Even the casual observer should be able to surmise that dark days are surely upon GoPro after their recent announcement that will finally succumb to the indignity of making their first scripted television advertisement.

As a brand, GoPro has literally shot beyond the stratosphere with their at times rebellious, perpetually exuberant, and yes – smartly shot and edited – but unscripted footage. They’ve captured a global audience over the past decade precisely because of their ability to successfully advertise how that a small action camera can show another side of the world – one not clipped at the wings or manufactured in a stale manner like traditional photography marketing.

Extreme sports athletes became GoPro ambassadors, and viewers were rapidly enticed into emulating the activities of these professionals. Action sports became synonymous with the ultimate action camera, although one problem quickly emerged – there simply aren’t enough athletically-gifted videographers in the world, and even those who purchased GoPros weren’t rushing back year after year to upgrade. The audience and consumer base quickly plateaued, and even though ordinary enthusiasts might have purchased a GoPro or two over the years to shoot family photos or to strap them on their dogs, the company itself neglected to market to a wider viewership.

The new GoPro commercial.

For as long as camera companies have been marketing to consumers, they’ve targeted outside the professional market. GoPro has also been niche, and their move towards earning a wider appeal may be far too late.

The first video is available on YouTube now, and their ad campaign is titled “This is…”, which aims to rebrand GoPro from being “just” an action camera brand for adventurers, to being a regular tool that helps record daily life. There’s no mention of GoPro until the very end, and that’s part of the intent of the ad, to show that specs don’t matter – only convenience.

Cute, but still focused on action.

It stays true to their brand identity of firstly, suggesting their customers are unique individuals, and secondly, that we should free ourselves of smartphones and big DSLRs. The video is actually quite impressive, and I did like how GoPro are positioning their Hero cameras as more than just a video recording device.

But to be fair, that’s the only option they have right now. They have to keep channeling the old excitement that their old video stunts channeled, and keep GoPro as an innovative name. It’s what will ultimately give them the edge over cheaper Chinese competition from cameras such as Xiaomi's YI 2 4K.

GoPro, before the crash.

The only problem is that GoPro really have a challenge ahead of them, an almost insurmountable challenge – especially now that like Icarus, they flew too close to the sun, and their Karma drones started literally falling out of the sky. Share prices have plummeted, consumer confidence must surely be at an all time low after the global recall of the Karma, and meanwhile competitors like DJI are overwhelming the world with their sheer size and capital.

In an email to Digital Trends, a GoPro representative said that the company hopes this ad will “resonate on an emotional level with a much wider user base … It’s a shift in strategy to target a broader consumer audience, and a shift in tone to signal a more accessible, inclusive GoPro that is relevant to all consumers — not just extreme athletes. ”

A classic ad from GoPro.

It’s a good step that GoPro are admitting they may have made some marketing decisions in the past, and we are hoping that it isn’t too late for them to turn their company around. This episode aired on national television during ABC’s How to Get Away with Murder, and three more “digital breakouts” will be aired next week, starting on Sunday, November 13. Each of the videos will explore separate stories introduced in this current video.

GoPro’s decision to scale up so quickly to challenge DJI in the drone market may end up as a catalyst for the company’s eventual downfall, but on the other hand, if they continue strong Hero sales, and relaunch a stable Karma that has more fun-value than the sleekly imperial Mavic, they could have a chance to bounce back.

A general rebrand is a good first step, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if GoPro end up shifting some of their entry-level models towards a more family friendly design, but it’s unclear whether the move comes too late to save a once-great company.

The definition of epic.

2016-11-11 03:00