Tout was put on the map with a simple video from Shaquille O’Neal announcing to the world that he was retiring from the game of basketball. Now it has become a social media tool used by many sports personalities like College game day’s Chris Fowler, Fox Sport’s Erin Andrews, sport’s analyst Michael Strahan, and NFL Insider Adam Schefter. Tout is quickly becoming the go-to tool for quick interactive news. In a recent article on Forbes.com, O’Neal, praised Tout, and said he believes social media is going to lead the rest of the media in breaking news.
There is no denying that Facebook and Twitter are quickly becoming a primary resource for the latest news through written text. As well as video platforms like Youtube. Where Tout differs is that it provides 15 second videos to provide information, therefore being more engaging for followers who prefer visual messaging. Online videos are becoming increasingly popular so this is definitely attacking the right area. In fact a study conducted by Neilson Research revealed 51 percent of people watched TV on laptops, 49 percent used an Apple iPad, 37 percent used a tablet computer and 42 percent said they used video-enabled smartphones.
Tout’s CEO, Michael Downing, has seen his business grow from 5 employees, when Shaq started using Tout, to 30 now that Tout is being adopted rapidly worldwide, especially by media companies like ESPN, CBS, Bloomberg, CNBC and the WWE. Today, Tout averages about 13 million visitors to the site and app per month, and traffic is growing 35 to 40% monthly.
ESPN has amped up their activity on Tout, most notably with the cast from First Take (Stephen A Smith and Skip Bayless). Sportscenter has a Tout account and for Fantasy Football goers, ESPN Fantasy Football Now provides you the updates you need for your lineup. In July, the WWE and Tout partnered to interact with their fans on Monday Night Raw. They asked fans to Tout videos during Raw for a chance to appear on the show. They understand the direction video expression is going, and are taking advantage of an opportunity to engage their fans on and off the stage.
Even the gaming industry is getting into Tout, as EA Sports Madden 13 debates the player ratings on the game with its fans using the #MaddenRatingsDebate, constantly try to improve the game have accurate rated players. In this way, fans can provide input on whether a player like RGIII should have a higher rating in the game or not on a weekly basis when playing online.
Much like Twitter, Tout gives users the ability to relay a message, quickly. But Tout has the added benefit of a visual component. Downing has goals of Tout becoming much bigger than Twitter. “We’re dealing with visual media that people can process easier than text. If I’m an advertiser, I don’t know that someone has read a Tweet, but I know if someone has opened a Tout. That information is there.”
Downing’s goal is lofty, and only time will tell if Tout is adopted that readily. Michael Vorhaus, President of Magid Advisors definitely believes Tout can blow up because he says short works–but as of right now, it’s nothing but full steam ahead for this video social media technology.
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