UK government found to have spent £70,000 on Snapchat filters
The UK government spent £70,000 on a Snapchat Filter campaign designed to highlight the dangers of drug driving.
Foregoing the messaging app's popular 'Rainbow Sick' and 'Face Swap' filters, the Department for Transport used the platform for the latest iteration of it's Think! public health initiative. The campaign cost was revealed by BuzzFeed News following a freedom of information request, which showed that the filters accounted for five per cent of the government's total ad budget for the anti drug-driving project.
Running in March, the filter invited users to put themselves behind bars to show how easy it is for the the police to make a roadside arrest for those caught driving under the influence. The strapline read: 'Drive high? The roadside swab will catch you,' as seen in the tweet below.
Use @Snapchat ?? Tweet us your mug shot pic using the new drug driving campaign overlay from @THINKgovuk pic.twitter.com/kkrl9oGTUB
— Olliers Motor Law (@TheMotoringLaw) March 18, 2016
“The advertising channel mix for the Think! drug drive campaign was chosen to maximise reach among the target audience,” said the Department for Transport.
“For example, Snapchat has eight million UK users and indexes well with our young male audience (61 per cent are male and 30 per cent are aged between 18 and 34)," said the Department of Transport in a statement.
The government's investment in the platform highlights the growing importance of Snapchat in the marketing mix for brands and public bodies looking to target younger audiences.
Figures released today show that Snapchat has doubled it's daily video views over the past 12 months, recording 10bn plays since May of last year.