The age of the mobile device has created the opportunity to create or consume whenever and wherever we want. The ubiquity of this technology enables access to the sharing of experiences and allows for engagement in a real and authentic way anytime, any place.
Not since the dawn of commercial air travel has a technology had such a profound impact on how we connect people, places and experiences, ultimately allowing us to start living a shared human existence no matter where we are on the planet.
Abundance is the New Normal
We live in a truly exciting world of abundance, a world of “video first”. We’ve been exploring the future of mobile video and the users of mobile devices that choose to create or consume this immersive engaging content.
“By the end of 2017, online video will account for 74% of all online traffic.”
– Mary Meeker’s Internet Trends Report
Our world is not only abundant with video content but also abundant with the data analytics that follows each view, like, share, comment, tweet or pin. You name it we’ve got the stats…
Social Media and Video
In just the last 18 months, social media platforms across the board have adopted a “video first, video native” approach to how we share content. You don’t have to look far to see evidence of this in any news feed across Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn – all filled with thumbnails of videos as you swipe your way through news feeds and instant messaging platforms of your social life.
How the stats stack up
The top 3 Social Networks – Snapchat, Facebook & YouTube gather 22 Billion video views per day and YouTube reports that mobile video consumption rises by 100% every year.
- 82% of Twitter users watch video content on Twitter
- YouTube has over a billion users, almost one-third of total internet users.
- More than 500 million hours of videos are watched on YouTube each day.
- More video content is uploaded in 30 days than the 3 major U.S. television networks have created in 30 years.
- 72 Hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every 60 seconds.
- The 25-34 (millennial) age group watches the most online videos and men spend 40% more time watching videos on the internet than women.
With so much content available, a single platform just isn’t enough, one screen isn’t enough and linear programming broadcasters are out the window.
The Age of Experience is NOW
At BIGBrave, we have been predicting the “Age of Experience” since 2013. What this means, is that as a society, we have accepted and assimilated connected digital devices into our everyday living.
We don’t give these smart devices a second thought, we simply expect them to do what they promise without exception. Our expectations furthermore lean heavily toward quality experiences and smartphone manufacturers are undoubtedly aware of this. Think about it, when was the last time you saw a mobile device being marketed for its exceptional audio quality – it simply doesn’t happen because quality audio is simply assumed on all new devices. The focus has completely shifted onto the additional features on these devices that have nothing to do with making a phone call. Many of these additional features are becoming part of the basic expectation users have of smart devices – think internet connectivity for example.
Sharing Moments – the premise of mobile video
Mobile video is having a profound impact on how we live, learn, work & play. This is true now and will continue to be the case as we move into the future. It is bridging gaps using shared experiences to enhance understanding to bring about vicarious knowledge and allowing us as humans to focus on things that really matter.
The new digital person has more to say about their life because they look at the world with the knowledge that they have the ability to capture the “moments” with their mobile devices. We also have easy access to other people’s “moments” which has never been possible before. Sharing in moments of family and friends through social media or digital communication platforms is becoming the whole point.
The most important takeaway here is that people engage with people! If a brand wants to engage with the new digital market the hard sell approach definitely isn’t the way to do it. Use people to talk to people. People love to watch other people doing things that are aspirational, inspirational, exceptional, amazing & amusing.
The Role of Mobile Marketers
The important thing to remember is that, as mobile marketers, we’re not just trying to get into people’s wallets, we’re trying to attract their curiosity, their interests, their experiences and their opinions. The world is changing through the unpredictable disruptive forces around exponential technology, and their convergence to produce even more amazing ways of experiencing life. This includes travel, communication, work, food and health and moving forward, one thing is for sure, it will be hard to replace mobile video and its ability to reach and teach a global audience.
The awesome thing about mobile video in 2017 is that it enables a generation to have a wider perspective on the world while maintaining a local focus – “Think Global. Act Local”. Learning can happen anywhere on any topic information is just a search and a click away…
67% of Millennials agree that they can find a YouTube video of anything they want to learn.
As technology advances, we are able to make use of new mobile devices that provide better quality imagery. For example, the small form factor cameras and drones allow us to explore any place on earth, to see things we’ve never seen – all part of the evolution of video technology. This allows for a better-documented existence and makes way for new perspectives, new experiences & new opportunities. Opportunities to not just to inform people but to tell stories… which is one of the most powerful ways to communicate.
As with the laws of progress and improvement, the adoption of new technology gives rise to new needs from the market. In response to these needs, mobile video will have to become more immersive in order to find new moments within which to create content worth sharing.
Moments Explained
It’s all about devices, platforms and humans.
A the intersection where Humans and Devices meet we find the ability to create. The overlap of Devices and Platforms provides the opportunity to share and at the intersection of Platforms and Humans, we have access to consume.
However, it’s the bit in the middle that we’re really interested in because it’s there where we find “MOMENTS”.
Inevitably, change is coming and it is imperative to be adaptable enough to meet the needs of the market throughout this process.
Here is our challenge to mobile marketers out there: Let’s not just capture moments that are happening, let’s create moments that inspire more content creation. Why? Because one great moment is worth endless great memories and each memory is a story that has to potential to touch countless people.
We are excited about the leaps and bounds we are experiencing in the mobile video sphere and keen to see where we as a business can push the envelope on what is possible.
Create Moments, capture memories, share the future!
