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Video Branded Content Marketing

RedPill’s branded video review with Ruffles, Wranglers, and Burberry

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By Matthew Davies, director

November 4, 2016 | 4 min read

Every fortnight, RedPill reviews three new or relevant branded videos and assesses the reasons behind their social performance. RedPill’s rating system scores videos across five categories (awarding a maximum of 20% for each category): originality; on brand; creativity; craft; and shareability. The sum of all five scores produces a rating out of 100%.

New Office Edition | Dude Perfect for Ruffles

Rating: 58%

Dude Perfect is the bro spirit personified, and their new office is a temple to worship that spirit. Akin to the British lad, bros lives are built around sports, beer, and video games. DP, as they refer to themselves, is a trick shot channel. It is one of the many social-video only genres, based on creating incredibly complex trick shots that take hundreds of tries to hit, then cut together in rapid montage to give the feeling of effortlessness.

The video itself is well done for what it is, and certainly shows how much money the top-tier influencers are making. But what are brands getting in return for the astronomical fees? There are references to Ruffles, but very little interaction with the brand. Are you telling me they couldn’t come up with a trick shot that involved Ruffles? And the guys don’t even try a chip throughout the video.

The dominant brand is clearly Dude Perfect and, unfortunately, there’s no attempt to make the brands work together. The brand recall on a video like this must be almost nil.

The Wild Way Home | Wrangler

Rating: 67%

Wrangler is also going the influencer route, with James Kingston. However, they are taking a very different approach. This video is an ad - not content, and it feels like that. The production quality is spectacular, and the creative certainly fits the adventurous spirit of the brand. But because it is a Facebook ad, and its influencer is a YouTuber, it feels like it missed the opportunity to capitalise on Kingston’s audience. This would have certainly helped get a more positive response - most comments seem to come from overly concerned parents with no sense of adventure.

The ideal space for influencer marketing is between the Dude Perfect video and this Wrangler’s one. It should have the production values of an ad, creative that sets it apart, and the shareability of the influencer’s normal work. Indeed, in cases like this it seems obvious to produce a cut-down that would work as a Facebook ad, and a longer version that is closer to the content side of things. If Wrangler had given more time to some of the stunts and to James Kingston, I’m sure this would have done very well on Kingston’s channel.

The Tale of Thomas Burberry

Rating: 86%

The Christmas campaigns are coming. Burberry’s ad is a grand way to start. Styled as a trailer, it tells the story of the founder of the fashion house. The film apes the new wave of British costume dramas to perfection, from the childhood flashbacks to the celebration of national exceptionalism. However, because it plays as a trailer, it can cut out all the dull parts that usually fill 80% of the movies and focus on the epic, romantic sweep of people caught up in world events - striving, fighting, loving.

The casting is impressive, full of prestige faces at every corner. Asif Kapadia’s direction is strong, with a good eye for contrasting and emotive images. And the whole thing feels so perfectly Burberry, with its grand mythologisation of the British spirit. A jolly good way to head into the dark London winter.

Matthew Davies is a director at RedPill, a specialist agency working with the world’s most exciting brands. RedPill focuses exclusively on influencer marketing and branded video, covering content strategy, creative, video production, and organic distribution.

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