement and promotion without having to do any extra work beyond creating the filter.

If you are looking to create conversion and engagement for your company or product creating a Snapchat filter is the way to go!