How to Make a Public Profile on Snapchat: A Complete Guide for Businesses

Snapchat has solidified its position as a powerhouse platform for businesses aiming to connect with both new and existing customers, especially through innovative advertising strategies. Snapchat advertising offers a cost-effective avenue to reach a highly engaged audience with significant purchasing power. In fact, Snapchat users demonstrate a higher likelihood to make purchases via their mobile devices compared to non-users, with an impressive average cost per swipe of $1 or less!

To fully leverage the potential of Snapchat ads, creating a public profile is a crucial first step.

Exploring diverse examples of engaging Snapchat public profiles.

But what exactly is a Snapchat public profile? Why is it essential for your business? And, most importantly, how can you set one up? This comprehensive guide will answer all these questions and more, complete with step-by-step instructions and visual examples to guide you through the process.

Understanding Snapchat Public Profiles

A Snapchat public profile serves as a complimentary hub for your business on the platform. It’s a space where you can showcase your content, foster meaningful interactions with your audience, and provide valuable information about your brand. Furthermore, your public profile acts as a central control panel for managing your Snapchat presence, connecting your online store, and unlocking a range of advanced Snapchat features.

Previously, Snapchat profiles operated on a private basis, limiting content visibility to only approved friends. The introduction of public profiles revolutionized this, allowing businesses to extend their reach beyond their immediate network. Now, anyone on Snapchat can discover, explore, and engage with your business content effortlessly.

Key components of a Snapchat public profile include:

Business Name: Clearly display your brand identity.
Username: Your unique Snapchat handle for easy identification.
Subscriber Count (Optional): Showcase your growing audience.
Business Description: A concise overview of your brand and offerings.
Website Link: Drive traffic directly to your online presence.
Saved Stories: Highlight your best content for ongoing viewing.
Lenses: Feature interactive and branded augmented reality experiences.

A compelling Snapchat public profile example from Zenni, showcasing key features.

Why Your Business Needs a Snapchat Public Profile

If you’re questioning the necessity of a Snapchat public profile for your business, consider these compelling advantages:

Enhanced Discoverability and Subscriber Growth

A public profile significantly boosts your business’s visibility on Snapchat. Users can now actively search for and find your brand through Snapchat’s search and browse functionalities. Once discovered, users can subscribe to your profile, ensuring they stay updated with your latest content. This expanded reach opens doors to new audiences and effectively directs traffic to your website or online store.

Rothys’ Snapchat public profile, clearly highlighting the subscribe button for audience growth.

Increased Content Views and Engagement

With improved discoverability comes a natural surge in views for your Snapchat content. Public profiles also empower you to save Stories permanently, making your engaging content accessible for new and returning visitors to view and interact with at any time. This evergreen content strategy maximizes the lifespan and impact of your Snapchat creations.

Essential for Snapchat Advertising

Since 2020, Snapchat public profiles have become a prerequisite for businesses wanting to run advertisements on the platform. Snapchat advertising presents a powerful tool, particularly if your target demographic aligns with Gen Z and Millennials.

Snapchat’s reach is undeniable, capturing 75% of all 13 to 34-year-olds. According to Hootsuite, this impressive statistic means “Snapchat is reaching more 13 to 34-year-olds in the USA than Facebook, Messenger and Instagram combined.” This alone underscores the critical importance of a public profile for any business aiming to tap into this influential demographic through advertising.

Wingstop’s Snapchat ad example, demonstrating the platform’s advertising potential for businesses.

Further Reading: Explore Snapchat ad examples and best practices to elevate your advertising strategy.

Eligibility for Creating a Snapchat Public Profile

Snapchat public profiles are broadly accessible to most users, with a specific focus on empowering businesses. Here are the straightforward eligibility criteria:

Age Requirement: You must be 18 years of age or older. Ensure your birthdate is accurately added to your account for Snapchat verification.
Account Age: Your Snapchat account needs to be established for at least 24 hours before creating a public profile. New accounts are not immediately eligible.
Friend Connection: You must have at least one friend who has added you back. This verifies basic account activity and connection.
Community Guidelines Compliance: Adherence to all Snapchat community guidelines is mandatory for maintaining a public profile.

