Twitter Buys Periscope: The Future of Digital Marketing?

In January, the social media platform Twitter bought out the up and coming app Periscope for a whopping £100 million, sending techies around the world into a motion of digital marketing hysteria.

“Explore the world through someone else’s eyes”. The motto from Twitter’s latest digital investment Periscope certainly injects the feeling that the future of digital marketing is here. At Cariad Marketing we love to embrace new things, but that being said … what are the benefits of Periscope for savvy, innovative businesses aside from social media engagement?

What is Periscope?

So before I hark on about how this software will dominate the world, it would most likely be a good idea if I explained what it does.

Using your Twitter account, Periscope allows you to broadcast live content from your phone to users worldwide. Those users will tune in via their own Twitter account either on a desktop, laptop, tablet or on another smartphone device to watch and experience events as you do. As well as just sending your videos to people online, viewers can comment directly to the broadcaster and send hearts when they particularly enjoy what they see. Once your broadcast finishes, the content is saved for 24 hours so other viewers can watch, comment and share before being removed and lost into the digital abyss forever (unless you share the video on your mobile device).

You may well be asking “well why am I talking about this app?” but following its iPhone launch, Periscope accumulated millions of users within days and brands are already starting to use this social video tool as a medium for engagement.

So how can Periscope contribute to Digital Marketing?

I think the most obvious use of Periscope are its media prospects, and with this the ability to produce unmediated content on a global scale.

Explore the world with Periscope. (Source Periscope.tv)

Periscope has huge benefits for digital marketing campaigns, through taking advantage of a greater level of credibility and transparency that comes from live, unedited content. Companies often spend a monumental amount of money on producing well-polished marketing content to distribute online or via other platforms, but in many cases the challenge then comes with cementing the authenticity of that marketing message, convincing people that what they are seeing is real.

However with a live feed, it essentially should become easier to create that feeling of a genuine community between you and your audience. From Q&As to product demonstrations and training, the opportunities for brands to connect with both consumers and employees on a more personal level are endless.

Periscope could also have a significant impact on the events industry in the future; music, sports, tourism and fashion to name a few, will all find themselves presented with a new way to show their events and give their audiences a fresh insight into what they’re doing behind the scenes.

Suddenly ‘live’ becomes broadcasted on a micro level. (Source Sportforbusiness.com)

What difficulties could this bring for Digital Marketing?

Despite Periscope being in its early stages of development, people have already been airing some concerns about the app. Most notably about piracy and the lack of control over what content individuals can show.  In addition brands have shared caution with management of negative comments and reviews that could be published during a broadcast. However as with any social media channel, community management is paramount and should be considered before launching on any platform.

One thing is certain though, Periscope presents exciting opportunities for businesses. The technology itself isn’t entirely new, but with more intelligent phones and easier access to WiFi, this is the first app that has really sparked the imagination of people on a global scale. And who knows, maybe in a few months, our very own team Cariad might be running our own training sessions through Periscope, but you’ll have to buy your own cake unfortunately.

Want to chat to us about how Periscope could help your business as a digital marketing channel? Pop in and see us or pick up the phone, you can reach us on 01992 582 824.