By Sophie Bell, Digital Marketing Executive at The Edge
The anecdotal one
Explain it. This sounds obvious, right? Yes, most ads hint towards what the offering of the product or service is, but with animated annotation, you can detail all the elements of the app while using live-action to show how it really works in everyday life.
Take the film we shot for Smart Focus: we were able to show the functionality of their app side-by-side with an example of how it’s used in a shopper’s hand. The film shows how it can pull together personalised data to enhance the shopping experience while using CGI to take you through the experience on the app’s screen display.
Meet the team
The people that work for you are the make-up of your company. It’s from these people that any reputation or growth will rise. From what’s in their mind to what their skill sets are, that’s your company’s future worth – especially in digital tech. The value of your product is limited only by the brains behind it.
Medopad’s a perfect example of this. Their job is to ensure you live longer. (Yes, that job exists!) And yes, they have an incredibly efficient, medically-recognised app to do that but the film we produced was about Medopad’s people. It gave us the opportunity to show the passion, dedication, and industrious nature of the minds behind the app.
A day in the life
Another approach to selling your app to the masses is by showing them how it can be used in their day-to-day life. For that, a day-in-the-life scenario is set. The majority of us have a pretty similar daily set-up (I’m talking to you 9-5ers) and creating an app which makes the day-to-day a bit easier is a marvel.
For Telefonica, we kept it simple yet innovative (complete with a jazzy soundtrack), so mirroring their product and their brand. We followed a man throughout a very busy day – in which he takes a work trip (show-off), drops his phone with a great aim, and sends a love note – and so demonstrated how the TuGo app made his potentially frantic day a total breeze. (Shout-out to our art department too for doing an excellent job with all that cardboard!)
Straight from the horse’s mouth
This weekend I am sure I wasn’t alone in watching Netflix’s latest three part docuseries on Bill Gates, Bill’s Brain. I love nothing more than hearing about the hows, whys, and wherefores that helped CEOs achieve their success – from that eureka moment right through to the forecasted world domination!
Working with Barclays, we produced this film with Shazam’s Chairman, Andrew Fisher, to detail how the bank’s investment helped the company grow and develop. By talking to your audience from this standpoint you can explain the future possibilities which adds value to the current model. This, in turn, will attract new fans (the bloggers and vloggers) who want to be the first on the bandwagon (creating that cult following) as well as positioning yourself as a very attractive investment.
Bang on brand
If you’re going to get your app out there, it’s imperative that your marketing is ON BRAND. If your app is to deliver organic vegan produce by bicycle – you aren’t going to go neon-noir with a John Wick soundtrack. The ad needs to reflect your product and your company’s ethos – and that’s everything from the lighting to the camera angles, from the art direction to the voiceover, right on through to the grading.
We’ve worked all kinds of brands across the world. From the biggest names with the most recognisable brands right through to start-ups taking their first steps. Whoever it is, ensuring their film is on-brand means thoughtfully taking every detail taken into account. Speaking of big brands, we produced this film for HSBC to show off their mobile banking app. With their being a leading corporate brand showing off a piece of new tech, we wanted the film to be stylish, elegantly detailed, and future-forward. (So, quite John Wick, actually…)
Which marketing style you choose to take depends on your business – all may suit or just sticking to one iconic format may be advantageous. This is your statement to the world and it can make or break your brand. The key is to work with a production company that takes the time to know who you are and build the ad for your product and your target market.
If you would like any further information on case studies or if you would like to book in an informal chat with our creative team you can get us on askus@edgepicture.com. Our UK offices are based in Covent Garden, London just a 2-minute walk from the station.