An introduction to 360 Degree videos

AN INTRODUCTIONTO 360° VIDEOSHow to use 360° videos to get the results youwant from Display Advertising

www.techjini.com

http://www.techjini.com/


https://www.linkedin.com/company/techjini-solutions

https://www.facebook.com/techjini

https://twitter.com/techjini

https://www.youtube.com/user/techjini

www.techjini.com

Introduction to 360° videos

Debunking the misconceptions

Why 360° video ads are the next big thing in advertising

Let’s get to the good stuff - what exactly can 360° videos do for your brand

How you can get started

The first mover advantage

TABLE OF CONTENTS


Chapter 1

INTRODUCTIONAds are getting ignored

People’s buying habits havedrastically evolved over the years.

Glittery banner ads that would force your product down the visitor’s throat may have worked in the past. Visitors would either grudgingly click on an ad, or as was the case more often, they would click on it unwit-tingly.

A major drawback that traditional ads had was that they were not sufficiently engag-ing. When display advertising made its foray into the world of marketing, many marketers struggled with deriving results from it, despite the magnitude of ad spend. Most of them knew only one way of doing display advertising and that was to bom-bard innocent website visitors with aggra-vating ads. These ads would often lack both context and value. It wasn’t long before display ads were viewed with great distrust, and website visitors installed various tools to prevent ads from showing. The world held onto this notion for a while. Marketers started to shy away from asking management to shell out money for intru-

sive banner ads because they were being ignored by their audience anyway.

Fast forward to 2016, we see a new trend in digital advertising.Customers of this age expect intuitive and entertaining advertisements. It is not too much of a stretch to say that customers now only respond to ads that don’t even seem like one! As a result, the field of marketing is constantly evolving.

Could 360° videos be the future of advertising?Marketers are constantly bombarded by new trends, technologies, and strategies.

These new concepts make lofty promises:-Help companies stand out from the crowd and really impact the consumer-Help marketers do their job better and drive meaningful results, in terms of growing the brand and creating enough whir around the company and its products-And finally, help achieve the ultimate goal of driving more sales

AN INTRODUCTION TO 360° VIDEOS // 03

One such technology that is creating major buzz in the marketing world is Immersive 360° and its partner, Virtual Reality (VR).

Although it has become a hot trend over the last few years, VR has been around for a long time now. With some of the biggest companies in the world harnessing the potential of VR by pumping billions of dollars into it, this intriguing tech-nology has been brought to the spotlight like never before.

Why 360° videos?The excited conversation around this new concept is justifi-able - it is immersive, intuitive, engaging and has the astounding ability to elicit brain states, emotions and brand recall that no other medium is capable of achieving at this point.

● 360° videos are inherently more compelling and fascinat-ing, especially when compared to the 2D content we’ve been forced to consume for the past few decades.

● It offers marketers the ability to engage and interact with their audience like never before, making it a highlighted term in the marketer’s dictionary

● Marketers around the world will agree that ad engagement is currently dismal to say the least. With CTRs (click through rates) hovering around the zero range, marketers are desper-ate for an opportunity to finally see some ad engagement and a hopeful boost to their CTRs.

● 360° Videos might finally offer the elixir to banner blind-ness, a gargantuan challenge for any marketer.

360° videos offer an exquisite amalgam of technology and entertainment that appeal to the psyche of the consumer. While we can’t deny that spammy ads still abound, we are happy to note that businesses now have the opportunity and the right technology to help them make their brand stand out. We guarantee you that 360° videos are going to cause a revo-lution in the near future and that’s why we want you in on the crazy ride.

What you can expect from this ebook:

● Debunking myths and preconceived notions around 360° content

● Show you how your brand can leverage the power of immersive 360° and VR advertising/marketing

● Expand your boundaries of your current perception of these game changing content platforms

● Get ready to take your digital campaigns to the next level of ad engagement and position yourself and your brand as trailblazers.

So, with that, let’s get started with debunking misconceptions of marketing and advertising in immersive 360° and VR today.

www.techjini.com


Ads are getting ignored






















AN INTRODUCTION TO 360° VIDEOS // 04www.techjini.com

According to the 2016 virtual reality consumer adoption report, consum-ers feel connected to a brand that sponsors VR.

71% of consumers agree that a

brand that sponsors

VR is forward-think-

ing and modern.

62% of the consumers would feel

engaged with a brand that sponsors a

VR experience.

53% of consumers say they are more

likely to purchase from a

brand that sponsors a VR

experience.

52% of consumers agree that

they’d like to be associated

with that brand.

