The weird thing is that I've actually learned something from Snapchat Spectacles, so much so that I actually want to become the Snapchat of my photography brand and industry. Just like Snapchat captures these random moments of your life and broadcasts them into your story for others to enjoy watching, so too have they gone and made it an experience to wear their glasses.
How Can You Use Their Approach in Your Business?
Enjoyable and Simple to Understand
The glasses can be found in color-popping yellow vending machines in the big cities of the world. The vending machines seem very simple to use. Insert your credit card, choose the color you want, and you're off. Be like the Spectacle vending machine. Make it as simple as possible for clients to book and pay you. Create an experience — an enjoyable, memorable one. You do it with your camera; now, do it in your client interaction. Be colorful, enjoyable, and simple to understand.
Free up Hands
The glasses free up your hands. Do that for your clients. The more work you take on yourself with regards to the shoot, the better. Don't expect a client to go through loads of images and select what they think will work best. Being a great photographer is being able to select the few images that portray the message in the best way possible. Making your selection is really your style in all its glory.
Be User-Oriented
When viewing a video on Snapchat, the screen stays stable no matter which way the device is tilted. It makes sure the viewer is getting the best experience no matter how they are holding their device. I suppose it's quite a bit of complex programming in the back end of the app, and yet it looks so simple. It left me wondering why all video-viewing apps aren't made like that. It's about the details. As a photographer, I need to be client/user-oriented. Do the little things that others don't, and do them well. If you ever leave town and aren't able to shoot for that client, and it leaves them to get someone else to do the shoot, they will miss you, wondering why all photographers aren't like you.
Be the Photographer They Think of When They Think of a Photographer
The review video above says the best videos the Spectacles have to offer are face-to-face videos, experiential videos, and videos that look and feel like memories. It's there to let you play. Be that for clients. Free them up. Make them feel like they can relax and that you have the scenario under control. Be the photographer who shoots a couple of extra shots in-between fittings. Get the portrait of the model that she can use for her book, do your post on it, and send it to them. Be you, but make it enjoyable to be around you too.
I agree with the statement that the best camera is the one you have on you. And with these glasses, you can wear a camera, sharing the world through your eyes. The glasses connect to the app. Everything works together very intuitively. When you are recording, there's a spiral wheel that almost looks like a loading notification on the left side for the friends around you to know you're recording, so everyone can participate. It shoots at 16 frames per second. The quality isn't that great, but according to the review, this is definitely a step in the right direction.
As a photographer, the megapixels of your camera sensor don't really matter, nor does the size of the photo or camera. What matters is that you capture the emotion involved in the photo and that you create the environment for these moments to take place. The glasses are unobtrusive. While wearing them, the people around you know you're wearing them and your intention of potentially capturing some video with and of them to share on Snapchat. They communicate this intent in a friendly, colorful way. Do the same.
Never Stop Improving
The review also shares the downsides. One is that when you shoot a lot of videos, they take a long time to transfer. To import takes time and the buffering seems like it can be improved in the next upgrade of the app. The user interface is also not as smooth, as the app works through the phone. When you want to share the Spectacle videos, it drops all the videos into a "your day" folder where you have to scroll down to get the video you want to post. This too will surely be improved in the next update. What can I take out of this? Identify your weaknesses and improve on them. The clients you already have might know these weaknesses too, but the new clients are the perfect ones to show your improved self.
Conclusion
Snapchat isn't for everyone, but if you're looking to improve your social network clout or just share the fun you have in a new way, the Snapchat Spectacles can do that for you. Apparently, they are hard to come by for now, but I'm sure the rollout will get better, especially as we're heading towards Christmas, since these will be great gifts.
I don't know if their creative agency comes up with all the ideas or if it's the application developers who know how to make something exciting, but they're doing a great job of doing things differently, which makes the brand even more notable. I won't be getting the Spectacles, as my face works better with square-framed glasses. But they are a lot more approachable than the Google Glass concept. The tech brands are fashion brands now, and it's only going to become more part of our daily experience as tech-savvy human beings.
Check out the Spectacles here, and find out where you can locate a vending machine here if you're looking to get a pair.
