With so much content flying across our screens on a daily basis, it can be hard for brand communicators to figure out the best way to get a message across and ensure someone sees it. The “click-through” has long been a holy grail of measurement when it comes to an understanding of the effectiveness of a digital channel in the marketing mix but those days are drawing to a close.
If “content exposure” becomes the hot new signal that attributes marketing success, new platforms that champion passive scrolling, or the use of video, will be the most highly prioritized destinations for a client’s content to live. Putting this shift into context against Adweek’s Digital Hot List, it opens a window for today’s bravest marketers to get in early with creative programming that uses the unique attributes of today’s trending communities.
With spring ramping up here in the Northeast and summer staring at us in the face, what should you know about the technology that consumers will be “thumb-stopping” on while laying poolside? Let’s take a post-Hot List swing around the icons:
It’s-a-Live!
The “What’s your Live strategy?” question can be one of the most challenging asks a content marketer hears in a Facebook Live meeting. Now that distribution is free, what happens when your brand goes live is the most important thing to think about, largely because of the priority Facebook (and Instagram) are putting on live video. Not only is the Facebook ecosystem sending push updates but they have also re-designed both Facebook and Instagram so that live video broadcasted by anyone you follow takes the highest feed priority.
While a Twitter video can be the de facto place to go for live sports events, is what a brand does with live video limited exclusively to events? Not at all, it can be a behind the scenes look of setting-up before an event that goes live on another platform. Does it have to include people? Nope, set your camera sights on anything that will hold attention when someone is scrolling. Can you set it and forget it? Absolutely not, the value of using prime real estate with a principal platform function means your brand’s biggest fans will be tuning in and you should not waste the opportunity to interact with them.
Quality is Still King!
Just because people can access a brand’s content quicker and easier, doesn’t mean it should not hold the same creative power as a traditional television partnership. Today’s biggest influencers are teaming up with the hottest content studios, like Fullscreen, to create fun projects that can be spread quickly through the network of a brand and their influencers.
Go-Go Gadget Spectacles!
Why are products like Spectacles by Snap, Inc. so hot? Not only is the future being realized as the worlds of fashion and hardware fuse together, but these new products are also reinforcing the future of how we consume content. Moving past our cable boxes and phones, the new “channel guide” is now our contact list. Who do we follow, and how are they delivering us the stuff we want to see? Hardware like Spectacles gives influencers and content creators the ability to share new perspectives and further turn your contact list into a new-age DVR.
