Why and How to Use Vine and Instagram Video for Your Brand

You’re always seeking the “next big thing.”

That next big thing is here— Vine and Instagram. (Sure, Instagram has been around quite a while now. But it has never been able to do video until now. And that’s a huge asset for brands.)

Vine has had quick success, already reaching 13 million downloads since its arrival in the app store in January.

And Instagram recently hopped on the bandwagon. Instagram, with 10 times the users Vine has, gained traction even faster. 

The point is not which app is better: The point is how fast they’ve grown in popularity.

Why not put your brand on the wagon as well? Companies have already had success with both.

And there are obvious benefits to both applications. They are both:

• free for your brand to use
• easy to use for your social media staff and your potential customers
• short and simple, so viewers are more likely to watch

Instagram video

Why you shouldn’t ignore it

Instagram videos saw immediate success: 4 million videos were shared the first day the feature was available. The super-short 6-second snippets integrate easily with Facebook.

Instagram success

The clothing store Topshop showed off its versatility with an Instagram video, and got more than 2K likes in only a few minutes.

Vine

Why you shouldn’t ignore it

Vine is skyrocketing in success. More than 12 million people use it, and 1-2 million Vine videos are shared to Twitter each day. These videos are slightly longer, maxing out at 15 seconds and connecting seamlessly to Twitter.

Examples of Vine success

Lowe’s has created a smart and useful campaign for its Vine users. It created how-to videos for everyday difficulties in the home. They’re all linked together with the hashtag #lowesfixinsix. It keeps to the shorter video time of 6 seconds, and shows stop-motion instructions. The videos have been successful because they offer something valuable to their audience.

For more examples of how brands are using Vine, you can check out the showcase at Brands On Vine to showcase examples of how brands are using Vine for branding opportunities.

Using the Tools

The best part about these new video capabilities is that the rules of engagement are still the same for any social media tool.

You still want to:

• Go behind the scenes and show people what your business or process is all about
• Be useful, with tutorials or tips that will help your users in their daily lives
• Be personable, and relate to users like a person, not just a brand.

And the video allows for a new level of interaction with customers: play to their emotions. Video is the perfect way to evoke feeling. And the advantage there is undeniable: having an emotional response to a brand helps people remember it more clearly.

It’s just another way of engagement with your customers that will keep people interested.

I mean, you always want to keep people coming back for more, right?