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23 November 2013

Using Twitter Vine as a Tool to Grow Your Business

Twitter VineTwitter Vine was launched on January 24th 2013 and the concept was simple. A smartphone app which allows users to share six second videos with their Twitter following. Already the app has received the prestigious title of “the video Instagram”. The app records for the duration that users hold down on the record button. This allows users a lot of freedom, either to create a continuous video or a screen shot style animation. However users must be creative and innovative as six seconds is not a long period of time!

The question is whether businesses will be able to make use of the increasing trend of short videos. The apprehension surrounding the compatibility of Twitter Vine and businesses is similar to the apprehension which surrounded the launch of Instagram. However with a level of creativity and commitment, businesses found they were easily able to utilise the new social media platform to good effect. Now Instagram is widely used by companies both small and large as part of their social commerce strategies. Due to the superlative levels of engagement which video feeds allow, Vine may prove in time one of the most useful assets for businesses wishing to utilise social media. Here is how it is done.

6 Ways to Use Vine in Your Business

Brands Using Twitter Vine1. Use it to consolidate identity

Large global corporations such as Nike, McDonald’s or Apple are kings of brand identity. However, just because your business is not in their league does not mean you shouldn’t dedicate a lot of effort to brand identity. The very nature of Vine gives itself to developing and maintaining a brand identity.

Developing a brand identity is not an overnight affair. When developing videos spend time making sure the content aligns with your unique image. Select a style and tone which most reflects your target audience. Don’t be afraid to add personality and humanity to your videos, it is amazing how approachable this makes you to your audience. Some simple strategies you could adopt are using Vine as the vehicle to showcase your brand re-launch. Alternatively you can use Vine to broadcast videos depicting your company’s ethos and character.

2. To connect with your audience

Regardless of the platform, connecting and engaging with your audience is essential to successfully utilising social media for business. Due to the simplicity of the format, Vine is the ideal format for creating audience participation. A good example of ways in which you can use Vine to build interaction with your following is to encourage followers to submit videos using your products. Offer a prize to the most original or imaginative video submission. This will create attention for both your business and your page simultaneously.

3. To interact personally

Using Twitter VineUse Vine to show your customers and followers you are not a soulless robot driven corporation. Use it to show you are a human, compassionate collective. Demonstrate this by showing backstage videos, showing the inner workings of your company. Other ways you can do this is by asking your employees to summarise the best things about working for your company and launch these as a series.  This is a great way to show your company ethos and culture to your following.

4. Show evidence of customer satisfaction

Nothing convinces people of the legitimacy of your brand and products than genuine testimonials from real people. Vine provides a fantastic forum for businesses to do this. This can be done in a variety of ways. You could invite customers to submit videos summarising their experience and compile them into a fast pace mini video. Think of ways in which you can involve your clients, by creating competitions where prizes are rewarded to the best submissions.

5. Provide educational demonstrations

The sheer volume of videos entitled “how to…” available online, is a testament to the inquisitive nature of the human populace. Vine is the perfect format from which to launch a series of your own educational videos demonstrating to users how to get the best out of your products. On the other hand you could use short videos to reveal insightful secrets into how your products are produced. This will create an open image for your business and will build trust through demonstrations of your honesty.

6. Product promotion

This may seem an obvious virtue of the Vine. Nevertheless Vine is an extremely effective vehicle from which to promote and market new products or changes within your business. When using Vine for product promotion, a great tactic to use is to then link the video to either your landing page or to related informative content. The scope for utilising Vine for promotion is potentially endless. Businesses could use it to launch countdowns to product launches or reminders of existing products.