Shell has turned to online video to promote the values of its Rotella brand.
Judging by YouTube viewing figures of between 50-100k, the brand campaign has attracted its fair share of hits. However, rather than talking about the engine oil itself, the videos simply show the life of people working in different outdoor industries with the theme of "A life in the day of hard work".
The online campaign was launched at the end of 2013 but continues to attract hits and media attention which demonstrates the power of the 'long tail' effect of video marketing. The campaign uses documentary techniques to create "micro-documentaries" lasting around four minutes in length. Each one follows an individual or family as they go about their working day, emphasing the ethic of hard work.
According to a Shell marketing spokesman, the charm of the campaign is the lack of professional scripting - although the videos are shot in high definition and professionally edited. Whilst not a new method of promoting products, the online campaign has qualities that demonstrate the ability to deliver a viral message without overtly advertising the product itself.