In Snapchat campaign creation, you can build several campaigns at the same time and add multiple ad sets to them. Similarly, when setting up ads, you can choose which ad sets to add them to.

You create Snapchat campaigns in five steps:

1. Create the campaigns.
2. Define the campaign-level settings.
3. Create the ad sets for the campaigns, defining the audiences.
4. Create the ads for the ad sets.
5. Review and publish the campaigns.

If you're about to create a dynamic ads campaign, check out what settings to use for Snapchat dynamic ads campaigns.

💡 Tip: When you're creating multiple campaigns, ad sets, or ads, some of the settings have a Copy to all button: you can click it to copy the same value to all the campaigns, ad sets, or ads that you're creating.

Before you start

💡 Tip: You cannot use an Image or Video Template directly in Snapchat ads, but you can export creatives from the templates and use those in the ads. Export creatives from a template and then either download them or store them in the Asset Library.

Step 1: Create the campaign

To start creating a Snapchat campaign:

1. On the top navigation bar, click Campaigns.
2. On the Campaigns page, select the Snapchat platform tab or any Snapchat report.
3. Click Create > New campaign.

The Snapchat campaign creation view opens.

You can create more than one campaign at the same time. Add more campaigns on the Campaigns tab on the left sidebar:

• To create a campaign from scratch, click .
• To copy a campaign, click ⋯ > Duplicate next to it.

Step 2: Define the campaign-level settings

On the Campaigns tab, define the settings for each campaign:

1. On the left sidebar, select the campaign.
2. In Status, select whether the campaign is set to active or paused when it's created.
3. In Campaign Name, define a name for the campaign.
4. In Campaign Objective, select the campaign objective: the business outcome you want to achieve with your ads, such as building awareness, or getting people to install your app or buy your product.
   
   • The objective you select affects which ad formats you can use for your campaign.
5. In the Details section:
   1. Set a daily or lifetime spend cap.
   2. Define the start and end dates and times. The default setting is that the campaign starts immediately and runs indefinitely.

Step 3: Create the ad sets for the campaigns

Go to the Ad sets tab on the left sidebar and create the ad sets for your campaigns.

Your new campaign has one ad set created by default. You can create more ad sets from the left sidebar in the same way that you created campaigns:

• To create an ad set from scratch, click .
• To copy an ad set, click ⋯ > Duplicate next to it.

Define the settings for each ad set:

1. On the left sidebar, select the ad set.
2. In Status, select whether the ad set is set to active or paused when it's created.
3. In Ad Set Name, define a name for the ad set.
4. In Campaigns, select which campaigns you want to add the ad set to.
5. In Ad Set Settings, select the ad format.
6. In Locations, define the location targeting settings. The available settings depend on the country you're targeting.
7. Define the Ad Skipping, Tracking, and Placement settings. You can select third-party tags further down.
   • If your end goal is to drive actions within your app, the Snap App ID can be used for in-app tracking. This unique code is generated in the Snapchat Ads Manager.
   • You can also enable SKAdNetwork tracking for iOS version 11.3 or higher, but you need to first define the Devices settings (see later in this step list).
8. In Budget & Delivery, define the budget and delivery settings for the ad set.
   • You can use a daily or a lifetime budget.
   • In Goal, define the optimization goal: the action you want a Snapchat user to take when they see your ad. See Snapchat's help center for more information on combining campaign objectives with optimization goals.
   • Select any third-party tracking tags that you want to use.
9. In Demographics, define the target audience, such as age, gender, or languages.
10. In Audiences, select any predefined audiences and custom audience inclusions or exclusions that you want to use.
11. In Devices, define device targeting settings. For example, you can target specific mobile operating system versions and device models.

Rule about ratio between campaign daily budget cap and ad set daily budgets

Snapchat has a rule that if you calculate the sum of the daily budgets for all ad sets in a campaign, that that sum can’t exceed the campaigns’ daily budget cap by four times. So for example, if you have $100 daily budget cap on the campaign and three ad sets with $80 daily ad set budget each, then it is still okay, because the ratio is 2.4x ($80*3/$100). But if you try to lower the campaign daily budget cap to $50, then Snapchat will not allow it, because the ratio would become 4.8x ($80*3/$50). 

If you update multiple campaigns and ad sets in one go through Smartly, then Smartly will send these to Snapchat one at a time. First campaign is updated, then ad sets, and finally the ads. If you lower your budgets, you might experience this problem where the ratio would temporarily go over 4x. In those cases, you will get an error message stating:

The sum of your Ad Set daily budgets multiplied 
by ratio cannot exceed your campaign daily 
budget spend cap : [Ratio: 0.25]

To circumvent this, lower your budgets in two steps. First change your ad sets budgets to lower and publish the changes. After that, edit the campaign and change the budget cap to be lower. That's it!

Step 4: Create the ads for the ad sets

Go to the Ads tab and create the ads (creatives) for the ad sets. See information on Snapchat ad formats.

Your new campaign has one ad created by default. You can create more ads in the following ways:

• To create a new ad from scratch, click on the left sidebar.
• To use creatives from your Snapchat Creative Library, click From Library on the left sidebar and select the creatives on the Creative Library list. The list only shows those creatives that can be added to the ad sets you're currently working on.
  
  • ℹ Note: Creatives in the Creative Library can be used in multiple campaigns. If a creative is edited in one campaign, the change is reflected in other ads as well.
  • You cannot edit these creatives in Smartly.io.
  • After selecting a creative, you can also use it as a template to create a new creative: click Use as Template. You can then edit the creative details, and it is added to the campaign as a new creative.
• To copy an ad, click ⋯ > Duplicate next to it.
• Use automation to create multiple ads based on an automation feed. You can use a feed, for example, to automatically create ads per media file or language. You could then automate the field input for things like the product set selection or the ad text, descriptions, and links.

Define the settings for each ad:

1. On the left sidebar, select the ad.
2. In Status, select whether the ad is set to active or paused when it's created.
3. In Ad Name, define a name for the ad.
4. In Automation, select whether to use automation for the ad. See how to define the automation settings.
5. In Ad Sets, select which ad sets you want to add the ad to.
   • The ad format you selected for the ad set determines which fields are available for the ad.
   • If you want to create the ad into multiple ad sets, all the selected ad sets must have the same ad type, ad format, and attachment.
6. Define the creative details in Format, Attachment, Media, and Copy.
7. In the Advanced section, define the advanced settings for the creative, such as Impression tags or Swipe Up tags.
   • You can apply third-party impression tracking tags and click trackers to verify and measure impressions and Swipe Ups.
   • In Creative name, you have the option to add a different creative name. If you leave it empty, the name in Ad Name is used.

ℹ Note: By default, when you fill out the creative form, a new creative is created and attached to the ad unless there's an exact duplicate creative. If there's an exact duplicate creative, Smartly.io uses the existing creative and doesn't create a new one.

Step 5: Review and publish the campaign

In Snapchat campaign creation, the review stage allows you to have a final look at the campaigns, ad sets, and ads before you publish them to Snapchat.

When you're ready with creating your campaigns, ad sets, and ads, proceed to the review stage by clicking Add Changes to Review.

If there are errors, you see a red badge next to the tabs and the campaigns, ad sets, and ads that you need to fix.

You can select a campaign and ad set from the menus or use the arrows on the right. The creatives are shown for each campaign and ad set that you select.

After reviewing your edits, click Publish.