How to use Snapchat for marketing — Step Two

A Guide to Snapchat’s Many Editing Tools

Snapchat is equipped with many options to enhance your Snaps. Whether snapping single shots or short videos — there are features that make Snapchat even more fun! As we continue our journey in exploring this social media platform as a marketing tool — we hope you will learn a few new things, and if there is something we haven’t mentioned please comment below.

We started our journey a couple of weeks ago in Step One when we set up our account. If you wish to revisit Step One click here.

Now let’s look at some of the fun Snapchat has to offer.

Snapchat features — for the iPhone 5 and Android 5 and higher — include lenses. Lenses are overlays that are mapped onto your face. They change daily and some include unique animations that occur when you open your mouth or raise your eyebrows — some even map two faces. From a beautifying filter to holiday themed or branded overlays — these lenses make Snapchat addictive. What better way to get people to engage daily than to offer a new lens for selfies?

Andrea Murphy — Social Media & Web Designer

To use the lenses go into the Snapchat app, and open the camera screen. Turn the camera to face you, as if you’re taking a selfie. Press and hold your finger over your face until you see white lines map it out, and then swipe along the circles that appear inside the camera button. Right now there is a patriotic lens for the 4th of July and a really beautiful sea-themed lens. Also, “face swap” is hilarious— try it out!!! By the way, to take a photo just tap the circle; to take a video press and hold the circle until you are done.

Our Marketing Mermaid — Hannah de Bie, V.P. of Marketing

After you take your photos you can share them to your MyStory or send them to individual friends. Remember, MyStory lasts 24 hours while private messages can only be seen 2 times for whatever length of time you indicate (up to 10 seconds). To change the length of time for a photo look to the bottom left for the clock icon (after you have taken the photo).

If you take video you can choose to enable or disable sound. You will see a little sound icon instead of the clock on the bottom left (once again it only appears after you have taken a video). You may need to enable access to the microphone for Snapchat in your settings. Click here for a quick tutorial on how to do that.

Once you have your photo or video swipe right to see geofilters. Geofilters are overlays you can see based on your location. In the future we will talk about how to submit your own geofilters, but for now swipe right to see what is near you. There is always a temperature filter, and time filter — among others. With video you will see a slo-mo or speed up filter, but mostly any other geofilter you see is dependent on where your are on the planet. For this feature Snapchat must have access to your location (click here for a tutorial).

After you have selected your lens and filters there are a few more fun things you can do. Snapchat has stickers! Click the icon on the top right that looks like a paper with a corner folded —then browse though the stickers. Once you choose one you can touch and drag it to move it around the snap, and use the zoom motion (touch with thumb and pointer finger together and then move them apart) to make the sticker larger or smaller. You can add multiple stickers to a snap, and if you have shot video you can pin a sticker to follow an object that is moving. Simply press and hold the sticker on that object.

If you want to add text to a Snap tap anywhere. A black bar will pop up and you will be able to type. After you have typed your message (and pressed done) you can click the T text button icon to cycle through larger text options. To change the text color, tap the text you have typed and you will see the color bar on the right. Choose any color. If you want black text you have to slide your finger from the color bar all the way to the bottom of your phone screen. To get tints and shades of colors swipe from the color bar and do not let go… move all over the whole screen and you will see the color changing on the text (white is all the way to the left top).

Lastly, you can choose the crayon icon to draw on your Snap. Using the same technique mentioned before, you can choose from many colors. Show off your artist skills! Next, click the arrow icon on the bottom right and choose who to send to. Be sure to post to MyStory if you want to share with everyone, and don’t worry if you forget to save your images to your phone— you can download your snaps from your MyStory (within 24 hours, of course). Just click the discover screen and click the 3 dots next to your MyStory. Then tap the download icon. This is also the place where you can find out who has looked at your snaps, and if someone has taken a screenshot. Click each Snap and you will see 2 icons. The eye indicates how many views and the indicates screenshots.

Oliver the cockapoo — SSS staff

Did we miss anything? Have any other tips and tricks on editing tools? Please feel free to comment below. Oh… and Follow our MyStory on Snapchat at sea-trek!

Make sure to keep your eyes open for our next edition of Snapchat for Marketing: Step Three — Learning How to Use Photos that Already Exist.

Have a great 4th of July weekend from all of us at Sub Sea Systems!!!