360-video is becoming the latest buzz in the marketing industry. Google recently launched their new media campaign on 360-video advertising, specifically for Chrome, Youtube and iOS. Just after the rolling out this technology, the demand from several brands significantly increased.
So is 360 video worth the investment? By now, you should know that the importance of video in 2017 is huge! This product’s framework is absolutely a game changer in the advertising world, but how will it directly affect the brand’s overall performance? In the past years, we have seen the evolution of filming from high-definition videos, surround sound to 2D, and now, 3D! Despite the fast growing innovations in videography, there are very few products that have revolutionized the experience of brands when it comes to marketing and advertising.
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In line with this, companies are asking themselves, what can 360 video bring to the table? What can brands expect from this innovation? And in the aspect of advertising, how will it secure that 360 video will result to higher leads and better viewer metrics?
To respond to these questions that are boggling the minds of people out there, an experiment was done in partnership with Columbia Sportswear which aims to create a video that will feature US Olympic skiers in an classic season at Chile. Let's learn more about why you should use 360 video for your business.
Experiment done in creating an interactive computer experience with the user (360 video ad vs standard advertising: the face-off)
In order to determine whether 360 video advertising results to higher rate of engaged viewers compared to the standard video advertising, an experiment was done between the two similar mediums using a specific platform called Trueview. Each marketing campaign highlighted a 60-second video for Columbia Sportswear. One video variety was shot using 360 video and another type of video was done using a standard form of video advertising. Both of the ads contained call to actions in the lower portion of the video.
To be able to obtain an accurate comparison between the two mediums, the usual viewer metrics were measured, which includes view-through rate and viewer retention. Another metric was also considered, called the interaction rate, which identifies how the viewers involve themselves with key features of the 360 videos. This requires dragging the viewfinder on the screens of their gadgets or needing to tilt their mobile device.
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The result of the experiment was surprising. The view-through rate of the 360 video was low-performing when compared to the standard video advertising, both in desktop and mobile devices. This means that viewers are not necessarily up to interact with 360 video. However, 360 video redeemed itself in terms of higher click-through rate, which means that viewers are more curious in trying out the complete version of the video. Despite the low view-through rate of the 360 video ad, it has outweighed the standard ad in terms of the interaction. This determines how the viewers involved themselves in the different functions of the 360 ad by means of tilting or scrolling their desktop or mobile devices. This translates to the fact that the 360 ad is an engagement-driven medium through user interactions. Lastly, the 360 ad had a substantial increase in motivating viewers to watch your video content, share, subscribe, and view other videos as compared to that of the standard ad.
There you go folks, now you have the choice whether you’re up to the challenge of using 360 videos for your brand. The possibilities are literally at the palm of your hands.
