A nice bit of tinsel, or genuine business-booster?
Vine is a new app launched by Twitter back in January. The app allows you to create six second videos and share them on the platform as well as Twitter and Facebook.
Just as Tweets forced us to condense our messages down to 140 words, Vine is pushing us to create short and snappy messages with film.
Following the launch of the app it didn’t take long before brands were jumping in to see how they could utilise the app for marketing purposes.
The app produces film which plays the six seconds on a continuous loop which means generally people watch your video two or three times as it replays quickly. This is gold dust for marketeers – the product recognition is high.
Urban Outfitters is thought to be the first brand to create a Vine – it went with the old ‘cute dogs’ method, picturing two dogs wearing accessories.
Vine has joined the list of social channels through which you can engage with your customers and really push awareness of your business.
So how do you get started and what should you be trying to achieve on Vine?
The app is still only available on iOS but is coming soon to other platforms. You can download the app from your app store and get going. It’s easy to connect your business’s Vine account with your company Twitter account so you can use them in tandem.
Creating the videos couldn’t be easier. There’s no fiddling around with Final Cut Pro. You simply hold your finger on the screen when you want to film, take it off, put it pack on again – cutting the shots onto a six second reel.
Much like Twitter, Vine will work off hashtags. Use these to tag your Vine clips and make sure they get spotted. You can search through the users and follow relevant people, just as your legions of fans and customers will hopefully start following you.
Why not start off with a bang. Sit down and think about how you can make a creative video which will encourage people to start following you. Announce that you have joined Vine on your site’s blog and social media channels, show off your initial creation and hopefully you’ll garner plenty of followers.
But what kind of videos can you create with Vine?
There are numerous ways you can use Vine to market your business and products. Think about the kind of things you blog about or Tweet about – chances are they could probably be turned into Vine videos.
Show off your products
Static images on your site don’t always do your products justice. Why not bring them to life with these short clips? Cadbuy has jumped on the bandwagon and given its classic dairy milk bar a boost.
If there’s something new about to hit your site, why not create a short Vine about it and drum up some anticipation. Create a relevant background, shoot it from different angles and post it.
Get your customers to create Vines around your products or services
Vine is a prime candidate for welcoming user-generated content. You can ask your customers to come up with creative ways to capture your products using Vine and post them using a particular hashtag. You could create a home for these on your site, encouraging customers to come and see if theirs made the cut.
You could run a competition to see who can create the best, then promote it on your various social channels. It’s essentially free advertising!
Show how products work
You don’t have to just show off your products, you could also make useful instruction Vines showing how the product is used.
It’s quick and easy for customers to watch and you could host the videos next to the product descriptions to give consumers and even rounder pool of information about the products.
Make seasonal celebratory videos
Easter is coming up, why not use that as a hook to create a quick advert for your brand. Tropicana created a short clip to celebrate Valentine’s Day – they can be cute and effective and remind people why they need your product or service at that time.
Give people behind the scenes info
Customers love to gain extra insight into a business. You could create a short snappy tour of your office, introduce the team or create a clip around an event you are attending. Allowing people to see what it’s like to work for you could create a greater attachment to your brand.
Speak Your Mind