71% 62% 53% 52%

Source: http://www.greenlightinsights.com/
























WORLDWIDEVIRTUAL REALITYREVENUE BYPRODUCTSUM TOTAL PC,CONSOLE AND MOBILE

2014E

$5B

$10B

$15B

$20B

$25B

2015E 2016E 2017E 2018E

HARDWARESOFTWARE

Why marketers and advertisers are holding backTruth is, when you ask marketers what 360° or VR advertising is, you will get a motley of responses:

● 360° advertising is too futuristic of an approach to make business sense today

● 360° & VR marketing are meant to be relegated to event based installations such as at Comic Con or at gaming arcades. You’ve been on the VR roller coaster ride too, haven’t you? (pun intended)

● 360° marketing is going to completelytake over how businesses brand themselves and become an all-encompassing approach to both marketing and advertising

● 360° marketing is the same as 360° advertising and essentially comprises the videos you now see on Facebook and Youtube.

Let’s delve into why these statements are not entirely valid.

The suspected challenge of headset dependencyA massive advantage that 360° advertising offers is the opportunity to create content that will completely immerse your audience.

With 360° content, you are offering your prospects and buyers the ability to look up, down, left, right, behind, around - essentially, anywhere they want and be surrounded by content on every side. Virtual reality, as an additional step, requires a VR headset to experience the same or an even more intensi-fied 360 degree content inside a VR headset. This dependency on head mounted displays (HMDs) stumps marketers immensely, because VR headsets have not reached critical mass yet.

If this is the reason you are holding back, then you will be happy to know that a headset is not required to experience 360 content!

Immersive 360° content can be enjoyed on just about any device - smartphone, tablet or

desktops without a VR headset. Infact, millions of people around the world are already consuming 360° content on Face-book, youtube and other channels.

Immersive 360° degree is for the here and now360° degree and virtual reality are brim-ming with potential, and assuming that this opportunity can only be harnessed in the future, is erroneous and misleading. The current marketing environment is in fact, a great time for advertisers and publishers to grab the first-mover advantage, by diving headlong into adopting 360° and VR. Already, initial studies are showing that brands that have chosen to be tech forward with the usage of 360° & VR are seeing great results with their consumers. In face, starting early can also prove to be an advantage for forward-thinking brands, giving them better consumer and PR recep-tion. When the technology starts to become more mainstream, the world may just become too inundated with 360° degree content, thereby making it hard for the brand to stand out.

Immersive 360° degree is more than Facebook & YoutubeBy now, most users have gotten their first taste of 360° and VR ads via social media

platforms such as Facebook and Youtube. True, both companies have invested billions of dollars in 360° and VR technologies, and are in fact, leading the way in transforming 360 and VR into consumable content. But, truth be told, 360° videos found on these platforms do not even remotely do justice to the level of engagement they can achieve within a 360° and/or VR advertis-ing experience using 360° images and interactive hotspots. What we currently see on Facebook are user generated 360° videos from technology forward Facebook users who are quick to show 360° . A few brands have been posting their videos as well, but again, like we said earlier, these barely manage to leverage the level of interactivity that 360° videos can offer. And finally, despite how big Facebook and Youtube are, these platforms claim only a small part of ad dollars. Advertisers are looking to distribute their content across various other channels, in order to maxi-mize their ROI and also make their expendi-ture more cost-effective. And lastly, Facebook and Youtube present their own constraints such as, requiring specific gear in order to view the videos. If you want to enjoy a 360° video on Face-book, then you will require a Samsung Gear or Oculus Headset. Facebook 360° videos are currently not compatible with Google Cardboard, nor can they be viewed on mobile. Youtube has similar drawbacks as well.

Immersive 360° degree is more than just an event installation. Most people experience 360° and VR at high-powered events such as ComicCon, Cannes, or the Sundance Film Festival. Typically, these experiences are crafted with the intention of creating full blown effects, and make use of special hardware such as motion chairs, wind machines, vibrating floors and so on, to deliver incred-ible impact. These events showcase high-end experiential 360° and VR movies that are meant to be truly immersive and are created for a high-end computing and VR system, such as the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive.

While these full-fledged 360° and VR expe-riences are extremely entertaining in an almost shocking way, it is not economically feasible for brands to replicate them for marketing purposes.

Immersive 360° and VR can be leveraged right now!As immersive 360° and VR start to gain popularity, we expect rapid innovation to happen. Marketers now have an formidable weapon in their arsenal to attract, engage,


Source: SuperData Research

convert and delight both prospective buyers and existing customers. Brands now have the power to employ 360°content to create highly personalized engagement with their consumers.

It goes without saying that both 360° content and VR is here to stay.

