Dive Brief:
- Messaging app Kik has launched a new video ad product that offers users rewards points, redeemable for stickers and other premium features on the app, if they opt to watch brand's videos.
- Struggling shoe brand K-Swiss is one of the first companies to try Kik's new expereince, and received positive feed back from users who have reported a 25% increase in brand awareness and signaled a 55% purchase intent from after viewing the ads.
- Ontario-based Kik has been flexing its ad business muscles with its Promoted Chats that lets brands communicate with consumer contacts on the app; and has also built targeting technology.
Dive Insight:
The video ad product joins a growing list of recent additions to Kik's strategy of reaching brands. Most recently, Kik hired a new leader for its new Kik Services division, which is devoted to building opportunities for brands to publish on the platform. With the video element add, Kik follows in footsteps of social app comeptitors like Snapchat and Facebook -- both of which have made strides to streamline publishing of brand content on their platforms.
Kik boasts over 200 million users -- 42% of which are in the highly sought-after 18-24-year old range. K-Swiss' fast success only serves to put reluctant brands at ease about advertisng on mobile.
