Dive Brief:
- Gatorade is running a video game ad on ESPN's Snapchat Discover channel during the U.S. Open tennis tournament.
- The video game, called “Serena Match Point,” has 22 levels, one for each of Serena Williams’ grand slam victories. Users who swipe the ad on ESPN's Discover channel will reach the game in the app.
- Gatorade is also offering the game on a website, SerenaMatchPoint.com, that is accessible by desktop or mobile. The game is being promoted on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Dive Insight:
There have been a lot of unorthodox Snapchat ad campaigns, but Gatorade's in-app video game might be the most outside-the-box effort yet for the social app.
Gatorade doesn’t have an official account on Snapchat, but it has previously seen success advertising on the app. During the Super Bowl, it allowed users to virtually dunk Gatorade coolers over video selfies with an animated sponsored lens. That campaign received around 160 million Snapchat impressions for the brand.
Snapchat’s young user base and quirky user experience allow marketers to get creative with ad campaigns on the app. The first Sponsored Lens campaign ran last Halloween promoting 20th Century Fox’s “Peanuts Movie,” and this year, Taco Bell ran a Sponsored Lens campaign on Cinco de Mayo that received 224 million views, a figure that topped Gatorade’s then record Super Bowl lens.
Snapchat has been making a concerted effort to attract advertisers. The app recently launched an API and ad partner program to make it easier for marketers to buy ads, as well as reportedly lowering prices to bring more advertisers to the table. The lower prices ultimately mean more brands can afford to experiment with the platform.