- Delta innovates with emerging tech
- Michelle Obama gives college freshmen a voice
- Snap looks to shake up Saturday mornings for teens
- Bookings.com makes New Year's resolutions fun
- What the success of this YouTuber's new app means for the state of Influencers
- Influencers joining forces for the greater good
- Can Byte pick up where Vine left off?
What
The next frontier of reality may be upon us. Misapplied Sciences, a startup in Redmond, Washington, has been quietly crafting technology that allows a single screen to project multiple, bespoke pieces of content simultaneously. Imagine sitting in a small home theater, and the person to your right is watching Dumb and Dumber, while you’re watching Moana. The startup has dubbed this “Parallel Reality,” and though the technology is still nascent, Delta Airlines is one of the first brands with plans to adopt it. The carrier plans to test parallel reality signage in Detroit Metropolitan Airport, just past TSA, which will show various information about flights to approximately 100 customers.
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Takeaway
Adobe is an innovative company, but in order to maintain this status, we need to continue pushing the boundaries of what is possible. How can we use emerging technology as a way to push the limits of Adobe's products and storytelling?
What
Michelle Obama’s Reach Higher organization is partnering with content company ATTN: for an IGTV series called A Year of Firsts, which dives into the experiences of four college freshmen. The series focuses on students sharing their ups and downs with Mrs. Obama and is meant to provide a voice for other students who are facing similar challenges.
“As a first-generation college student myself, I know how intimidating it can be to take that leap and pursue your educational dreams.” -Michelle Obama
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Takeaway
The challenges that students face are significant. The opportunity for brands like Adobe to provide inspiration is about more than just creating content. It’s really about adding value to these students’ lives. In a world flooded with inspiring stories online, how do we tell these stories in more interesting and creative ways to break through?
What
Snapchat is betting big on one of its most beloved features. Last month, the company announced an all-new original animated series featuring the customized Bitmoji avatars of real users. On the show, teens and their friends will get to see their personal avatars interact in scripted, episodic adventures, including fighting robots as a secret agent or helming the crew of a spaceship. Once subscribed to the show via Snapchat’s Discover portal - teens and their friends will get to see their personal avatars interact in scripted, episodic adventures, including fighting robots as a secret agent or helming the crew of a spaceship. The shows, which debuted on February 1st, will premiere new episodes weekly on Saturday mornings.
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Takeaway
Bitmoji TV represents Snapchat’s attempt to lean into an emerging form of storytelling that allows the audience to play a role. In a similar vein, Netflix’s Black Mirror: Bandersnatch and Puss in Book allow viewers to play a role in the story, giving them more reasons to engage and stay tuned. As we continue to inspire students to Make the Leap, we are always looking for ways to engage our audience in meaningful ways. Sometimes, this can manifest as a contest. How else can we invite a broader audience to participate and ultimately Make the Leap?
What
We know what you’re thinking: “Wow. Another brand made a pop-up hotel/resort. Big deal.” Sure, this practice is not particularly new. But what’s interesting about Booking.com’s Resolution Resort is the way it created relevancy for the brand during a time of year in which the travel space typically cools down. The effort encourages people to kick-start their resolutions with a trip and features 20 different rooms that have themes for 20 universally relatable New Year’s resolutions, which the brand uncovered through social listening. Highlights of the experience include suites with themes like “Spend Quality Time With Your Pet” and “Read More,” among others.
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Takeaway
Culture is a key avenue for connecting with our elusive audience, who often avoids traditional advertising. As we develop and roll out different initiatives throughout the year, how can we leverage key cultural moments, amplify them, and use them to connect with our audience in deeper ways?
What
There may be a wave of skepticism around influencer marketing, but they can still move product. YouTuber David Dobrik’s newly released digital disposable camera app, named David’s Disposable, garnered one million downloads, just one week after its release in the Apple app store. The app gives images a disposable camera-style aesthetic and even takes a few days to develop, just like real disposable film. Meanwhile, at CES, beauty brand L’Oréal unveiled a new Bluetooth-enabled gadget that can set lipstick, foundation, or skincare regimens to be customized by whoever owns them. The idea is that you can match whatever colors your favorite influencer is wearing or recreate a look.
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Takeaway
Influencers have the power to captivate their fans, but the way they extend that influence for brands needs to feel authentic. David Dobrik’s camera app is successful because it’s tied directly to his adventurous brand and his fans want to feel like they’re a part of the ride. As the power of influencers continues to be proven, it’s important that we find the most authentic way of partnering with them to go beyond the traditional “#PaidPost.”
What
Collaboration houses, or content houses, have been sprouting all over LA in recent years. In these spots, groups of 5 to 15 social media influencers ban together to form crews and rent out giant mansions to live, film, network, and collaborate in. Places like Hype House—the collab house recently formed by some of TikTok’s most popular personalities—have become hubs for young influencers who are new to LA and looking to be successful.
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Takeaway
Influencers and the risks they take exemplify what Make the Leap is about. But still, as we saw in the Social Animals documentary from last year, the life of an influencer can be a very lonely pursuit. What role can Adobe play in helping foster community among creators and encouraging them to take their work to the next level?
What
When Vine, the Twitter-owned social media app that was once famous for six-second video loops, was defunct in 2016, it left a void in the social media landscape. Though this void for hyper-short-form video has largely been filled by TikTok, an air of nostalgia still lingers for the days of Vine. Enter Byte, Vine’s successor, created by Vine Co-Founder Dom Hofmann. With six-second video loops still at the center of the experience, Byte is meant to make it easier to share creativity, and the team behind the app is working to steal back a roster of former Vine stars, who have found a new home on TikTok, to create some early momentum. Though still early in its release, Byte charted as the top free iPhone app in the US after its first week.
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Takeaway
It might be too early to know whether quick humor and nostalgia can make Byte a success, but it is an interesting testament to Gen Z’s desire for a multitude of ways to express themselves. And although Byte doesn’t offer the same variety of editing and production tricks as TikTok, it will be interesting to see how users push the boundaries of the app.