Camera Marketing a way forward to engage brands, Hear from the Industry expert Mr Ritesh Ujjwal

Mr Ritesh Ujjwal, Co-Founder & CEO - Kofluence

1. How this connected camera thing is working (Company specific insights)

Ans- The avenues through which we consume content are ever evolving and now with everyone having connected cameras on them at all times through a smartphone, there is yet another medium for marketers to engage their audiences and that is Camera Marketing.

So essentially what this does is, it gives brands the opportunity to play around with more interactive and unique experiences for consumers that blend reality with the virtual. Take for example, how online retailers across Jewellery/ Fashion/ Apparels among others let their end-users 'try before you buy'. Augmented Reality (AR) & Virtual Reality (VR) wouldn't have been a viable digital reality today, if not for Camera Marketing.

2. Insights from consumer and brand centric

Ans- By Leveraging Camera Marketing, brands are now able to sell various immersive and 3D experiences as a part of their marketing effort by giving the consumers the tools to tell their own story. It's a win-win for both, I would say! Not only does it allow consumers to interact with brands in a more stimulating and non-passive manner, it leads to more brand recall for the marketer. Consumers become brand ambassadors by recording and sharing their experiences online on their social media accounts.

3. Thoughts and future of this camera marketing

Ans- Let's say 5 years ago, the very aspect of creating an AR/VR experience was cumbersome and expensive. Be it investing in AR assets or hiring an AR engineer, incorporating camera marketing was a distant dream without an enormous marketing budget.

However, with increasing marketing efforts, more tools, more social media platforms and more resources at disposal, brands are greatly simplifying and lowering the cost of bringing AR to life. With such an onward trajectory in AR capabilities, there's no better time to start planning and investing in camera marketing, seeing how the returns are well worth the investment.

4. How this whole video ecosystem is panning out

Ans- To put it simply, I believe videos are the future of marketing and we have several marketing stats to back up that statement. Zenith predicts that in 2021 an average person will spend 100 minutes of a day watching videos. That’s 25 whole days in a year, to put it in perspective. Also, with the explosion of video-based content platforms like YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, and Tik Tok, there is an increased demand for video consumption.

User generated video content has been truly democratised by TikTok followed by the rise of other short form content platforms such as Moj/ Takatak among others. A video is fifty times more likely to show up on the google search results than a traditional web page. All this just goes to show that Video is king, and short format snackable video content is the way to go.

5. How are advertisers leveraging this thing

Ans- In my personal experience, one of the most popular forms of camera marketing is the use of augmented reality (AR) - an engaging approach where the brand is a participant in the “conversation” rather than a company delivering a message.

Face filters, world effects, mini games, image trackers, gamified filters and virtual portals are some of the many examples of how marketers are leveraging camera marketing. A lot of brands from our clientele have started experimenting with Snap lenses as well as IG filters. Case in point being Jubilant group wherein we leveraged AR filter for their #Dostoftheyear campaign which drove tremendous engagement and plethora of user generated content in a fun manner.

6. Brands requirements in this type of marketing

Ans- As with other mediums, brands need to have a 360-degree approach wherein camera marketing is well integrated with other communication channels to ensure consistency. Execution wise, brands will have to liaise with SM platforms to leverage their unique offerings complemented by creative and production team, who will be able to create immersive storytelling experiences that are not only creative but stand out against the competition. Whether that is done in-house or through a specialised agency, depends solely on the discretion of the brand.