Snapchat brings on Nielsen for 3rd Party Reach Validation

Snapchat recently brought on Nielsen to provide 3rd party validation for reach measurement.  This is a step in the right direction for Snapchat which until recently has been largely unaccountable for performance despite being priced at a significant premium (with regards to Snapchat Discover)  relative to comparable forms of digital audience reach for short video clips.

Specifically, Snapchat will be able to provide brands and agencies with Nielsen Digital Ad Ratings, which can track how many people a given ad campaign reaches. Essentially, buyers will be able to calculate the equivalent of a gross rating point for a campaign, including demographic data, which should help make Snapchat ads more comparable to TV. - WSJ

Nielsen brings a large degree of credibility although equally important will be two smaller players that will be measuring impressions.

Meanwhile, the ad tech firms Innovid and Sizmek will each supply ad tags—essentially bits of code—to bolster the more detailed tracking of how many times individual ads are delivered in campaigns. - WSJ

In aggregate, advertisers will now be able to compare Snapchat to comparable short video ad units on Facebook.  It's yet to be seen if the performance relative to price will be comparable - although Snapchat will likely argue their audience is more valuable.

The movement for more analytics is promising trend although likely insufficient for most paid advertising campaigns.  Audience capture and conversion tracking from Snapchat is still a gaping hole.  Until that happens, performance is still unlikely to match hype when it comes to Snapchat advertising campaigns.