Dentsu MENA has released the latest insights from its ‘Unlocking the Currency of Attention KSA’ study, evaluating the role that Snap plays in capturing and retaining audience attention in the MENA region.
Conducted in partnership with Lumen Research, the study assesses Snapchat’s immersive full-screen ad format, and delves into whether brands can leverage its engagement features to forge authentic, impactful connections with consumers in Saudi Arabia.
Snapchat is exceptionally popular in Saudi Arabia, where it reaches more than 90 per cent of users aged 13-34, and boasts an addressable monthly reach exceeding 25 million users. On average, Saudi users open the app more than 50 times a day, underscoring its integral role in daily life.
“Snapchat is deeply woven into daily life in Saudi Arabia, reaching millions with authentic, real-time experiences,” said Saadeddine Nahas, Head of Product & Partnerships at dentsu MENA. “The findings of our study emphasise Snapchat’s ability to drive longer engagement, making it an invaluable platform for brands looking to harness attention metrics and deliver innovative experiences. Snapchat’s AR capabilities add a new layer of engagement, particularly in shopping experiences.”
The key findings of Snapchat’s attention performance in Dentsu’s study:
- Superior attention retention: Snapchat performed exceptionally in holding attention for extended periods making it an ideal platform for brands to tell longer, impactful stories.
- Early branding boosts recall: Snapchat ads that incorporated brand elements early demonstrated significantly higher recall rates, showing that Snapchat’s immersive, uninterrupted ad environment effectively supports brand recognition.
- Strong brand choice uplift: Ads on Snap led to a notable lift in brand choice thanks to the platform’s impactful full-screen format.
- Interstitial video ad effectiveness: Snapchat’s ads being skippable only after 6 seconds contributed to enhanced attention metrics, suggesting advertisers can confidently use Snapchat for attention-driven campaigns that lead to meaningful brand interactions
Rasha El-Ghoussaini, Head of Agency at Snap Inc. in MENA, said, “These findings reaffirm the powerful role Snapchat plays in modern digital engagement. With high reach, frequent user interactions, and an immersive ad environment, brands have an unparalleled opportunity to connect with the next generation of consumers here in Saudi Arabia. The results solidify Snapchat’s position as a vital platform for building brand relationships that truly resonate, empowering brands to engage authentically with their audiences.”
Spotlight on Brand Success: Kraft Heinz and General Motors
The study also offered compelling insights into how specific brands leveraged Snap’s unique ad environment to deliver impactful results:
- Kraft Heinz (Heinz): Heinz emerged as a leader in driving attention and engagement. Its ad on Snapchat achieved the highest average viewed time (17.9 seconds) and delivered the strongest brand choice uplift. These results underline the power of combining strong creative with a platform designed to sustain attention.
- General Motors (Chevrolet): Chevrolet’s ad demonstrated the importance of strategic creative planning. By integrating early branding, it achieved higher recall and attention metrics, converting an average of 10.7 seconds of view time despite being a longer ad. These findings highlight Snapchat’s ability to efficiently engage audiences even with extended storytelling formats.
These brand-specific results reinforce Snapchat’s capacity to deliver measurable outcomes for advertisers by combining its immersive ad format with audience-centric creative strategies.