In our next chapter, we will delve into what we expect will be your favorite part of this ebook and that is - how you can effectively incorporate 360° and VR ads into your digital marketing strategy today.
























Chapter 2

DEBUNKING THE MISCONCEPTIONSWhy marketers and advertisers are holding backTruth is, when you ask marketers what 360° or VR advertising is, you will get a motley of responses:














www.techjini.com






















www.techjini.com





You have just visited the Taj Mahal - the seventh wonder of the world - an absolute-ly magnanimous structure that blew your mind away. It is a beautiful white marble carved to astounding perfection. Obvious-ly, you want to capture this moment in its entirety. So you take out your best DSLR and shoot a shockingly good picture that you are sure to treasure for a long time.

But, wait a minute. Did your photograph capture everything you wanted to treasure from that moment?

Here’s the thing;We have looked at the world through cropped lens for so long, that we never really wondered if we were missing some-thing. But, let’s question that sentiment once.

Our life happens in 360 degreesFor years now, directors and content creators have taken only specific sections of this massive, rotund world to show us exactly what they want us to see. The limit-ed field of view that we get to experience does not even sufficiently reflect what actually happens in reality. Here a few things you should consider:

● Our natural field of view is around 180-200 degrees. In addition to this, our ability to look up, down and around clearly indicates that the digital images and videos we see, do not completely capture reality. 360° videos allows for a completely new way to interact with consumers by giving them the power to choose what they want to see.


























www.techjini.com AN INTRODUCTION TO 360° VIDEOS // 08



















Chapter 3

WHY 360° VIDEO ADS ARE THE NEXT BIG THING IN ADVERTISINGYou have just visited the Taj Mahal - the seventh wonder of the world - an absolute-ly magnanimous structure that blew your mind away. It is a beautiful white marble carved to astounding perfection. Obvious-ly, you want to capture this moment in its entirety. So you take out your best DSLR and shoot a shockingly good picture that you are sure to treasure for a long time.






Watch theTaj Mahal through the 360° lens here

Did the epiphany that man’sperspective of a video capturedworld has always been limited,just strike you as well?





https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r71a5ClzrMw






● Facebook has already begun employing 360° content in full swing by allowing users to share their own 360° images and videos. Brands can leverage the ease of use that Facebook and Youtube offer and incorpo-rate 360° video it into their marketing strat-egy. Infact, companies (from various indus-tries) that have posted 360° videos to Face-book and YouTube are generating millions of views. A few prominent examples are BMW, Oreo, Game of Thrones, Nikon and several others. <insert a 360 ad of BMW/GOT)

● One challenge that 360° videos over-come quite successfully is that of providing context. All our videos up till now have been lacking this very relevant context. Instead of having an audience look at an image or video with a sense of detachment, brands can now offer consumers the opportunity to explore as much as they want and control their perspective, as they see fit. Giving consumers the chance to satiate their innate curiosity will become an indispensable component of engagement and interactivity.

www.techjini.com

● A 360° filmmaker can not determine exactly where the viewer will choose to look. Allowing users to look in any direction around an environment means that they will be able to form their own opinions about the footage, rather than being limited to seeing exactly what the director wants them to see through carefully selected frames.

We predict that discerning marketers and advertisers will dominate this trend as they begin to recognize the climactic impact a 360° degree ad can produce on consumers’ perception of a brand. Say you have been watching TV on a 60 inch screen with surround sound, can you imagine going back to a 21inch?

Once consumers experience 360° degree content, it is expected that they will seek it out in every subsequent video that they watch. As 360° video continues to make colossal waves, marketers have to strate-gize how they can integrate 360° content into their marketing plan and empower consumers with the freedom to interact, engage and bond with brands like never before.


The possibilities are boundless, when it comes to leveraging 360 degree content and VR for digital advertising. In this chapter, we will go deeper into how you can employ 360° video strategies for your brand and blend the worlds of advertising, video games, and 360° and VR technology to dramatically heighten your ad experi-ence.

Put a myriad products in your digital ad spaceMost companies and their marketing teams will agree that traditional digital advertising doesn’t always get them the best ROI. With competition and bidding costs increasingly rapidly, it has become imperative for advertisers to strategize

effective means of getting their message across. Marketers also face the annoying challenge of creating ads that are forcibly limited to a tiny space, , bound by charac-ter limits.

Enter 360° video ads that grant marketers the freedom to be limitlessly creative and offer far more ad real estate. Curious to know how exactly that works?

