News & Insights | Creative Agency Sydney

March 4, 2020

The Rise (& Rise) Of Vertical Video

How Brands Can Take Advantage

With nearly half of the world’s population having a smartphone in their pocket, the mass consumption of pocket-sized video grown. With that, vertical video has gone from an awkward aspect ratio to a mainstream media style practically overnight. Research has shown that we hold our phones vertical 94% of the time, while mobile has become the preferred device to watch short-form video.

Facebook, Instagram and YouTube have embraced vertical video formats in recent years. The newer generation of social media apps, like Snapchat and Tik Tok, use vertical video almost exclusively. There is now even a vertical film festival for creators pushing new boundaries, and Samsung launched a television recently that can rotate from horizontal to portrait for what they call millennial or gen z minded audiences.

Vertical video has won so much that Samsung recently made a concert stage optimised for your phone.

What is it?

Vertical video (also known as “portrait mode” video) comes in a few shapes and sizes, but generally, it means a video with an aspect ratio of 9:16. The aspect ratio describes the relationship of video width to video height. In vertical videos, the video is taller than it is wide.

In short, this means vertical video provides more pixel ‘real estate’ to deliver a message, and this is of particular interest for brand and advertising.

Traditional 16:9 video (left) 4:5 video (middle) and 9:16 vertical video (right)

How are brands using it?

While Facebook hosts a variety of aspect ratios, it has fully embraced the format primarily due to increased engagement rates with mobile viewers. When Facebook A/B tested vertical video against square ratio video using the same creative, video length, targeting, budget and bid, they discovered that vertical resulted in brand lift 70% of the time. Viewers even reported an increase in ad recall of between 3 and 9%.

What’s even more interesting is how it changes how we watch video ads. In the Facebook test, 70% of video watch time, including video ads, was with the sound turned on. Typically Facebook mobile viewers prefer muted video. However, full-screen vertical is engaging enough to encourage audio. And Facebook isn’t alone in their findings.

An independent test by Annenberg Media found that vertical video reached more people on Facebook than both square and horizontal formats and increased engagement.

In another recent study by Buffer & Animoto, they found vertical video advertising out-performed all other social formats considerably providing better bang for the buck.

So, long or short?

In a recent study from Social Bakers, they found the first 30s of long vids were completed 16.4% of the time and horizontal ones 13.4%, compared to 14.9% and 12.5% for medium-length videos.

Videos shorter than 30 seconds were completed by far the most often (29.9% for vertical and 22.2% for horizontal). Across the board, vertical performed better than horizontal videos.

Now We Collide embraced vertical in a recent project for Facebook Australia and used these insights to develop a marketing strategy that was vertical video first. We used stories, a vertical video format across Facebook and Instagram, to build awareness and drive traffic to the Facebook Gift Guide, showcasing the significant economic impact of Facebook on small businesses in Australia.

The creative strategy was designed to maximise the full-frame vertical with set design, art direction and camera setup all designed for the portrait format. “It is a great example of how clever vertical content can be effective in connecting with an audience to drive a business objective,” says Ryan Bodger Chief Creative Officer, Now We Collide.

See Gift Guide case studies here:

2018: https://nowwecollide.com.au/our-work/facebook-annual-gift-guide

2019: https://nowwecollide.com.au/our-work/facebook-giftguide-2019

Vertical Video Advertising is one of the biggest opportunities for brands and business in 2020 and beyond. Now We Collide offer consultation to determine how it could help your brand grow. Please contact us to find out more info@nowwecollide.com.au

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Written by Ryan Bodger, Chief Creative Officer at Now We Collide, an independent creative agency based in Sydney, Australia. We use insights, strategy and clever, creative thinking to produce contagious advertising campaigns and content for today's connected brands and consumers.

Published by Amanda in News

November 27, 2019

The Importance Of Great Content

There's been a noticeable rise in chatter around the push by 'Big Tech' to keep users inside their own platforms and ecosystems as more and more internet searches end without a click. So what is the role of great content and strategy within these environments?

It's interesting to see that now more than 50% of Google searches end without a click. Google search provides on-page content such as Wikipedia synopsis, shopping options, movie times, maps and directions etc. And they are all displayed within the first page of search without the need to click. The change has been gradual and subtle. Of course, when it comes to video, Google will promote YouTube as the one place they are happy for you to click-out to.

It's incredible to look at the most recent 'Internet Minute' chart for 2019, there are actually more YouTube videos watched in a minute than Google search queries made.

Likewise, Facebook is also on a mission to keep people inside their platform for longer. Recent statistics show that time spent using Facebook has remained stable over the last few years, even as more social platforms and niches have emerged. Examples include Facebook Watch, Facebook Marketplace, the raft of publisher and media deals and incredibly 43% of users now get their news from Facebook.

How will great content provide meaning, sales and loyalty?

All this is making the challenge for companies and their brands even greater. How can they still provide meaning, sales and loyalty in a constantly shifting online environment? Will clicks to websites and 'owned channels' become a thing of the past as online behaviour begins to change?

For sure! So ensuring a well planned and executed creative content strategy which performs specific marketing functions and ultimately delivers on business objectives becomes ever more important.

