News in 10 seconds

August 21, 2014

In June, Aftenposten reported that the number of Norwegian Snapchat users has almost tripled in one year, from 432,000 to 1.1 million. While Twitter (900,000 users), Instagram (approx. 1 million users) and Facebook (3.1 million users) have established themselves as well-known marketing channels, Snapchat is still uncharted waters for many commercial players.

- This summer, Dagbladet tested the spread of content via new social media. Using Snapchat during the Norway Cup in particular was an exciting experiment, which we are considering repeating on other occasions," says Eugene Brandal Laran, Head of Digital Platforms at Dagbladet.

News in 10 seconds
During this year's Norway Cup, participants could receive news and teasers for web and print stories directly to their mobile phones via Snapchat. In addition, videos and photos were sent out from Dagbladet's stand. On average, five photos or videos were shared daily through the app's storytelling function. In a short period of time, the account gained more than two hundred followers.

- "On Snapchat, we meet young people who made the leap from Facebook when their parents' generation started using it. When we also know that Snapchat is working on launching better services for content providers, we're facing a very interesting time. We can distribute our content to a target group that has been difficult to reach in the more traditional social media," Laran explains.

Focus on social media
In addition to actively using Snapchat, Instagram was also used during the Norway Cup. Participants were encouraged to tag their photos with #dbcup2014, and each day a winner of a football kit and a winner of a coach's bag was drawn. Eugene Brandal Laran says that social media is an area that Dagbladet will be focusing on even more in the future:

- "Firstly, it is important for Dagbladet to engage the readers so much that they share the stories we write. The most exciting thing is that the stories that are shared the most are good, comprehensive and agenda-setting stories with clear news points.

- "The bonus is that people who hadn't really intended to visit db.no that day are drawn in by quality stories shared on social media," he concludes.