In an earlier article I wrote, Luxury is the New Black, I talked about brands using the word “black” to denote a high-end offering. So I wasn’t completely surprised to see that GoPro, the amazing video camera brand, had released a new model, “GoPro Hero 3 Black Edition.”
Wearable smart technology like Google Glass may someday be ubiquitous, but for now GoPro is dominating, and the brand seems to have reached the tipping point. (In fact, while writing this article, GoPro announced its IPO.) It’s everywhere. And it’s more than a camera company. It’s a content platform unto itself.
It really got me thinking: Luxury brands were late to the game with regard to website functionality, e-commerce and social media. They’d better not miss the opportunity to take advantage of the convergence of Wearable Technology and Dynamic Content. Luxury brands really need to own this one.
GoPro became popular so quickly because it lets people use Social Media (specifically Facebook, YouTube and Vimeo) to share high-quality video content more easily than ever before. GoPro videos represent the democratization of video creation- just look at the name of the brand. GoPro turns amateurs into professionals. And with #selfies, #yolo and #fomo so popular, who wouldn’t want to capture amazing video of themselves surfing, snowboarding, mountain biking or breathing fire?
How does this relate to Luxury Branding? Luxury Brands could leverage GoPro’s high-quality video and wearability to better tell stories and connect with consumers. For example, just blocks away from my desk, New York Fashion Week 2014 is happening right now. Fashion devotees would love to see GoPro on the Runway or better yet, behind-the-scenes. A Luxury brand could feature videos of the craftsmanship and production of their high-end goods. What would a day in the life of the lead designer look like? Foodies could get a POV video of their favorite chef during a busy dinner shift.
Luxury hotel brands could replace the boring Virtual Tour with dynamic, branded content to show an amazing property or experience to potential guests.
GoPro was conceived on a surfing trip to Indonesia and began its life as a wrist-mounted film camera. It’s an authentic product aimed at a well-defined audience that it knows quite well, and it has succeeded because of the meaningful functional and emotional benefits it delivers to that audience. GoPro is about more than people creating and watching great video. It’s about sharing high-quality, impactful content.
Luxury brands should seize the opportunity and take advantage of this engaging, evolving tool.