Written by Keir Maher, CEO at Now We Collide, an independent creative agency based in Sydney, Australia. We use insights, strategy and clever, creative thinking to produce contagious advertising campaigns and content for today's connected brands and consumers.

Published by Keir Maher in Insights, News

August 12, 2019

Content Marketing Podcasts worth listening to

With the sheer amount of podcasts out there, we thought we'd share three of our favourite content marketing podcasts with you.

This Old Marketing

The Content Marketing Institute has brought back their regular podcast. It's a fantastic resource for anyone in marketing, advertising, content production, media or social media. Joe Polizzi and Robert Rose originally coined the term 'content marketing'. They described it as the ability for brands to generate and produce their own content to fuel brand storytelling and marketing objectives. They discuss the latest developments in the world of content marketing and also provide opinion, insights, strategy and case studies. It's worth checking out.

Face 2 Face

Face 2 Face is a homegrown Australian podcast. Each episode discovers how Aussie marketers and creatives like Spotify, Volkswagen, Kathmandu and Telstra are using digital and social media platforms to succeed in a connected world.

The Now We Collide team led creative development, as well as design and production of the integrated campaign materials including video, email, digital and print assets. We collaborated with Facebook, Wooshkaa and Clear Hayes to develop the podcast series. Since it's launch it has become the number 1 business podcast in Australia. With in-depth interviews with some of our industries leading brands, along with real-life insights, the series is well worth a listen. (Well, of course, we would say that 😉

Behind the Numbers

The eMarketer Behind The Numbers podcast is great for getting a quick hit of the latest global news and trends from the world of digital media and digital marketing. Because they cover all the big stories and emerging trends using eMarketers research and data pedigree. And episodes feature global leaders in their field to provide strategic insights and opinion on the implications of emerging trends and developments for business.

Written by Keir Maher, CEO at Now We Collide, an independent creative agency based in Sydney, Australia. We use insights, strategy and clever, creative thinking to produce contagious advertising campaigns and content for today's connected brands and consumers.

Published by Keir Maher in News

December 11, 2018

YouTube growth & John Lewis’ Christmas TV commercial

YouTube has made another big move into 'social video' launching a new Stories feature for creators with over 10k subscribers. Following the huge success of Instagram Stories (er…sorry, Snap) it was only a matter of time before the YouTube team launched their version.

Using FashionByAlly, who has nearly 1 million YouTube subscribers, as an example of how stories can be created and shared. It will be interesting to see the options this will present to brands and businesses both natively and through advertising.

Facebook Watch is now offering in-stream commercials and with the growth of Instagram Stories and IGTV, YouTube clearly sees the threat to their revenue. It will be fascinating to see how this one plays out.

The power of YouTube to attract new eyeballs

An eye-opening article from the team at Venture Beat highlights the power of YouTube for attracting new eyeballs in emerging markets. In India, this means YouTube reaches 245 million unique active viewers each month and a further 74 million in Indonesia. That's phenomenal numbers. It shows how digital video is becoming a regular part of the lives of audiences in emerging markets. It presents challenges for both incumbents and new entrants like Netflix alike, who see these markets as the future of their growth - read the full story here.

A TV commercial worth watching

Not only the traditional ad-world but the wider public alike was a-buzz recently with the anticipated launch of John Lewis 2018 Christmas TV commercial. It proves that when 'advertising' is done well it can entertain instead of annoy. The TV commercial already has 10 million+ views on YouTube. Hats off to John Lewis and the team for investing over the long term. For all the nerds out there, check out the 'Making of The Boy and The Piano' TV commercial.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5cA7RjKcbk8

Published by Kurt in Insights, News

August 24, 2018

IGTV – A Must For Mobile Marketers?

Vertical video campaigns have been growing in popularity for a number of years along with the rise of in-app video viewing and mobile sharing. Snapchat was no doubt one of the pioneers of the format and they have continued to stick with it, while Facebook and Instagram have joined in with 'Stories' and Instagram's latest product IGTV. This is primarily being driven by the growing number of consumers now using their phones for their daily video consumption. The VideoInk provides an interesting look into Vertical Networks, launched by Elisabeth Murdoch with a focus on producing short-form video for mobile devices, and their "data-driven content strategy".

Talking of mobile video reports that Tesla is adding Atari games to the in-car display have been followed up with confirmation they are poised to bring in-car video to their next software update via an Elon Musk Tweet claiming that video playback will be available with "version 10" of Tesla's car software.

An interesting article from Variety on the journey Netflix has undertaken from DVD postal distribution company to the world's leading OTT entertainment company - "Netflix’s original-content push took off in earnest on Feb. 1, 2013, with the debut of “House of Cards.” Five years later, the streaming service has grown to the point where it is projected this year to deliver more than 80 new feature films (original and acquired) and an astounding 700 new TV series."

The campaign which caught our eye this week if the Smirnoff US campaign developed by 72andSunny with clever use of the media as the message using Ted Danson and a dash of humour to call attention to YouTube's 6-second bumper formats. It feels like Smirnoff missed a trick by not integrating the campaign across any other channels with no thought for extension across their website or other social channels.

Written by Keir Maher, CEO at Now We Collide, an independent creative agency based in Sydney, Australia. We use insights, strategy and clever, creative thinking to produce contagious advertising campaigns and content for today's connected brands and consumers.

