Snap Inc. is highlighting its Chat feature at Advertising Week New York 2025, emphasizing its role as a space for real conversations among friends and family. The company is positioning Chat as an alternative to the endless scrolling seen on other platforms and introducing Sponsored Snaps, which allow brands to join these personal moments in a way that aims to feel natural.
Snap partnered with MAGNA Media Trials to research how chat has become valuable for brands. Their findings suggest that users are not only comfortable talking with friends in chat but are also open to brand messages there. According to Snap, “86% of social media users in the U.S. are open to getting messages from brands on apps like Snapchat, Messenger, and others”—a sign that chat is now a place for meaningful engagement.
The company also notes that conversations on Snapchat are often spontaneous and personal. “71% of Snapchatters say they have their own unique language with friends on the app,” according to Snap’s research, which it says highlights the intimacy of the platform. For brands, this means new ways to appear in trusted conversations.
Snap’s research further shows that users expect value when interacting with brands in chat; discounts, personalized recommendations, and timely updates are especially important. Fun content can make these interactions memorable. Snap believes this gives brands an opportunity to be useful and relevant while fitting into ongoing conversations.
Several campaigns have already used Sponsored Snaps. Calvin Harris was the first artist to use them for his single “Blessings,” reaching 11.8 million UK Snapchatters and increasing Spotify streams by 58%. The creative approach—featuring a “Calvin Harris is typing…” message—spread beyond Snapchat onto other platforms.
A Kantar study cited by Snap found that “approximately 85% of Snapchatters feel that Sponsored Snaps are ‘relevant to me’, and ‘fit in with my habits on platform’”—suggesting ads blend into user experiences rather than disrupt them. Wendy’s ran a campaign mimicking friend-like messages; within one day it delivered 52 million impressions and saw organic follower growth rise by 54%.
Snap reports that fully engaged Sponsored Snaps outperform other social platforms: opening a full-screen ad leads to 2.3 times more lift in unaided brand awareness, 1.4 times more lift in ad awareness, and 1.8 times more lift in purchase intent compared with competitors.
During Advertising Week New York 2025, Snap will launch an out-of-home campaign focused on Sponsored Snaps to show attendees how brands can integrate into conversations rather than interrupt them.
