Videos Transport Viewers to Faraway Destinations

“We’ve been looking at ways to create universal destinations for brands' fans, so they come to one place to get the best rich-media experience, the best engagement experience and the best community experience," said Katie Creaser, vp at Affect, during a recent Communications Week panel in New York. “The problem is that too often the conversation we’re having with brands is about them wanting to use a specific technology rather than focusing primarily on delivering a great experience for consumers," she added. Videos are increasingly a vehicle of choice for brands to tell visually based stories and enhance viewers’ experience. While not every brand has compelling visuals to showcase, we found two brands whose videos have withstood the test of time: The Netherlands’ video series, Holland: The Original Cool, and Patron tequila’s VR-enabled videos shot in Mexican haciendas. Holland: The Original Cool Series For the past three years, Holland has released an annual video highlighting the country’s charms, and this year they set up a dedicated website. The series is a joint marketing alliance between The Netherlands Board of Tourism and Conventions (NBTC), Amsterdam Marketing, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. “The campaign started in 2013 to raise awareness of The Netherlands in the U.S. market, though what’s cool has been part of Holland’s cultural fabric for centuries," said Rosina Shiliwala, director NBTC North America. Early last month she spoke at an event to unveil the final video installment, “The Tale of Kat and Dog.” Although the video was jokingly rated “C” for cheese, it has helped lead to serious results, along with The Netherlands’ other marketing efforts. More than one million Americans visited Holland last year, the first time in a decade. Patron tequila’s Virtual Reality/VR videos Patron tequila has used video since last year to highlight behind-the-scenes footage of the brand being made, said Adrian Parker, vp of digital marketing at Patron Spirits company. He spoke at the Financial Times (FT) Future of Marketing Summit in late September in New York. “Patron tequila is made artisanally at haciendas in Mexico. We have 70 percent of the premium tequila industry, we’re mass distributed, but we’re also small batch. We made a 2.5 minutes long VR enabled video to show a snapshot of our process," Parker noted. “The result is that now customers are buying the Patron experience,” said Parker. He also noted that while virtual reality worked well for Patron, it’s not necessarily a fit for all brands. These days, however, a temporary escape to a foreign locale seems like a universally good option.

Social Pro Daily

Videos Transport Viewers to Faraway Destinations

How videos can capture local experiences.

Nancy Lazarus

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Nancy Lazarus