Published by Kurt in Insights, News

August 17, 2018

The Latest Tech Giant Partnerships

Spotify and Samsung announced a new partnership whereby the music-streaming leader would become the new "go-to music service provider" for Samsung devices. Interestingly, Apple recently overtook Spotify as the number 1 music streaming service in the US and this obviously presents a challenge for Spotify. At the same time, YouTube launched its revamped YouTube Music App offering 1-month free trial and then an ongoing subscription for $11.99 per month. Samsung has been using Google Play as the default music partner on all devices, until now. In this sense, the partnership makes a lot of sense, particularly as Spotify tries to increase its presence in Asia. Samsung is the largest maker of mobile devices with 30.7% of the global mobile market, with Apple second at 19.4%.

A new AR experience

UK AR company Blippar has also launched a version of their AR experience which can map urban and indoor environments to within 1cm, providing a user with overlaid maps, navigation or other AR components for the mapped territory, or the application components can be embedded into other apps. The company suggests a wide range of potential environments for this platform, including retail stores, supermarkets, airports, shopping malls or stadiums. Use cases include AR menus floating in front of restaurants in shopping malls, reviews or product info hovering over products on shelves, treasure hunts or a virtual guide for tourists.

More and more startups are emerging offering decentralized social platforms -- often using blockchain technology. The main purpose of these new platforms is to reward users and content creators and not only the platform owners. Angel List has highlighted what they see as the 2 most promising - Steemit and Sapien. Built off the Steem blockchain, Steemit is a Reddit-esque social platform that as of now boasts nearly 800,000 registered users. Steemit’s version of upvotes, however, are tokens that hold real market value. Users—not advertisers—are rewarded for engagement. Sapien is a social news network built on the Ethereum blockchain that already has thousands of active users. The platform features a global reputation system, a reward system for users, and a marketplace for creators. While Facebook isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, these new decentralized social media platforms are growing—and fast.

This week Audi launched the first of a series of 3 big budget Hollywood style trailers from the creative team at BBH in the UK. Watch the Video: Audi Technology - Escape (Extended Cut).

Published by Kurt in News

August 9, 2018

News Colliding This Week. 9th August

Some of what we're reading, listening, watching this week...enjoy!

Ever heard of NewTV? Well they just raised a cool US$1bn to fund their plans to create a new short form video content platform, a kind of next-generation Netflix, with original content. NewTV is aiming to launch by the end of 2019, with a premium lineup of original, short-form series comprising episodes of 10 minutes each. The brainchild of ex Pixar exec Jeffrey Katzenberg has attracted investment from Disney, NBCUniversal, AT&T and more. Read Jeffrey Katzenberg’s ‘NewTV’ Startup Closes $1 Billion, All Major Studios Among Investors

At the same time as OTT's are planning short-form narrative content development, social media networks are taking an aim at longer form video. eMarketer and their podcast series 'Behind The Numbers' explore how long-form video is spreading across social media in this week's episode. With key moves by Facebook's Watch, Instagram's IGTV, YouTube Premium (previously YouTube Red (RIP)) and Twitter this episode is a great update on all the key developments and moves being made and how video content strategy is leading to advertisers. With some marketers placing pre-roll and mid-roll ads in social shows, there is great potential but the audiences are small and the current measurement capabilities are limited. Listen to eMarketer social-networks-get-serious-about-tv-style-programming

In-case you missed it, Apple became the first company in US history to be valued at over US$1 trillion. According to Bloomberg, iPhone sales continue to be the engine room of Apple profitability with iPhones generating 61 percent of the company’s sales in its last fiscal year, up from 56 percent in 2014. We can't help thinking the iPhone is unlikely to be anywhere near 50% of sales 10 years from now with Apple's push into AR, AI (Siri and HomePod) and even mobility with the company doubling the amount of cars it is testing since Jan 2018.

And talking of AI, The Wall Street Journal is reporting that robots are now making burgers in San Fransisco, "11 thermal sensors lock in the exact doneness" apparently. Watch the video here.

Published by Kurt in News

July 31, 2018

News Colliding This Week. 31 July

A weekly round up of what we're reading and watching - enjoy!

Twitter haven't given up on video just yet. TheVideoInk reports that Twitter is adding to it's video offering in an effort to bolster it's video credentials. Live and on-demand video deals have remained a major focus for Twitter and has in part led to half of all Twitter revenue coming from video. Read the full article - Even Without a Dedicated Live Stream Team, Twitter is Still All About Video.

eMarketer released new figures showing the shift from PayTV towards OTT and other cord-cutting services has continued to gather speed in the US accelerating beyond most forecasts. The latest figures show the number of cord-cutters—adults who have ever cancelled pay TV service and continue without it—will climb 32.8% this year to 33.0 million. Read the full article - Exodus from Pay TV Accelerates Despite OTT Partnerships.

Facebook Australia launched their latest thought leadership video and podcast series, Face 2 Face. The series discovers how industry leaders from KPMG, TBWA Melbourne, Optus, Velocity Frequent Flyer, Host/Havas, Guzman y Gomez, AFL and Initiative are building brands in the digital age. The series uncovers key insights for how brands should be adapting for mobile, how has creativity changed, how to build a brand on mobile, and how marketers can engage customers in a meaningful way. Watch the full video series here.

