The world is a big, round place with lots to see and we’ve been looking at it through cropped lenses for far too long! Well that’s the sentiment you might start to have after you’ve experienced even the slightest bit of 360-degree content that’s steadily making its way onto the market. Truth is that since the early days of black & white TV in the mid-twentieth century to the proliferation of color

TV in the late 60s all the way to the advent of the smartphone in the 21st century, man’s perspective of a video captured world has been limited.

For far too long we’ve been relegated to seeing exactly and only what the director and other content creators have wanted us to see. The thing is this goes against our physical and psychological make-up. We naturally have a field of view that is anywhere from about 180-200 degrees. Add to that our ability to turn around, look up and down, etc. and pretty soon you start to realize that for years we’ve been cheated.

“But our life happens like this.”

“Because life happens in 360.”

That’s all about to change as 360° video assuredly makes its way to the mainstream. It’s a snowball that’s quickly turning into an avalanche as one by one, brands start to integrate 360° video into their marketing plans and the likes of Facebook and YouTube make it easier and easier for consumers to share their own 360 content. A quick glance at the views of this nascent content platform and you’ll see a trend already beginning to emerge. From entertainment properties to insurance, to news outlets and even Brazilian singers (Ivete Sangalo’s 360° video of her hit song has racked up more than 18 million views to date!), all kinds of product categories and personalities are accumulating millions of views as they experiment with what could perhaps be one of the most natural viewing experiences outside of everyday reality.

However, of all the 360° videos that are out there to date, a recent one produced by BBDO of Germany for Beck’s Beer perhaps sums up best the restricted world in which we’ve been living before 360° videos hit the scene.

Experience Beck’s video:

What Beck’s video (sadly not shot in 360°) so effectively illustrates is that all our videos up till now have been lacking one very relevant component – context. What is context? According to one of my favorite apps, dictionary.com, it’s “the set of circumstances or facts that surround a particular event, situation, etc.” The simple fact of the matter is that 360° video enables us to have context with video content like never before.  It also takes video consumption from a level of passivity to one of control and curiosity.

Savvy marketers and advertisers will be on the forefront of this trend as they recognize the pivotal nature of a 360° ad experience. They are cognizant of the impact context will have on consumers’ attitudes and perceptions of a brand and embrace the ability to connect with their audiences on new, heightened planes. Perhaps they have also noticed what we’ve experienced at the office as we push the envelope with 360° ads, that once you start consuming content without boundaries you want every subsequent video you watch to offer the same freedom to look, explore and get context. So as digital video continues its explosive growth and the world begins to embrace this new platform known as 360 degree content, get ready for a whole new level of ad engagement where the consumer is empowered to connect with and explore brands in ways never before possible.

What are you thoughts on 360 degree content? Have you experienced enough 360 degree content to start to feel short-changed when you can’t explore videos in 360? Do you think it gives you better context?