At Clairemont, we focus on blending traditional communication and social media to provide our clients with monumental results. So, knowing what is the next big thing to hit the social media world is our job! But with social media and technology changing everyday, it can be a challenge keeping track of all the newest social crazes.
Sites like Mashable and PR Daily do a great job of reporting on industry news and are a good reference for social media updates. According to a June 6 article on PR Daily, the video version of Instagram is an up-and-coming contender for the next popular social networking app. Here is its list of their top 10 Instagram-for-video apps to watch:
1. Viddy. Of all the new-breed video-sharing options out there, this is the one that looks and feels the most like Instagram. It has all the features you’d expect, including Facebook Timeline integration. If celebrity interest is any indication, Viddy might become the “it” platform. For some mind-bending content, check out Britney Spears’ channel (only available on iPhone at this stage).
2. SocialCam. This is the other “hot” video-sharing app at the moment, thanks in part to the team behind another popular video-based service, Justin.tv. The “leaderboard” function shows you who has the most followers on SocialCam, which at this point is led by The Roxie a “SocialCam Rockstar.” It’s available on iPhone and Android.
3. Klip. This should have been called Klipstagram or Klipterest, because it is the closest to a mash-up of Instagram and Pinterest you’ll see. It’s another iPhone-only app, except you do have the ability to connect Klip with YouTube or upload directly from Klip.com (something that Instagram has avoided).
4. Looplr. A combination of the first three apps profiled here, Looplr allows for simple “shoot, share and watch” capability from your phone, supported by that familiar Pinterest-style viewing interface on the Web.
5. Tout. Tout is a little different from the first four; it’s more of a “Twitter for video sharing” app, enabling users to upload 15-second video status updates. Ex-NBA star Shaquille O’Neal was one of the first big names to join Tout (under the direction of Amy Jo Martin, a.k.a. Digital Royalty, one of sports most respected digital marketing experts).
6. Veetle. This is slightly different from the others in that it focuses on “live video broadcasting” among your social networks as opposed to recording and then posting (in a similar fashion to qik.com).
7. MyVidster. Again, this one is slightly different because it started as a Web-based video-bookmarking service, but it has recently launched a mobile app to allow sharing on the move.
Social video discovery specialists
There are a few similar Web-based apps that focus more on discovery than creation, which shouldn’t be overlooked.
8. Shufflr. While this is available on mobile, the most interesting element of Shufflr is the Facebook integration that sits within your profile and serves up your daily video fix based on your interests.
9. Chill. One of the more recent talked about Web apps, Chill borrowed some inspiration from Pinterest and made video content sharing more “personally social” than the behemoth YouTube.
10. Frequency. This Web-based aggregator brings video content together from professional content creators such as BBC, ESPN, and the NBA. It’s hard to categorize this one, and it does feel similar to the current YouTube interface.
Does anyone have an account on these apps? I’d be interested to know which ones everyone is using. I think I’m going to download Shufflr and give its daily video feed a try!
