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Why Vine Is (And Is Not) The Next Big Thing

Written by ironcore | Jan 31, 2013 8:40:07 PM

There’s a new kid on the social media block. Vine, brought to the world by Twitter, is a new mobile social network that lets you create and share short looping videos. Just like Twitter, it is about constrained creativity. Twitter allows for 140 characters, and Vine enables users to share 6 seconds of video. It’s pretty fun, but is it the next big social network for brands?

Yes, Vine is the next big thing.

Attention spans are shorter than ever

YouTube recommends users capture the attention of viewers in the first 15 seconds. Vine caters to the shrinking attention span by enabling users to record only six seconds of video per Vine.

It’s mobile show and tell

Brands can show products, demo new technologies, share sound bytes, post moments from tradeshows, do six-second how-to videos, and more.

Brands can promote Vines on Twitter

When you create and share a Vine, you can also opt to share that Vine on Twitter. Since Twitter owns Vine, the videos show up right on Twitter’s timeline. Wheat Thins and General Electric have already used the promoted post feature to promote their Vines.

The possibilities for creativity are endless

Individuals have been sharing some really interesting content. We’ve seen time-lapse street shots, live animation, visual magic tricks, and more. The best videos may have been six seconds long, but they’ve taken a lot of thought to create.

Sharing a Vine is easy

When you post a video on Vine, you’re given the option to Tweet your video. This is simple, and instantaneous. Users can also embed Vines in blog posts with ease.

Tip: To embed a Vine, click on more, then select Embed Tweet. Copy the code provided and add it to your post.

No, Vine is not the next big thing.

Another day, another fun toy

Social Media pros are infamous for testing networks, playing for a while, and walking away. We are having a lot of fun playing with Vine- more fun than we’ve had in a long time with a new network or application. That said, fun applications come and go. Some fun applications are good for business purposes, and some aren’t. Vine could tip either way.

Six seconds isn’t enough time to share what really matters

Six seconds may be good for a quick product demo for an easy to use consumer-facing product. Is six seconds adequate to solve a customer issue? Or to share news about an important announcement? Probably not.

The Chatroulette effect has already started

Earlier this week Vine featured a video containing porn. They have been working on filters for inappropriate content, but they aren’t quite there.

Vine has (mostly) been done before, and it was called 12seconds.tv

12seconds users were able to share 12 seconds of video on personal channels on the web. It was interesting to some, but not widely adapted. In 2010 12seconds.tv went under.

Facebook has already blocked it

Vine users cannot share Vines on Facebook because Facebook has blocked users from doing so. Why? Because Vine is owned by Twitter. Vine will lose out on brands that primarily focus their efforts on Facebook.

No matter what happens, here’s what we can learn from Vine:

  • People have short attention spans. If you’re creating videos, generally speaking you have 10 seconds to gain a viewer’s attention.
  • When developing videos, be creative and brief.
  • Videos don’t need to be heavily produced to be cool.

Check out some of the cool Vines we’ve seen from brands so far:

Here’s ours! We decided to take you on a tour of our neighborhood.

Trident chews their own gum.

RedVines shares their RedVines and showcases their lesser-known grape flavor.

Gap takes customers on a journey of Gap fashion through history.

Dove shares their body wash scents, and they hope you <3 them too.

Wheat Thins promotes their latest hashtag with a promoted Vine.

Have you created a Vine? Share it with us in the comments!
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