360 Video – A Revolution in Marketing?
Technology is ever evolving. Once in a while though, there’s some really cool stuff happening. It normally gets plenty of PR, such as Apple Pay, wearable technology, virtual reality etc. One of the latest innovations, has not been given enough credit though as it’s quite amazing. We’re talking about 360 Video (or 360 Degree Video).
Here’s how it works.
You get your phone out and look up a 360 video. Once the video starts playing, you can move the camera around in such a way that you choose what you want to look at. Turn your phone to the left, and the camera turns to the left. Turn to the right, the camera turns to the right. Turn around with your phone and you see what is happening behind you in the video. So instead of just watching a video, YOU control what you want to be looking at.
Reading this on your phone?
Play the below video and experience 360 video yourself (Make sure to open it using the YouTube app)
If you’re watching this on a browser on your desktop or laptop, you can also use the video by clicking and dragging the direction you want to look (although not as much fun as on your phone!).
The technology was developed when Virtual Reality came into play, but is now starting to hit mainstream. More and more videos are becoming available online that offer the user a unique viewing experience.
YouTube has supported 360 video technology since March of this year, but hasn’t made a big deal out of it. That’s a shame, because it actually is a big deal. The first videos that appeared were specifically designed for 360 Virtual Reality. I.e. 360 video in a cockpit, 360 video on a diving excursion, 360 video in nature films.
But it’s now hitting a new audience. YouTube’s favourites. That’s right, we’re talking about Vloggers.
360 Video Vlogging
We know of at least two vloggers who have experimented with 360 video. FunForLouis and Roman Atwood. Both have a huge online following so it shouldn’t be long until we hear more about 360 video.
Check out their videos here. Make sure to open them using the YouTube app!
Also make sure to check out and subscribe to their channels:
360 Video Marketing
So how is this going to be used in Marketing? We’ll have to wait and see which brands start experimenting first. Aviici has already used it in one of his music videos. But we can see this become a thing for hotels, airlines, car manufacturers, art galleries, tourist destinations, and much more.
Do you have any cool 360 videos you want us to publish? Let us know.