A recent report from Marketing Land shows that Instagram ad spend has grown 177%, outpacing Facebook growth, while YouTube advertisers spent nearly triple what they did last year! Instagram audience growth also continued, helped by Stories, and they'll be counting on this continuing with the recent launch of IGTV. The biggest news though was that YouTube ad impressions rose 225 percent, and CPMs fell by 11 percent. Phones and tablets accounted for 79 percent of YouTube ad spend during the second quarter of this year — up from 71 percent a year ago. Read the full article - Facebook takes a back seat to Instagram as ad spend on the Facebook-owned app grows 177%.

Paramount Pictures launched Mission Impossible: Fallout with a nice 360 video featuring Tom Cruise perilously dangling from a helicopter, fair enough, Cruise apparently went through 2,000 hours of training in order to shoot the scene. Watch the full video here.

And finally, we're loving the thought of taking our own private autonomous flying taxi next time we have a meeting. This TED Talk from Rodin Lyasoff, Chief Executive Officer at A³ by Airbus suggests the dream may not be too far from reality! Watch the video - How autonomous flying taxis could change the way you travel.

Published by Kurt in News

June 26, 2018

Facebook Kicks Off A Major National Ad Campaign

Facebook is rolling out a major ad campaign across Australia in an attempt to reassure users that the platform can be trusted and will do better.

The national 'Here Together' ad campaign, created in-house, addresses issues of online safety, privacy, and the brand's integrity.

Launching in Australia today across out of home, digital, TV and cinema, the eight-week ad campaign is intended to restore trust in Facebook. It aims to inform users about its efforts to combat fake accounts, data misuse, and fake news – all of which the social media platform declare are “not our friends”.

This creative will also feature six-second animations.

We've listened to what Australians expect

The promotional crusade follows its recent data calamity with Cambridge Analytica, a rise in fake news and calls for the platform to be more transparent and open.

Managing director of Facebook Australia and New Zealand (ANZ), Will Easton, says: "We've listened to what Australians expect from us, and they expect action."

"It is our responsibility to make sure Facebook is a place where everyone can stay closer to the people they care about, and to make sure it's a positive force in the world."

Speaking to AdNews, Facebook ANZ Head of Marketing, Alexandra Sloane explained how the in-house creative team in the US developed the original asset, and locally it carried out research and engaged with its content agency, Now We Collide, to create the end result.

"We understood what Australia and our community needed from us in terms of an update on ways we're going to improve the experience of our platform," Sloane says.

"Through a mixture of Australian user-generated content, as well as live-action video, we localised the Australian community that we represent. Also, the script and voice-over are addressing particular research insights we uncovered."

Spots remind viewers why they engage with Facebook

The video spots remind viewers why most engage with Facebook in the first place – as a portal to connect with family and friends.
“Then something happened,” the ad voiceover says. “We had to deal with spam, clickbait, fake news and data misuse.”

Facebook Head of Communications Australia and New Zealand, Antonia Sanda, tells AdNews that local research, both qualitative and quantitative, was at the heart of the Facebook ad campaign.

“It’s very much focused on meeting the needs of the Australian community, absolutely,” Sanda says.

Sloane says a lot of the insight Facebook got from Australian consumers was that they wanted to hear about the actual updates to the platform.

As a result, it has also launched a new landing page to accompany the campaign, as a resource that pulls in all the updates in one place. Sloane says this gives users "a sense of how we're changing – how we're doing better and taking a broader sense of responsibility."

Ad campaign media placement is key

From there, the media agency Mindshare came on board, with CEO Katie Rigg-Smith explaining why they chose certain marketing channels.

"The out-of-home campaign is focused on eye-level, longer dwell time formats across street furniture and transit centres to deliver more detailed information on how Facebook is changing," she says.

"While cinema will be used to celebrate the 60-second video creative in a highly engaging environment."

Sloane adds that the whole campaign is really about starting a more meaningful and open relationship with Australians.

"We have to start by being more open and transparent with our community, and acknowledging and listening first of all, and then addressing the things that are important to our community head-on," she says.

"And so we hope that we've not just acknowledged the broader responsibility that we have, but that we're also demonstrating action that we're taking."

Written by Keir Maher, CEO at Now We Collide, an independent creative agency based in Sydney, Australia. We use insights, strategy and clever, creative thinking to produce contagious advertising campaigns and content for today's connected brands and consumers.

Published by Kurt in Press

March 15, 2018

Reach consumers who searched on Google…on YouTube

It sounds like a no brainer but now Google has provided a direct relationship between search on Google and video delivery on YouTube for advertisers. At the recent Search Marketing Expo - SMX, Google announced a number of updates to YouTube which provide greater evidence of their focus on video. It's now at the heart of internet search and way to connect brands, products and services to audiences (and that means customers).

Allowing advertisers to reach (and if done correctly, engage) people on YouTube who have recently searched on Google, the new innovation called "custom intent audiences" harnesses Google's vast amount of search information and is currently only available within the AdWords experience. By fusing the data collected in search with audience information and search terms on YouTube, custom intent audiences can be "an effective way to move undecided customers to action using the persuasive power of video." according to the Google announcement.

