It’s all about
storytelling.
The Purpose.
The purpose of Snap's product imagery is to inspire customers with innovative ideas, functional products, and outstanding designs. Crafting a unique visual style posed a thrilling challenge for the Marketing team: How to showcase Snap’s wide range of products in a way that not only captures the attention of the target audience but also leaves them with an impression of the brand and addresses their professional needs.
The Formula.
The first challenge we faced centered on the designs featured on the products themselves. In an ideal world, we would have had hundreds of printed samples of work to simply photograph and put on display. However, sourcing samples suitable for advertising and marketing purposes was tougher than expected.
To overcome this, I proposed using a 'fictional brand' formula. The idea is to tell stories that connect Snap’s buyer personas to fictitious brands. Imagining the types of scenarios the persona would face in their particular role and the desired outcomes they were looking to achieve. The story ultimately leads to one of Snap’s ‘solution’ categories and the individual products that follow.
Using this formula, we gained control over the designs we wanted to feature on our products, ensuring a unified look that complements Snap's colour palette. But more importantly, it allowed us to shape our visuals to speak more effectively to the intended audience.
Below is an example of how a ‘fictional brand’ comes to life in the design of individual products.
The Method.
Then came the big question: should we print the individual products for studio photography? While that would have been amazing, the limitations of time and budget led us to seek more efficient methods.
The solution came in the form of a combination of stock and mock photos from various sources. Carefully treated, each image was composed with meticulous attention to detail, colour, texture, lighting, and shadows. The result is a collection of images that appear as if they have all been photographed in the same studio environment.
This treatment soon became referred to as being 'Snapified'. 'Snapified' images not only effectively showcase the range of products in a consistent tone but also became a visual representation of Snap's dedication to creativity and quality.
This method streamlined the production process, resulting in a distinct image style, establishing a signature visual language for Snap's branded messaging.
Various logos were created to support the ‘fictional brand’ formula.
The Result.
During my time at Snap, I developed hundreds of high-quality product images, each telling a unique story using the ‘fictional brand’ formula and the ‘Snapified’ treatment. This versatile collection of assets has been used for all kinds of marketing initiatives, including websites, social media, video, email marketing, point-of-sale displays, outdoor media, promo campaigns, and printed collateral.
