Social Video Takes Flight with Selfly

An infographic on HighQ.com proclaims 2017 to be “the year of video marketing”. It states that this year, online video will account for 74% of all web traffic. Here are a few other metrics from the infographic  that make a compelling case for video content:

• 500 million people are watching Facebook videos every day
• Snapchatters watch 10 billion videos a day
• 82% of Twitter users watch video content on Twitter
• 52% of marketing professionals worldwide name video as the type of content with the best ROI

In the blog post The Future of Social Media (And How To Prepare For It), author Ash Read provides the following takeaway from Buffer’s research report The State of Social 2016:  “Right now, video is hot and is standing out… But that won’t always be the way. As video creeps up in popularity and more and more brands and individuals are sharing it, it’ll be harder to get noticed.”

One way of getting your video content noticed is by using aerial tech – using drones to capture or stream your video from a novel point of view. And one product that is promising to make this kind of tech more accessible is Selfly.

Lightweight and small enough to fit in your pocket, the Selfly is a camera drone that doubles as a smart phone case (or vice versa). The product is currently in the prototype stage on Indiegogo and available for pre-order for $99 (US dollars).

In the article This dentist quit his day job to build a flying phone case drone, Ben Popper describes how Hagay Klein, an Israeli dentist, was “bitten by the drone bug, and came up with an idea for a drone he [thought] anyone, no matter their comfort level with aircraft, would be happy to own.”

The Selfly captures 8-megapixel stills and 1080p video at 30 frames per second. It flies autonomously; once launched from the palm of your hand it hovers, waiting for commands from an app on your phone. ‘Fly by picture’ mode lets you adjust the frame by moving your phone. Additional options include ‘face and smile recognition’, ‘sweep panoramic’, and ‘follow your movements’. Images/video taken with Selfly can be shared instantly on your social media channels.

Besides taking the concept of a selfie stick to a whole new level, camera drones like Selfly and others will almost certainly have a growing impact on social video content for variety of industries, including real estate , wedding videography, travel and tourism, and sports.

In his article Drones & Social Media Marketing: Why This Content is Taking Flight, Hugh Benjamin discusses how he sees social media adapting to accommodate drone video:

“Drone videos are taking marketing to new dimensions. Social media is a great way to showcase these videos and images. Naturally, the marketing industry is adapting to the new direction. Marketing for real estate and resorts will be changed forever with this new device. It’s also worth noting that Facebook has already created a department called the Connectivity Lab, which is dedicated to creating aerial tech.” (Editor’s note: The aerial tech being developed by the Connectivity Lab focuses on making internet access possible in remote areas across the world.)

“We can expect to see all of the other social media platforms do the same, which means more capabilities and features for drones to come in the near future. It’s really an exciting time to be posting drone content on social media!”

The video below profiles five of the larger video drones that are currently available on the market:  GoPro Karma, DJI Phantom 4, DJI Inspire 1, Autel X-Star Premium and Parrot Bebop.

Lessons for Others

If you are creating video content for your social media channels, or if this is something you are planning for the future, now is a great time to explore how drones can take your content to the next level. From the $99 Selfly (once it becomes available) to the Parrot Bebop at $275, and the DJI Inspire at just under $2,000, drones are an affordable way to create innovative video content that breaks through the clutter.

In Canada, smaller drones (up to 35 kg) that operate at relatively short ranges (no higher than 90 m and within 500 M of your position), can be operated without obtaining special permission from Transport Canada. Before operating any drone, however, be sure to consult Transport Canada’s rules and guidelines.

If you have concerns as to the accuracy of anything posted on this site, please send your concerns to Peter Carr, Program Director, Social Media for Business Performance.

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