Ove Pedersen, influencer and the creater of Geeohsnap on Snapchat, makes content for some of the world’s best-known brands. “You have to get people talking about your business,” he said. “The main thing is creating interesting stories to promote a product or an event.”

In a campaign for Walt Disney to promote a Star Wars figure at stores, Ove Pedersen and another four influencers were the only advertising used. Ove Pedersen made a video of the robot running away from him in Paris. They generated 10 million views and the product sold out in a few hours.

“That shows the effectiveness of influencers doing something,” he said.

Pedersen wears a hat and sunglasses in his videos to spark the curiosity of viewers. He recommends retailers invest time on content for Snapchat. “If you can make it there, it’s worth it because you get followers that really connect with your brand,” he said. “For new businesses starting up it’s really hard to become big without using social media.”

For businesses with low budgets and no celebrity connections, he recommended reaching out to related companies to pool followers. A hair salon could work with a shampoo brand, for instance. The main mistake retailers make is to not make their campaigns personal enough and to not tell a story.

“People want the backstage of the brand,” he said. “We are becoming blind to regular ads. Most people won’t remember the last ad they scrolled by on Facebook.”