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As a web design agency we are responsible for both designing and building awesome websites and helping our clients to develop strategies which will help them outgun their competitors. An area that we often focus on is social media.
It’s old news that effective use of social media is an essential part of any web strategy. If you’re able to tap into the likes of Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Flickr, Youtube etc then you’ll have found a free, instant way to connect with your audience. A creative social media strategy has the potential to perfect complement your website design and improve your online identity.
The majority of the major social media platforms have been around for a while now. In many ways this is a good thing, as it gives us a chance to keep up with the pace of change! It also enables us to gradually build an active audience, find ways to improve SEO results through social media and work out which social media platforms are best for our business.
However, with the arrival of a new or improved social media channel comes an opportunity to get ahead of competitors and think differently about how you connect with your audience.
This is exactly what Vine brings.
Vine is a mobile app released by Twitter which enables users to post 6-second video clips using their smartphones. It’s very similar to Instagram Video, which allows users up to 15-seconds of footage.
These new social media apps are very different from what we’ve had so far. Whilst Twitter and Instagram are great for sharing photos, and Youtube and Vimeo are perfect platforms for hosting higher-quality videos, Vine has a very different flavour. It’s fun, informal and simple. It’s also connected with 40 million users, which is around 10% of all Twitter users. However, it’s fair to say that your average Vine user is likely to be much more connected than those that have Twitter accounts simply to follow their favourite celebrities. It’s highly interactive.
Vine also gives businesses an opportunity to connect with customers in a different way. It’s first and foremost a very disarming form of communication. We’re highly accustomed to high-budget, slick commercials, and there is an extent to which we have become immune to this form of marketing. Vine, however, allows you to connect with customers in a 1-1, low-key way. Instagram Video and Vine clips don’t look like advertising. In fact, they needn’t actually be advertising to have the same effect.
There are loads of ways that you could use Vine to increase the exposure of your business. It could be used to give customers an insight into your workplace, staff team etc. You could use competitions, hashtags and giveaways to get customers to interact with you through video. It might be a helpful platform for you to share 6-second bursts of industry wisdom that will help educate viewers and demonstrate your authority.
We love the informal, creative and innovative nature of social media, and Vine is no different. Why not spend a few minutes thinking about how you can improve your social media strategy and grow your audience today?