Meeting these requirements is generally straightforward. If you encounter any issues creating a public profile after fulfilling these criteria, reach out to Snapchat support for direct assistance.

Step-by-Step Guide: How to Create a Public Profile on Snapchat

Follow these simple steps to establish your business’s Snapchat public profile and unlock its potential.

(Need to set up a Snapchat business account first? Refer to this guide for initial setup.)

Step 1: Launch the Snapchat app and tap on your profile icon located in the top left corner of the screen.

Step 2: Scroll down within your profile settings until you locate the “Public Profiles” section. Tap on “Create Public Profile”.

Step 3: Review the informational page outlining the benefits of public profiles. Tap “Continue” to proceed, and then select “Get Started”.

Step 4: A confirmation prompt will appear, asking you to create your public profile. Tap “Create” to finalize the setup.

Step 5: Congratulations! Your public profile is now active. You’ll be directed to the backend view of your new Snapchat public profile.

Optimizing Your Snapchat Public Profile

With your public profile created, the next crucial step is to populate it with relevant information and engaging assets to maximize its effectiveness. Consider these key elements:

Profile Picture: For business profiles, your logo is the ideal choice. Ensure it’s high-resolution and visually representative of your brand.
Snapchat Business Bio: Craft a compelling and concise bio, limited to 150 characters. Clearly communicate your brand’s value proposition and what users can expect from your content. (Explore tips for writing effective business descriptions to refine your bio).
Website Link: Include a direct link to your business website. This is essential for driving traffic and conversions from your Snapchat profile.
Saved Stories: Strategically curate and save your most engaging Stories to your public profile. Showcase your best content, product demos, behind-the-scenes glimpses, or user-generated content to captivate new visitors.
Lenses: If you’ve developed branded Snapchat Lenses, feature them prominently on your profile. Lenses offer interactive and shareable experiences, enhancing brand engagement.

Medicube’s optimized Snapchat public profile, demonstrating effective use of profile elements.

By thoughtfully adding these elements, you’ll create a comprehensive and informative public profile that encourages visitors to learn more about your business and engage with your content.

Managing Your Snapchat Public Profile: Editing and Deletion

Need to make adjustments to your public profile or remove it entirely? Here’s how:

Editing Your Public Profile:

Step 1: Open the Snapchat app and tap on your profile icon in the top left corner.

Step 2: Scroll down to the “Public Profiles” section and tap on “My Public Profile”.

Step 3: Tap the settings icon located in the top right corner to access profile management options, or select the “Edit Profile” button to directly modify profile details.

Step 4: On the “Manage Public Profile” page, you can access a range of actions:

Edit Profile: Modify your bio, profile picture, website link, and other details.
Save Stories to Public Profile: Curate and manage your featured Stories.
Share My Public Profile: Generate a shareable link to promote your profile.
Delete Public Profile: Initiate the profile deletion process.

Step 5: When editing your profile, you can update various elements, including your profile image, bio, location, and subscriber count visibility preferences.

Deleting Your Public Profile:

Step 1: Navigate to the “Manage Public Profile” page following the editing steps outlined above.

Step 2: On the “Manage Public Profile” page, select “Delete Public Profile”.

Step 3: Confirm your decision to delete your public profile when prompted.

Deleting your public profile will not impact your core Snapchat account. You can always recreate a public profile in the future if needed, following the initial setup process.

Create Your Snapchat Public Profile Today!

Establishing a public profile on Snapchat is a swift and straightforward process that significantly enhances your brand’s discoverability on the platform and prepares your business for impactful Snapchat advertising campaigns. Snapchat remains a dynamic and valuable platform for reaching an engaged audience, driving website traffic, fostering customer engagement, and nurturing prospective clients. Take the step today and unlock the business potential of Snapchat!

Stephanie Heitman

Stephanie is the Associate Director of Content for LocaliQ and WordStream. She has over 10 years of experience in content and social media marketing and loves writing about all things digital marketing. When she’s not researching the latest and greatest marketing news and updates, she’s probably watching reality TV with her husband, reading, or playing with her two pups.

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