Snapchat is a great tool to use in your restaurant’s marketing strategies. Restaurants have begun taking advantage of the Millennial-driven social media platform to attract a younger crowd to their existing audience.
Just recently, Snapchat introduced a new feature that could potentially be a marketing goldmine for your sports bar or restaurant. Snapchat now allows users to create custom Geofilter overlays that can be placed on top of photos and video clips that reflect your location. Essentially, Snapchat users can add your filter to their content if they are in your proximity – giving them a fun filter and you some sweet exposure.
How Restaurants Can Use Snapchat Filters for Marketing
This is a great opportunity to create Snapchat filters customized with your logo and unique touch. Your guests can add your filter to their Snaps during a sporting event, dining at a table, or even sitting at the bar.
Having the ability to create these filters for your guests’ content is beneficial on multiple levels. Before this feature was available, users could select from Snapchat’s already chosen sponsored filters, but creating your own will boost your marketing efforts while also getting your content in front of some new eyes.
Overall, Snapchat will allow you to customize just about everything in their beginner templates. You have free range to get as creative as possible – so show off your brand’s personality. Once you have your design chosen, pick the proximity of where you want your filter to be visible, (the larger the distance, the more money). The default setting is $5.99 for a few hours and a minimum area of 20,000 square feet -- perfect for a big game. After you submit the creation, filters take roughly one business day to be approved before your guests can add it to their content.
For those of you who aren’t smartphone savvy, you can also create geofilters by logging into your Snapchat account on your computer.
How to Create a Custom Snapchat Geofilter for Your Restaurant
Whether you’re making a filter for the big game or for a busy weekend, Snapchat Filters can surely bring bodies into your restaurant. We are going to take you step-by-step though how to create your own Snapchat Geofilters to help promote your next event. For those of you that are not Snap-experts, here is a quick rundown of how the geofilter studio works.
For starters, log into your restaurant’s Snapchat account. Then tap the ghost icon in the top left of the screen.
Tap the Settings icon in the top right.
Select On-Demand Geofilters
Hit Continue
Choose an Occasion
Customize away! Don't forget to add your logo!
Uploading your own logo is currently available on some mobile devices. If it's not on yours, you can make your geofilter from your computer by logging into your Snapchat account, and click Custom Element. It will soon be available on mobile universally.
Give the Filter a name
Determine the time when your geofilter should be available
Choose the parameters
Payment
Overall this is an excellent marketing strategy that can bring people (especially Millennials) in your door. We recommend allowing your staff to make potential snap filters to create a friendly competition. More often than not, your employees most likely have a pretty good idea of how to use Snapchat; therefore, they are the perfect contributors.
Other New Snapcahat Features to Know
In addition to giving you a free reign on creating filters, Snapchat has also launched a couple other new features to keep in mind.
For the first time ever, Snapchat will allow users to include external links in Stories (perfect for a link to your menu or back to your site). Also, on the more advanced Snap level, users can create backgrounds for their snaps by cutting out the foreground elements.
These features haven’t yet been rolled out to all users, but expect to see them show up in upcoming days.