This presents a really interesting opportunity for brands to develop an integrated digital strategy using the power of video to build brand and/or product awareness, brand affinity and product features and benefits in an engaging way. Used in the right way it is clear that this can complement and increase the performance of SEM and digital marketing campaigns. Particularly in hyper-competitive categories such as travel, finance, auto, e-commerce and beyond, a well-thought-out strategy to connect with audiences based on historical search behaviour across Google to deliver relevant and timely video content could significantly drive enhanced outcomes for not only awareness and brand building but also customer acquisition.

Google highlights a case study of online investment company Betterment who used custom intent audiences to reach YouTube viewers who recently searched for financial keywords on Google. The brand increased its return on ad spend 6X compared to previous YouTube campaigns and saw a 245% increase in searches on Google.com, including their brand term: "Betterment".

Social media content has the power to assist with SEO

Of course, Google would like everything to stay within their ecosystem but in reality, the power of social media content to also assist with SEO, customer engagement and acquisition means that a multi-channel social video content strategy would also contribute significantly to overall results and maximise the ROI of video content. This also provides a way for savvy marketers to prove direct results of an integrated digital marketing strategy with video at the heart.

One issue this also highlights is the need for specialist video content experts with a deeper knowledge and understanding of not only the different platforms available but also how video and content creative needs to be optimised for these platforms and the different opportunities to maximise ROI within them. It also highlights the need for multi-disciplinary teams to work collaboratively, in this case, the SEM specialists working alongside video & content strategy and creative as part of a wider digital content strategy. It will be interesting to see which brands take full advantage of this new feature as Google starts to roll it out globally.

Published by Kurt in Insights, News

February 16, 2018

Media & Tech Predictions For 2018

2018 is in full swing and gathering pace at breakneck speed - Mark Zuckerberg has already promised a new and improved Facebook experience for users but is giving brands the cold shoulder unless they advertise, Twitter has announced it's first ever profit, Aussie retailers are getting busy fending off Amazon, and Apple is about to become the world's biggest investor in original content with $8.3bn outstripping Netflix measley $7.5bn-$8bn.

Our only prediction for 2018 is that more change is inevitable and to be prepared for the unexpected - aside from that we thought we'd share one of our favourite commentators - Proff Scott Galloway from L2Inc - and let him put his neck on the chopping block on our behalf - enjoy.

Published by Kurt in News

November 15, 2017

ESPN Partner With Now We Collide

ESPN Partner With Now We Collide And Launch New Brand Playbook ‘It’s Your Prime Time’

In a competitive pitch Now We Collide have been chosen as the lead creative and content agency for ESPN Australia going into 2018.

The announcement follows successful project based work from Now We Collide which has contributed to the biggest year on record for ESPN in Australia, with audience growth across both broadcast and digital channels - a massive 21% increase in TV ratings so far this year, while the ESPN Digital Network audience has surged to reach 2.6 million unique visitors a month.

With ESPNS’s focus on creating high quality content and getting it in front of fans - all devices and screens and with sports now being 24/7, ESPN is redefining what Primetime means to their audience.

Now We Collide developed the creative and content strategy which speaks to this new way of consuming content and appeals to a younger and more ethnically diverse audience than those of traditional sports broadcasters. Using bespoke research and audience insights as a foundation, the integrated creative provides a distinct positioning for ESPN across all brand assets including TV & digital - social video templates and content, EDM, digital display, print and out of home media as well as the establishment of a brand campaign playbook for ongoing campaigns.

“We worked in close collaboration with Now We Collide, every step of the way, and their clear understanding of our audience and our brand position in Australia has led to a longer term commitment from ESPN to the agency. They are the perfect fit for us at this time” Says Patrick Bour, Director of TV and Marketing at ESPN.

Chief Creative Officer for Now We Collide, Ryan Bodger said, “ESPN gave us the ability to highlight our deeper understanding of the ESPN audience and the need for a more unified and personalised approach in the multi-channel world of sports entertainment. We used this to develop standout creative while giving the fans ownership of ESPN embracing ‘Prime Time’ as their own.

“The most satisfying thing for us as an agency is seeing the success that ESPN is having through our collaboration. Audience numbers are consistently growing across owned and earned channels. The recent US Open coverage in September was a huge audience success with ESPN audiences up a massive 172% supported by integrated campaign creative, all consistent with the ‘It’s Your Prime Time’ playbook. With NFL and NBA seasons kicking off we’re looking forward to another big year ahead. It’s an exciting time for us as an agency.” commented Keir Maher Now We Collide CEO.

Published by Kurt in Press, Updates

September 4, 2017

Video Content Marketing for Generation V

Video has rapidly become the most powerful way to connect with audiences around the world. And video content marketing represents the biggest growth opportunity for brands to do just that.

It demands and attracts more consumer attention than any other medium. Because of its unrivalled ability to evoke emotion, communicate information and tell stories.

And whilst the "golden age of video" is in full swing - it still represents the biggest growth opportunity for brands to build audiences and harness them to build brands and sell products.

Scientifically, we know that 90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual. And that visuals are processed by the brain 60,000 times faster than text. Given people spend one-third of their time online watching videos there is huge potential here.

Of all the video platforms available, YouTube is the most regularly used platform for Gen Z cited by 84% of respondents in a recent Accenture study.

