So what is the new map feature?

Well, the new Snapchat map feature has finally be released this weekend.  Speaking on their blog the company announced ‘We’ve built a whole new way to explore the world! See what’s happening, find your friends, and get inspired to go on an adventure!’

A trailer was also released for the app, showing two women browsing the snapchat map and tapping on a nearby location to see friends sharing videos from an ongoing concert. This will be perfect for those of you working in the magical music festival sphere. It could also work great for those of you promoting films.

So what else does this mean for your business? Well beyond the friend finding capability, opening your business account to maps on snapchat opens your business up to new advertising opportunities. Users can also browse photos and videos from locations around the world, including breaking news events. You could use it to share behind the scenes footage.

 What is snapchat?

Just in case you are not aware as to what the program is, Snapchat is an app available to smartphones which allows the user to sendHow to use Snapchat maps photos, videos, messages and drawings. They all self-delete after ten seconds (unless you follow these instructions).

The app enables the user to send live updates through selfies, drawings and filters throughout the day to a wide audience- there are currently more than 150 million users logging into the app everyday. It is especially useful for companies and bloggers targeting the younger generation as the main age range is between 13-24.  But back to Snapchat maps.

How to use snapchat maps

 After you have Snapchat downloaded on your phone, open the app. The first thing you will see is the camera feature. To access maps, pinch your fingers on the screen and maps will appear.

Here you will see your snapchat friends in the form of their avatars. These avatars can be seen walking, driving or listening to music depending what the person is doing at the time.  (Cool and scary at the same time). If the person doesn’t have an avatar, they will be seen as blue outline. If you are operating as a business it can be useful to have an avatar character to make your snaps identifiable. The most important thing to note here is that only your mutual friends can see your location, so you must add your followers back as a friend to see them on the app.

Tap on a friend to start a chat or see when their location was last updated. Your location is only updated when you’re using snapchat. If you can’t see a friend immediately, tap ‘search’ at the top of a screen and type their name. Bingo.

Stories and locations within the map

You will also be able to see tags on areas of interest. Some of these tags (identifiable from their purple text) are stories formulated byfind your friends on snapchat snapchat, the stickers and overall graphics are of better quality. The rest of these tags are user generated stories, formed by users contributing a lot of content in the same area. These are displayed with black text and are often seen at concerts, shows and other big events. As we mentioned previously, these will be particularly useful for businesses that run events, as they could draw lots of interest.  Spots on the maps that have heat sensors also display an area that has a lot of online traffic and snaps being sent.  Marketing opportunities direct to your fingertips.

If you need help with Snapchat content, geofilters or campaigns, contact us.