Introduction to Vine

How 6 seconds changed the world

It seems that this year the movie maker has been unleashed in us all with the 6 second video maker that has taken over the world.

Vine was introduced to the social networking world with a bang earlier this year in conjunction with Twitter. The platform already has a sizable following of users all keen to show off their video-taking skills.

Vine is a new way to create and share short, snappy, looping videos. Vine is a community very much still in its infancy, attracting a following of users all keen on capturing their movements in video.

It’s only been going a couple of months but a community has sprouted up fast, helped perhaps by the ease of use of the app releasing bursts of creativity all over the web.

The aim is to keep things short and sweet – Vine videos are only six seconds long. Its duration is aimed at falling in line with Twitter’s 140-characters per tweet limit and developers argue that the limit inspires users to be creative.

How does it work?

It's very simple - Vine records for as long as your finger is on the create button. You can either create video in a single shot or tap the screen to create a stop animation style video.

Recently Vine has also introduced two new features to the app, Sessions and Time Travel. Sessions allows users to save drafts of their unfinished posts and come back to finish them at a later time, and you can work on as many as 10 videos at once.

The Time Travel feature expands the possibilities for stop-motion videos, allowing users to remove, reorganise or replace shots within a post before posting it.

Our love for video

Its the truth - video really does seem to be taking over the world. People have a much better engagement with video content, and if Vine is anything to go by, video seems to be the future of digital marketing.

Vine's integration with Twitter has certainly helped it to flourish - this has been great for optimisation, as videos posted to the app appear in relevant search results, and of course Vine supports hashtag searching.

Vine is extremely useful for smart, savvy digital marketing types. Certain brands have used the platform to their advantage and have produced brilliant social media marketing content. Dove, for example, have used the platform not only promote their brand, but to also educate its consumers and promote what they stand for with the title, "Whether you're 15 or 51, your #beauty shines on."

Vine is a creative platform for users to showcase their ability - its new features are certainly an exciting prospect. Have a go at creating some new fresh content, but remember - you only have 6 seconds, so make them count!

How to use Vine effectively

Struggling for some inspiration? Here are some ideas to get you started…

• Build a narrative - try and create a small series of videos as well as uploading individual videos. Followers are more likely to return to your page for the next episode! Honda have created a series called Leonard Martin at the drive-in auction.

• Involve people - try and get other people involved - don’t be picky; invite everyone and anyone! Vine is a great way to encourage your audience to tag you in clips when trying out your products/services. Incentives are a great way to boost you following, everyone loves a freebie! Make the most of your Twitter page and use it to share your Vines; be sure to hashtag new products, upcoming events etc.. Asos posted a video encouraging followers to post videos of customers unboxing their Asos parcels.

• Demonstrate how stuff works People inevitably want to know how things work so, as you can imagine, "how to" videos are always popular. Vine’s perfect for creating a series of short steps to show people how to use your products/services. Ikea create videos on how to use their products - this Vine gives their customers different ideas for what can be done with leftover fabric.