The video content marketing stats are compelling:

Video is projected to claim more than 80% of all web traffic by 2019.

Mobile video traffic expected to increase at a 50% compound annual growth rate through to 2021.

Between Snapchat (10 billion), Facebook (8 billion), and YouTube alone (4 billion), there are 22 billion daily video views.

One-third of all the time people spend online is dedicated to watching videos.

64% of customers are more likely to buy a product online after watching a video about it.

87% of online marketers are currently using video content in their digital marketing strategies and 65% of marketers plan to increase their mobile ad budgets to account for video.

7 out of 10 Millennials are likely to watch a company video when shopping online.

With access to the tools of production and distribution now almost ubiquitous, many brands, both big and small, are taking advantage of the content marketing revolution, with great results. However, it is the rigour around content strategy, creative strategy, and selecting the right tools of production and distribution which separates the ok from the great.

To get more information on how the best brands are using video content marketing campaigns to achieve results-based business outcomes, why not drop us a line.

Published by Kurt in Insights

April 19, 2017

A Video Led Campaign With Social At The Heart

We loved collaborating with UPI Australia and our tech partners ShareRoot to develop this integrated video led campaign with social at the heart for the release of The Secret Life of Pets. Hats off to the team at UPI for being brave enough to unleash the power of UGC - which, when planned and executed correctly, can deliver serious return on investment. The campaign proved such a success, including delivering a huge box-office return, the guys over at Marketing Magazine have published our campaign case study.

Published by Kurt in News, Press, Updates

November 4, 2016

YouTube’s New End Screen Feature For Brands & Publishers

YouTube recently announced it is looking to faze out annotated end frames on videos and has introduced YouTube End Cards as a feature. Previously reserved for a select number of publishers and creators, the key benefit of End Screens is that they work across both mobile and desktop, whereas predecessor annotations work only on desktop. This is a step YouTube had to take given half of all YouTube users now access YouTube video on mobile.

So what are they? End Screens are overlays appearing at the end of videos which encourage viewers to take an action before the video completes, such as get more information, click to view another video, visit a website, subscribe to the channel and more. End Screens can appear in the last 5-20 seconds of a video, and desktop viewers can hover over them for more information while mobile audiences just need to tap on the thumbnails. YouTube has restricted use to up to four End Screens, as long as the video has a 16:9 aspect ratio.

This makes End Screens a valuable feature for brands and publishers who take advantage of this important new feature.

If brands and publishers create quality videos that convince viewers to watch more content via the use of compelling End Screens, they can expect to see increased retention and watch time across their channels, thanks to the YouTube algorithm. Over time, this tactic can also increase overall video completion and watch time metrics notwithstanding the fact that the video creative still needs to do the main job of attracting and keeping viewers.

With viewing across mobile being so high, the ability to encourage channel subscription and additional calls-to-action such as product purchase or visiting a specific (verified) website across both mobile and desktop traffic is significant.

The switch to End Cards does create a potential headache for existing publishers who have annotated end frames and want to switch to End Screens as the formatting is different and the placement restrictions of the thumbnails means previous end frames and calls-to-action are unlikely to match up and will need re-formatting.

Ongoing though, it is clear that any brand or publisher uploading video to their YouTube channel will now need to consider:

How videos created can best utilise the updated End Screens format.
How to time video end frames to make the most use of the 5-20 seconds available on End Screens.
Check performance and metrics of end screens to see those performing best, be prepared to modify based on audience behaviour.

As the world's second biggest search engine and with the seemingly unstoppable rise of video consumption on mobile, a YouTube strategy is now near essential for most brands and publishers. With End Screens, brands and publishers can improve the experience on YouTube for mobile audiences, increase watch times, and drive specific actions from viewers. As such, brands and publishers should start using End Screens as soon as possible so they can reap the benefits of the feature sooner rather than later.

Published by Kurt in Insights, News

September 20, 2016

Branded VR Video & 360 Video ‘Experience Is Believing’

We used to say seeing is believing. Now we have to say ‘experiencing is believing’.

It seems about 1 in 5 briefs we work on at the moment have a VR video component as brands and agencies look to explore the possibilities of the immersive and engaging world of 360 video and virtual reality.

The next 18 months will be a telling time. Let's see how audiences transition from standard video viewing to embrace VR and invest in a personal headset, closing themselves off from the real world to engage with the most immersive form of video content.

For anyone that has put on the Samsung Gear VR, Vive or Oculus, there is usually a wow moment when you realise just how immersive and engaging the VR video world can be. One thing is for certain we are just at the beginning of where the technology will lead us. It will be exciting to see what other AR/VR players like Magic Leap, Sony and Microsoft can bring to the table.

We know that premium publishers and tech giants are getting on board with big investments. Google is working on a VR version of Chrome. NBC and Samsung broadcasted the summer Olympics in VR. Hulu, Crackle, Jaunt, and Within already have dedicated apps, or “theatres,” where viewers can consume massive amounts of VR content.

The NBA (National Basketball Association) has also started creating longer form VR experiences with its mind-blowing VR production ‘Follow My Lead’ which tells the story of the 2016 NBA finals, taking audiences behind the scenes for an experience like no other.

