The top branded Instavids

Video is set to grow substantially in the year of 2014. This growth combined with the ever increasing social media has resulted in new formats of video including Instavid and Vine.

Vine, originally the go-to for quick, snappy, brand video seems to have been overshadowed by Instavid. Most probably due to added features like the 15 second time limit compared to Vines 6 second limit.

This new type of content is something all brands can use to their advantage when directing focus online. Especially as attention given by consumers is dramatically compressed when browsing online and particularly social media.

However, how can brands grab the attention of their audience while getting their message across in the style of their brand all in 15 seconds?

Here's a few branded examples of Instavid that caught my eye:

How to’s:

If someone has taken the time in the fast paced online world to find you and follow you on Instagram make the most of it. They will more than likely be interested in what you make, sell, do etc. so why don’t you show them how you do it? How to’s ensure the video is interesting, but will also be simple, due to the time limit, therefore prompting followers to re-enact. Tip – Encourage followers to share their outcomes to heighten engagement.

Jamie Oliver - This is fun and simple while incorporating Jamie’s personality and brand message.

Intel – Interesting and useful. With an added bit of product placement.

Celebs:

Pretty obvious technique, but matching a celeb that links to your brand and videoing them doing pretty much anything will work for most brands.

Topshop - Harry Styles. Major celeb girl crush, instant success!

Nike- This highlights the fact that the celeb doesn’t have to be a pop star or Hollywood film star, as long as the follower will know and engage with them it works. For example Nike uses Skateboarding stars and includes product placement.

Behind the Scenes:

To catch and hold the attention of your followers, while also forming a community and making the consumers feel special, use a behind the scenes vid that is only for ‘OUR’ brand!

Burberry- Gave their followers vid footage of an upcoming fashion show. Something rare for most of their followers to be able to see while also being relatively easy and cheap to make.
Tip: Only do this method if it is exciting and worth watching. Not many people want to watch a random making tea or running errands.

Ben and Jerrys- Behind the scenes + Ice Cream may not seem like the ideal match but they made it work. A vid clip of how the ice cream was made, again something that most people wouldn’t have seen before, gained a lot of views. The ice cream also looked absolutely delicious… enough to run out and buy some, great encouragement!

Storytelling

A traditional way for brands to form content and in these cases it works very well. However – I know I am stating the obvious – make sure you have a story to tell.

GoPro - GoPro uses this type of content so well, mainly because it works perfectly for their brand. They publish user generated content that is fun, clickable, shareable and varied. The stories are quick and to the point, while being interesting to watch and showing off the GoPro brand. It ensures the audience is gripped until the end – where they add in a quick ad for the product used in the video. The regular updates, featuring a variety of different sporting activities, has also formed a community of users. GoPro offer prizes etc. for the best video/images sent in providing an incentive for the audience to send in content.

Variety of charities: This type of content is really useful for charities. They can produce hard hitting, to the point videos that tell an emotional story in 15 seconds. All the while encouraging support.

News and Gossip:

By using quick and up to date news and gossip that is shaped around your brand you can nearly guarantee an audience and inspire engagement and shares.

MTV- MTV does daily ‘What you need to know’ instavids giving the most talked about and up to date news from that day – all tailored to their audience.

They also add in a segment called ‘Instagram Confessions’ using celebs giving exclusives to the MTV followers via Instavid, providing a sense of community.

Motion-esque

This type of Instavid is very simple. It is just a quick succession of images one after each other. Normally done with clothing brands, it’s a great way to show a variety of products in different formats in a short space of time.

Victoria Secret highlights this perfectly.

Topshop also does this well, giving something extra by offering outfit ideas for different trends.

Overall it seems this kind of content can work extremely well if linked and tailored to your brand.