3. Periscope
For connecting storytellers to audiences like never before
When is a brand not a brand? When is it simply a great app? This could be said of Periscope as in terms of brand collateral the footprint is small; Design? Check. Great technology and product? Check? Reaching early adopters? Check. Err… However, with a million users signed up to the live streaming app within the first 10 days of launch, the claim that’s it’s the greatest social media platform since twitter seems credible and it would feel strange to omit such a rapidly growing newcomer from this list.
So far on Periscope I’ve watched someone read out the contents of their fridge (a viral meme I was completely unaware of), an office worker in Brooklyn go out for lunch to get a sandwich and 20 minutes of the Mayweather vs Pacquiao pre-fight ramble. Box-office or not lots of the streams are tedious and boring.
But as the audience grows, and users gain a better understanding of how to use the platform, the quality of stories and streams will improve too. Already there are some brands that are quickly getting in on the act of creating live streams and connected with customers; Challenger Project favourites Hiut Denim have broadcast an open day where the audience can meet staff, and held live QnA sessions with David Hieatt and the team. Co-founder Kayvon Beykpour is a great person to follow as he streams many of his public appearances, QnAs and meetings as an on-going documentation of his journey in growing the business.
It’s only a month old, and time will tell whether we’ll consider it a brand, or indeed a success, a year from now, but it’s most certainly a challenger. Like Twitter before it, it’s challenging the traditional platforms for messaging by removing the barrier between story-tellers and their audiences, further closing the gap between companies and their customers.