MTV is running its first campaign on popular photo sharing app Snapchat to promote sixth season of UK reality show ‘Geordie Shore’.
The campaign will see MTV send out exclusive photographs and videos from its own ‘Geordie Shore’ Snapchat account directly to fans’ smartphones, giving them a sneak peak of the “cheekier side” of the sixth series, which premieres on 9 July.
Supporting the Snapchat activity is an on-air campaign, which launched on 18 June, showing a mobile phone left lying on a beach, which is revealed in the style of the post-credits scene of ‘The Hangover’ to contain the Newcastle group’s holiday snaps.
Snapchat controversy
Snapchat, which launched in September 2011, has grown in popularity among teens, with its valuation soaring from $60m (£39m) to $800m (£518m) this year.
At the same time, its user base, which runs into the millions, has expanded beyond its early teenage adopters and it now claims some 200 million images are shared a day via its platform, up from 60 million in February.
The app has attracted controversy, with almost half of Snapchat users having received nude or inappropriate photos, gaining an unwanted reputation of ‘sexting’ that has led to brands avoiding the app despite its high user numbers.
Jo Bacon, MTV UK vice-president of marketing, creative and publicity, said: “Strategically for this campaign, Snapchat completely lends itself to the creative concept for series six, offering us a direct marketing route to our fans by reaching them on their most beloved devices.
“Providing even more exclusive and irreverent content to our fans gives them immediate access to all the need-to-know series information, allows us to tease storylines and, more interestingly, use the platform as a means of driving real-time tune-in reminders in a period where TV viewing habits are ever-changing.”