Video Reel Quick: #InternationalDayOfHappiness

How to identify a topical trend and create captivating content in just a few hours. This is how we leveraged an awesome hashtag to create some quick, powerful, multi-channel formatted content.

Sometimes you just can’t predict a powerful trend. Yesterday morning, like most, I logged in Twitter to check Seenit’s notifications, keep up our presence, and see what’s trending in the world. Glossing over the typical #TuesdayThoughts and something about Trump, I saw the hashtag #InternationalDayOfHappiness. I clicked to investigate and found myself smiling as I scrolled through accounts of joy. This was a trend I loved and thought Seenit should be a part of.

✋5 Things that make Team Seenit Happy

Today is the first day of Spring (right?!) but also #InternationalDayOfHappiness so we thought to share what makes us happy in the hope it will make you happy too! 😁#IDOH2018 #Dogs #babies #partying #joy #UGC #video #tech #TravelTuesday pic.twitter.com/QIgU9yllfW

— Seenit (@_seenit) March 20, 2018

Despite only finding out that #InternationalDayOfHappiness was a “thing” at about 9.30am, to stay relevant I knew we needed to create powerful generated content for later that same day. Not as much of a task as you might think, for us all it takes is a topic of conversation, a community and Seenit.

I called an EMERGENCY CREATIVE MEETING (i.e. I spoke to Robbie- our video editor on my left and Harriet- our Creative Lead on my right) and proposed #InternationalDayOfHappiness to them. Robbie had time to edit and Harriet was down with the idea, so Seenit’s #InternationalDayOfHappiness content was a go!

Firstly we had to choose our community. Considering the very tight turnaround time, we knew we had to look close to home, very close to home… our own office! By choosing the Seenit crew to create with we knew we needed to put them at the centre of the video content and in turn create a narrative that focused on them.

“Let’s make a listicle style video of the ‘Things that make team Seenit happy’ and while we’re at it, lets make Instagram and Instagram Story friendly versions to showcase the versatility of Seenit content and how quickly you can create video using the platform” – Harriet Beaumont, Creative Lead, #InternationalDayOfHappiness, March 2018

SUBLIME idea by our ol’ Creative Lead there – Let’s get cracking!

So, let’s break down how we actually did it…

10.00 – A Seenit project is populated with an #InternationalDayOfHappiness-themed script for video content to be uploaded to.

10.15 – We invited the community to the project and encouraged them to upload content.

**SEENIT TIP: **We gave them a tight deadline and lots of encouragement!

10.20 – Our first piece of footage is uploaded – WOOP!

11.30 – Our community had uploaded 120 clips of joy to the project.

Next step was to look at all the footage and identify standout clips, common themes and narratives. We already had a strong idea of the type of film we wanted to create (essential before starting any Seenit project) so this was pretty easy.

We identified five strong themes: Animals, kids, partying, travelling, laughing. Editor extraordinaire Robbie then used these to create “5 things that make Seenit happy”. This is a great example of the community (i.e. the Seenit team) dictating the final piece.

Finally, we needed to nail distribution. This meant creating a number of versions for different channels. Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and a vertical edit for Instagram Stories. This is absolutely crucial to the success of the content. Always keep in mind that different distribution channels need different versions of the same video.

Scroll up to see our Twitter version & check our Instagram (@seenit__ ) to see how we adapted content for Stories.

Seenit’s top tips for quick turn around content

1. Sometimes trends come out of nowhere no matter how much you plan. Embrace them and take action!

2. Make the most of your community and harness their creativity to make quick, powerful and authentic content.

3. Giving a deadline is essential for quick turnaround projects- keep it short and snappy!

4. Always have a clear idea of the content you want to produce before you start.

5. Let the content do the work! Don’t worry too much about quality.

6. Think multi-channel! Identify your preferred distribution channels early and create edits accordingly

Perhaps the next time you see an unanticipated trend you won’t stall on creating something quick and awesome! For examples of how Seenit has been used to its full potential, check our Case Studies page.

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