Snapchat have begun giving advertisers a greater variety of options for how they bid on ads via its API. The new upgrade is called goal-based bidding and makes use of machine learning technology in order to allow users to make ads more relevant to their own goals.
In a move that shows they are serious about competing in the world of social media advertising, Snapchat have begun making use of a new machine learning technique that determines which users are most likely to engage with ads on the app. The new feature, reported by AdAge, is called goal-based bidding and allows advertisers more control when buying ads.
Through it advertisers will be able to set campaign goals beyond ad views by bidding on engagement. According to a spokesperson for Snapchat, advertisers can determine how much they value a swipe on their ad and the network will automatically optimise delivery to a “subset of the advertiser’s target audience that has a propensity to swipe.”
Although the upgrade is a minor one in the grand scheme of things, is nevertheless looks to be something of a key signifier for the app’s ambitions when it comes to paid investment by marketers. No doubt it also comes in response to the news that average ad views on Snapchat currently only stand at fewer than 3 seconds. This is certainly a cause for concern if they are truly looking to stand up against Facebook who have been on something of an offensive against them throughout this year.
Goal-based bidding will be available to advertisers that buy through the still nascent ads API. Snapchat also look set to offer a wider variety of “goals” to users beyond swipes, in-line with campaign objectives. These are likely to be similar to what we see on other major social networks, for example app-installs and e-commerce conversions.