360° ads allow you to put as many prod-ucts and brand messages in a small ad space as you want. Working with spheres, panels and different textures allows you to leverage the many sensors in your smart-phone, helping you create an ad that is compelling, interactive and offers a much larger view into your brand and products.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q87oVPusWT0






Chapter 4

LET’S GET TO THE GOOD STUFF - WHAT EXACTLY CAN 360° VIDEOS DO FOR YOUR BRAND?The possibilities are boundless, when it comes to leveraging 360 degree content and VR for digital advertising. In this chapter, we will go deeper into how you can employ 360° video strategies for your brand and blend the worlds of advertising, video games, and 360° and VR technology to dramatically heighten your ad experi-ence.






360° degree and virtual reality advertising are

Another study shows that 51% of people are more likely to buy a product from a brand that leverages virtual reality than one that doesn’t.

A 360° video is 35 times more effective than traditional display with 4.51% CTR to site

35 times more effective thantraditional display ads.

Source: https://www.omnivirt.com/

Source: Greenlight







Blend Storytelling with Video Games and Virtual Reality Video games hold massive potential as a storytelling platform and the deep involve-ment that it prompts in users is similar to the engagement level that VR delivers.

Video games offer an immersive storytell-ing experience because of their innate ability to transport people to other worlds. They also give the players the ability to control their own “fate” depending on how they choose to play the game. When you watch a TV show, you’re merely a spectator. But when you play a video game, you’re an active participant.

This is very similar to what the world of virtual reality offers as well. When you’re watching a VR video (or playing a VR video game), you’re not viewing things from far away, you are a character in the game your-self, engaging and interacting with the environment and other characters.

VR underscores the importance of video games as narratives and offers a framework to create stories that redefine how brands showcase their products. In fact, the video game industry has been the first to whole-heartedly embrace 360° and VR technolo-gy. Combining storytelling with incredibly high levels of immersion is going to be game changing.


Blend Advertising with StorytellingFortunately, we have come a long way from pushy ads that promote a product and its features ad nauseam. Strategic buyer persona oriented storytelling offers a way to overcome ad blindness, abysmal levels of ad engagement and click through rates. Increasingly, advertisers are working hard to create stories around their brand and products - stories that will resonate with their audience on a personal level. The most effective ad is one that can communicate with the consumer on a note that they can relate to. And what better way to accomplish this than by incorporating 360 views into it? 360° and VR technology present you the incredible freedom to tell a story to your consumer while completely immersing them into the content of the ad, which further forges an emotional connec-tion with the consumer.

360° Degree Content and GamificationAccording to a study, gamified ads have a 6% higher engagement rate than traditional ads. Gamified ads are so effective that they can generate CTRs that reach a whopping 28.8%, which is pretty impressive consider-ing that traditional rich media ads only have a CTR of less than 1%.

Gamification is fast catching the imagina-tion of marketers and decision makers in organizations. Studies have proven that gamification is very effective in engaging with consumers, influencing their behavior and earning customer loyalty. 360°/VR ads are all set to become a potent platform for application of gamification, helping advertisers create an engaging experience for their consumers and allow-ing brands to ultimately realize the desired marketing goals.

Once you get going, there are a multitude of fun ways you can gamify your 360°/VR ad - mazes, puzzles, running games, learn-ing games - the possibilities are endless! Combining the entertainment value of a game with the highly engaging immersive experience of 360° ads can drastically transform the ad experience for consumers.

100%

100%0%

gamified ads

traditional ads







Chapter 5

HOW YOU CAN GET STARTED

What It TakesCreating 360° videos is obviously a whole different ball game compared to traditional video. If you have decided to move forward with developing a 360° video for your brand, then it is important to be aware of the hardware required to do so. This includes special cameras, special lighting, special editing, sound, and various post production elements. There is also a certain level of vulnerability that you need to prepare for with 360° videos, because the viewer is in control of what he/she chooses to view and is no longer relegated to viewing only selected frames.

Consider hiring a professional for the best experienceIf you have the budget to do so, hiring a pro is the most ideal option. Because there are so many elements to consider when creating a 360° video experience with VR mode, it is recommended that you delegate the work to someone with experience with the technology. However, it must be noted that quality comes at a price. Creating a sophisticated 360 video,

with a very high production value will incur higher costs. So, it would be best to understand your desired goals and evalu-ate if making such an investment will deliver the expected ROI for your brand.

Out of your budget?We understand that 360 videos may not be in every marketer’s or brand’s budget. If you’re looking for a more affordable option, you can choose to use an economi-cal but effective 360° camera. Typically, these offer relatively reasonable quality and also provide you with software to aid in post production processes.

Brands who are looking for financially feasible strategies to implement 360° degree content for their advertising campaigns can take advantage of 360° images and standard images to create a 360°/VR Ad.

