“Younger people are not only on Snapchat but young people who are on Snapchat are interested in the election, are engaged in politics and have a high likelihood to vote.”
Of the 100 million daily Snapchat users, an estimated 63 percent are between the ages 16-34. Saliterman, who formerly worked at Google, has delivered pitches to various 2016 Presidential campaigns about Snapchat's services and the upside to utilizing the social media app. Data from a recent survey suggests that one-third of all millennials in America who plan to vote are Snapchat users.
Several candidates have begun recording and posting behind-the-scenes clips of what life on the campaign trail is like. Of those invited to the most recent debate, only Donald Trump, Jeb Bush, Mike Huckabee, and Rick Santorum remain without their own Snapchat accounts. Surging Democrat Bernie Sanders is now a member of the Snapchat community, albeit still new to the workings and setup of the program. The Senator took to Twitter voicing his lighthearted comments about the app,
"What is this Snapshot thing and why do I only get ten seconds."
Aside from aspirations of having candidates post candid videos of campaign life and posting free content, Snapchat hopes for candidates to pay for ads. Thus far, only 3 candidates have done so: Rand Paul, John Kasich, and Scott Walker. In efforts to help generate more ad dollars, Snapchat has begun promoting "live stories" in states such as Iowa and New Hampshire. Saliterman, from Google, is not the only person jumping on board the Snapchat bandwagon, as Peter Hamby left his job at CNN to help launch Snapchat's in-house news operation.
Barack Obama's 2012 campaign manager, Jim Messina, endorsed the value and political potential of utilizing Snapchat.
“I now think the most important technology for millennial voters is Snapchat [...] And it didn’t exist three years ago [...] Now it is dominant with those people.”
Messina makes quality points, and according to a survey of millennials conducted by Global Strategy Group and Public Opinion Strategies, 63 percent of those who use Snapchat are currently following the presidential race and nearly 40 percent viewed either the first Republican debate or first Democratic debate earlier this fall. The same poll tallied results showing that 73 percent of millennials use their phone as an additional screen while watching television. For example, nearly one-third of those who said they tuned in for the GOP debate in September were simultaneously using Snapchat.
While social media sites and apps such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are becoming more of a primary source for millennials to receive their news, Snapchat still has some catching up to do. Some campaign strategists suggest that purchasing ads on Snapchat is no more about making a splash in the media as getting people to actually view the ads. With nearly every campaign using Facebook, Twitter, Google, and YouTube as a medium for advertising, Snapchat is certainly fighting an uphill battle in their quest for a place at the political advertising table.
In efforts to help boost their stock among political campaigns, Snapchat is offering campaigns an opportunity to insert 10-second political ads into videos users watch on the app. Additionally, Snapchat giving users an opportunity to use a new "filter," which layers a political message on top of videos and other messages the users post.
Snapchat remains a high ceiling, low floor option in the field of political advertising players for campaigns to choose from. With the 2016 race intensifying and candidates searching for the upper hand over their competition, only time will tell if Snapchat is the game changer that many have searched for.
Sources and Polls:
Snapchat Makes Play for Political Ad Revenue
2016 Democratic Presidential Nomination
2016 Republican Presidential Nomination
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