Nestlé Takes the Periscope Plunge

Twitter-owned Periscope launched in Marc and since then, brands have been curious (or terrified) about how to turn livestreaming video into ads. Twitter doesn't offer Periscope ads (just)  yet, but a campaign from Nestlé this weekend shows how marketers can still work slick marketing into the mix.

This Sunday is the Summer Solstice, and Nestlé's Drumstick brand is marking the holiday with a slew of social video clips that promote the chocolate-topped ice cream cone. Nestlé has hired a handful of notable Periscope personalities to broadcast classic summertime scenes—think backyards and amusement parks—to their followers.

Each stream will include the hashtag #ad in the title of the video to indicate that it's sponsored, similar to how social media influencers have delineated promotions on Vine, Instagram and Twitter.

Because Periscope accounts are connected to Twitter, the livestreaming app automatically will post a tweet with a link to the real-time broadcasts. Drumstick is buying Promoted Tweets to push such tweets and ultimately drive viewership, and the brand has also hired an additional 100 Twitter influencers to tweet about the ice cream this weekend.

Meanwhile, Drumstick opened its own Periscope account yesterday and will be livestreaming 15 to 20 scenarios on Sunday from beaches, amusement parks, backyards, lakes and on the street in New York City.

Let's see how this goes!