One trend we’ve noticed the last couple weeks in online video is that brands have developed an appreciation for the past. Specifically, many brands are finding ways to leverage the nostalgia and memories of viewers by going retro.
Polygon went retro within their own world of video games to bring us A Brief History Of Video Games, a sight-and-sound extravaganza for millions of former gamers–yes, your former favorite game is included:
Digging into the current branded video landscape, there are some obvious trends we can spot such as time-lapse footage, tilt-shift effects, and even interactive video campaigns. But dig a little deeper, and you’ll find the more subtle trends and topics brands are finding to be consistent sources of interest and traffic.
Such as the apocalypse. That’s right… brands want to destroy the world-at least if they can get some good PR out of it.
Mutltiple brands and video creators have found ways to take something as potentially-frightening as the end of the world, and use it to drive awareness in their brand. For instance, Epipheo found viral success and social buzz with their video last week entitled How To Survive A Robot Uprising. It’s tongue-in-cheek, and mostly for fun, but has some legitimate logic behind its reasoning.
Chances are you’ve watched a video with some creative animation and a trustworthy sounding narrator walking you through a complicated subject. The “Explanation video” has become one of the best mediums for businesses and organizations looking to teach about societal and technological trends. Common Craft was one of the first notable brands to create this style of video. They pioneered the space with charming and simple videos that explained sometimes-complicated things in simple terms.
But these days, explanation videos are big business.
YouTube Channel CGP Grey has scored several viral hits (and free publicity) in recent months with explanation videos on things like Daylight Savings:
Or why the penny is outdated as a form of currency:
Videographer JeremiahJW is another YouTube brand stepping into the “explanation video” space, and scored a hit this week (over 100,000 views) with a video detailing the history of the modern calendar:
But this isn’t Jeremiah’s first rodeo with explaining things. He scored a viral hit over a year ago with this History of Nikola Tesla video:
Also, check out Born to Learn for their series on learning styles and education.