Ultimately, however, 360°/VR video ads do come at a cost and it will be far more pricey than a traditional video.



Is it worth it? Will the benefits outweigh the costs? When compared with traditional display advertising, 360° video ads offer the following advantages:

● Higher CTR

● Substantially higher number of views

● Better engagement

● Lower cost per impression (CPM)

● Branding the company as technology forward

● Making consumers happy! Millennials in particular love 360° degree and VR content


Over the course of this ebook, we have shown you why 360° and VR advertising are rapidly gaining momentum, and why you should become a part of this revolu-tion. We hope that we have opened your eyes to the multitude of possibilities that these two platforms offer, and how you can integrate them into your digital marketing strategy right now.

● Are you are looking for new and innovative ways to reach your target customers?

● Are you looking for techniques that will help you drive engagement up to lofty heights and help your message stand out from the noise of other brands? ● Do you want to see a dramatic boost in the ROI from your marketing and advertising efforts?

Then it just might be time for you to make a move on 360° technology. Getting started early will also grant you the first-mover advantage and help your brand really stand out among consumers.

As 360° content starts to gain rapid momentum, it is guaranteed to make an appearance on every marketer’s resume, making it harder to beat competition.

If you are still on the fence about jumping into this new fangled experience, then do take a moment to consider the following numbers which clearly demonstrate the power of VR and 360° content.

As of October 10th, 331,000 videos have been uploaded in 360º format to Youtube

In a study, it was discovered that 360° video had a 46% higher view countcompared to the standard video, making it a more cost-effective buy.

Youtube’s trending 360° videos have garnered 4,902,183 views collectively.

Uploads of 360° videos continue to grow and have doubled between the months of April-June this year.

Global search interest for virtual reality on Google has grown by nearly 4X in the last year (Google Data, Global, May 2016.)


Chapter 6

THE FIRST MOVER ADVANTAGEOver the course of this ebook, we have shown you why 360° and VR advertising are rapidly gaining momentum, and why you should become a part of this revolu-tion. We hope that we have opened your eyes to the multitude of possibilities that these two platforms offer, and how you can integrate them into your digital marketing strategy right now.













Over the course of this ebook, we have shown you why 360° and VR advertising are rapidly gaining momentum, and why you should become a part of this revolu-tion. We hope that we have opened your eyes to the multitude of possibilities that these two platforms offer, and how you can integrate them into your digital marketing strategy right now.











Millions of Facebook users watch 360° videos daily

50 mil Google Cardboard enabled apps have launched since Cardboard rolled out 2 years ago

Mobile VR headset sales predicted to hit 14.5 mil in 2016

VR & AR market revenue forecast is predicted to hit $120 billion by 2020

360° video has the incredible potential to transform the way marketers and advertis-ers interact and engage with consumers. Offering views the opportunity to get in on the action by allowing them to control their perspective with the simple tilt of a smart-phone or a click of a mouse, will be a game changer for forward thinking companies. Savvy brands that tap into the novelty of the technology will rewarded with viewers not only watching their content, but also sharing it. As 360° and VR technology evolves and brands continue to experiment with how they implement it, we can only imagine how much stronger its value will become - for viewers and brands alike.

Look at what others have done!Now that you are all set to start, we would like to leave you with a taste of how some big brands have successfully implemented 360° videos. Take a look!

BMW: Keep your eyes on Gigi

McDonald's: Angry Birds 360° Takeover


And finally, do take a look at Facebook's astounding 360° video of Grand Central Termi-nal

A fun fact about this video: Facebook only had three 90-minute windows over the course of a few days to shoot this video back in March, right when Grand Central would close down at 2AM before reopening at 5:30AM.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q87oVPusWT0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NEqXdgdAm8

https://www.facebook.com/zuck/posts/10102838530663591

UNITED STATES100 Overlook Ctr FL 2Princeton NJ 08540-7814Phone: (609) 785-1151Fax: +1-609-228-7549E-mail: [email protected]

JAPAN2-56-20,Hiyoshi-honcho,Kohoku-ku,Yokohama, 223-00062Phone: +81-50-3551-8385E-mail: [email protected]

INDIANo. 948, Gaayathri Chambers,J P Nagar 2nd Phase,Bangalore – 560078HR: +91-80-41507899Sales: +91-80-42103414E-mail: [email protected]

www.techjini.com


https://www.youtube.com/user/techjini

https://twitter.com/techjini

https://www.facebook.com/techjini

https://www.linkedin.com/company/techjini-solutions


Date post:	08-Jan-2017
Category:	Marketing
Upload:	veeranjaneyulu
View:	81 times
Download:	0 times

An introduction to 360 Degree videos

Marketing