Content innovation can lead to commercial investment

Now more than ever we are seeing significant brand dollars being spent on VR experiences that prove that content innovation can lead to commercial investment, leaving audiences feeling inspired by the bravery and courage of a brand to do something different in the VR space.

A great example of a brand investing in VR

One thing we know for sure is that when you are inside a VR experience you are the most captive audience a brand can have and the experience you create needs to be compelling. There is no other form of media right now that is as immersive as a branded VR video experience and brands need to take advantage.

The Numbers

Greenlight Insights released results this week from its survey of 1,300 adults that found the majority of consumers, 71% of them, feel that VR makes brands seem “forward-thinking and modern.” However, there’s even better news for brands’ bottom lines: 53% of respondents said they’d be more likely to purchase from a brand that uses VR than from one that doesn’t.

“We’re seeing specific VR activities have unique emotional footprints, offering fascinating insights for those who are considering their VR strategies,” Steve Marshall, SVP of Research and Consulting for Greenlight VR, said in a statement announcing the findings.

What is the perfect branded VR video experience?

It comes down to the brand objectives and how people will contextually be viewing the experience. When people are in groups with one person viewing a VR experience the viewer doesn’t want to feel trapped inside for too long (4-5mins max). They will want to share or talk about their experience soon after. When a viewer is alone with VR, the sky’s the limit, a viewer will stay engaged for longer and want to stay immersed.

‘Virtual reality by definition intensifies the impression of reality. All the viewer’s senses are heightened including sight, sound, and motion; content that delivers fully immersive experiences will be in high demand.’

Content that delivers a fully immersive experience will be in high demand

This potential for VR storytelling will take branded entertainment to a whole new level. Imagine Apple showcasing its VR capable iPhone 8 (yet to be released) where viewers can take part in a Mars landing and film the experience in first person using features on the iPhone 8. Viewers could zoom into the phone to play with a realistic, 360-degree model of the device or even watch a video shot with that new device, thereby zooming into an entirely new storyline set on Mars.

The Production Value

There are a number of aspects when considering the production value of producing VR or 360 video content.

VR is not the same as 360 Video.

While the two can be packaged up as a VR experience, there is a difference between the two. 360 video is effectively filming a real-world environment with a 360 camera, which can be produced in 2D using a whole range of cameras from consumer to prosumer or in stereoscopic 3D using more high-end professional-grade equipment.

Once captured 360 videos can have 3d, overlay graphic elements or interactive hotspots added to make the experience more engaging. A great example of a mixed live-action 360 video shoot and 3D environment can be seen here with Google Spotlight Story Help.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-XZhKqQAHU

Help uses a mix of studio, 3D and real-world 360 videos. This is, of course, a pretty amazing experience best viewed in VR and not desktop. VR environments, games and stories that are completely virtual are created in 3D and compiled using software like Unity 3D or Unreal Engine .

2D vs 3D

If done right, VR created as a 3D experience is always going to be more compelling. 2D is a great way to create a high-resolution experience and keep production costs down. Poorly implemented 3D and 360 video footage can cause a great deal of discomfort to the viewer including headaches, eye strain or nausea. With a 2D video, you’re getting more resolution out of the device because you’re not having to stack the left and right channels (or top and bottom channels) within the phone’s limited resolution. Oculus CTO John Carmack explains, “People that are resolution-picky will probably prefer monoscopic videos, which can have twice the resolution of stereo videos. The stereo effect may not be worth anything to you if you can't get past the blurring.”

How To Get Views?

Virtual reality viewing roughly falls into 3 categories. First are desktop and mobile video player with no headset (think Facebook or YouTube 360 native players). Next are expensive headsets tethered to a computer, aimed mostly at gamers, like the Oculus Rift or the HTC Vive. Finally, there are mobile viewing experiences that combine with a smartphone, like Samsung's Gear VR or Google's Cardboard.

Marketers need to think about how and when audiences will be viewing their content and ensure they are driving people to experience branded VR through a quality headset. This should be coupled with the distribution of content to key VR publishers for optimal reach across platforms and devices. As with any type of video content distribution and seeding, a strategy is paramount.

Published by Kurt in News

August 25, 2016

#SecretLifeofMyPet Campaign Launches with Great Success

UNIVERSAL PICTURES AND CHANNEL 7 SUNRISE

GIVE ONE AUSSIE PET THE CHANCE TO APPEAR IN A GLOBAL ANIMATED FEATURE FILM!

Universal Pictures Australia and Channel 7 Sunrise have kicked off a massive 4 week promotion for the upcoming animated film THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS.

In a unique and unprecedented promotion, the pair has joined forces with the film’s production company Illumination Entertainment to exclusively give one Australian pet the chance to be animated and featured in THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS 2.

It’s no secret or surprise that Australia has a deep and abiding love for pets. More than 63% of Australian households own a pet and more than 83% of Australians have owned a pet at some point in their life*.

“The promotion taps into Australia’s love of pets and extraordinary interest in pet content, both viewing and sharing. As a country of proud pet owners, we love showing off our furry companions. Now, thanks to The Secret Life of Pets, we’re giving owners the ultimate prize with the chance to immortalise their pet on the big screen,” says Universal Pictures Australia Marketing Director, Suzanne Stretton-Brown.

Working with partner video content agency Now We Collide & UGC technology firm ShareRoot, the competition has been designed to maximise social sharing.

To win the money-can’t-buy prize, entrants are required to submit a photo or video showcasing their pet’s star quality. People can enter a video or photo of their pet at the dedicated website or via social with the hashtag #secretlifeofmypet on Instagram or Twitter.

The moderated submissions will be aggregated and then showcased in a gallery on the competition website. The best 5 entries as voted by a Channel 7 Sunrise judging panel will go into a voting phase where Australia will vote for their favourite Australian pet.

We are set to receive a huge amount of UGC content through this campaign that will be used to extend and amplify the film release here in Australia. We’re expecting to see UGC video content drive a big proportion of entries. Says Now We Collides’ Head of Content Strategy Keir Maher.

“This project is incredibly exciting as it’s one of the most unique and innovative uses of UGC we’ve ever seen. It’s watershed moment for UGC marketing,” CEO and co-founder of UGC marketing technology firm ShareRoot said.

The Secret Life of Pets opens in Australian cinemas on September 8 but has already broken box office records around the world. In the U.S, the film became the biggest opening ever for an original film, animated or otherwise.

Entries for the SECRETLIFEOFMYPET competition close at midnight on Thursday September 1^st. The Top 5 finalists will go into public voting from Monday September 5^th where the pet with the most votes by midnight Friday September 9^th will be awarded the major prize.

* (2013) Pet Ownership in Australia Summary, Animal Health Alliance

COLLABORTAING PARTNERS:

Channel Seven
Now We Collide
ShareRoot
Mediacom

Published by Kurt in News, Press, Updates

November 8, 2015

Native Mobile Video Campaigns Best Practice

Here at Now We Collide we work with brands looking to engage with customers and build a broader fan base with meaningful and relevant content. Mobile video campaigns are often a great way to do this. Because we are consuming more and more video online via mobile through Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and other big native video players and publishers.

Mobile-First Video Campaign Best Practices

Here are the 5 summarised steps from a recent study from Comscore:

Hook the viewer quickly: You've got two or three seconds to grab the viewers attention before they scroll by.

Come in close: Engaging the viewer demands special video editing. Use close-ups, quick cuts, interesting imagery and strong point-of-view angles.

Go big: On-screen text showing product info needs to be clear and large enough to read on a tiny mobile screen.

The silent treatment: Viewers probably have their devices on mute. Therefore you need to develop creative content that works well with no sound too.

Tell them what to do: Include a simple call to action. Use the same message in the text around the native video ad unit to reinforce your message.

“Native mobile video campaigns not only work but can be especially effective when following creative best practices,” says Andrew Lipsman, vice president of marketing and insights at ComScore.

“It’s important for brands to make an impression quickly and engage with the consumer on a more visual level to drive campaign success.”

In conclusion, this is all true for native video formats, but of course the same can be said for mobile video campaigns too. They are good rules to follow no matter what video content you are producing. What do you think? Feel free to leave your comments below.

Published by Kurt in News

October 27, 2015

ESPN Brand Campaign – The Making Of…

Now We Collide partnered with ESPN to develop a new video led brand campaign. It was a move to cement the growing interest in U.S. and international sports among a younger Aussie male audience.

Watch this short documentary about how it all came together.

The video content created merges pivotal sporting moments from the world of NBA, American Football and X Games with murals drawn by graffiti artist Sofles. The time-lapsed amalgamation of sports and street art created a social buzz among the 18 to 34-year-old demographic and prompted them to share the content across their networks.

The brand campaign that became shareable

ESPN Marketing Manager, John Webb told Mumbrella “It’s one thing to make a great TV commercial that we can run on our own platforms but we wanted to build a brand campaign that will become shareable, that strikes gold and potentially goes viral.” he said. The video quickly became the most viewed and shared across ESPN Aust/NZ social networks drawing massive social reach and advocacy.

“We wanted to design a brand campaign that goes beyond our hardcore fan base and hit those casual fans who are on the fringes who we want to bring into the network."

“Using Now We Collide and Sofles was the perfect way to design something that we could use on Instagram and Facebook and hit the demographic that we are congregating on those platforms.” - John Webb.

Published by Kurt in News

August 27, 2015

360 Video On The Rise Globally

360 video is quickly moving from niche to mainstream. YouTube and Facebook are taking it to the masses and it's catching on. Because 360 video is so immersive, it allows the viewer to explore outside the frame and experience each story in a different way. That could be different every time they view it.

You may have noticed that YouTube has added 360 videos as the main navigation in their Channels list. And Facebook has teamed up with the little company they bought for $2bn last year, Oculus Rift, to introduce 360 videos to the Facebook Newsfeed.

With the growing popularity of virtual reality (VR), the demand for 360 video production is also on the rise.

If you haven't seen some of the awesome recent examples check them out - Facebook: Star Wars: The Force Awakens Immersive 360 & GoPro Spherical: Sand Dune Jumping in VR with Ronnie Renner.

So if you are a marketer looking to create an experiential brand to engage your audience or you want to tap into the potential of VR for employee training for a global team, then now might be a good time to get the ball rolling on 360 video production.

More to come from the team at Now We Collide soon...

Published by Kurt in News