Lights, camera, Vine. If you’ve heard of this app entering the branding strategies of major companies but have no idea what it is or why marketers are crazy for  it, then you’ve come to the right place. We’ll look at it from a sports and entertainment perspective, but most of these tips span industries since the app is all about putting messaging into motion.

Right now, the application is free and available only on the iPhone and iPod touch. It’s owned by Twitter and the network appears to be working on making it available on other platforms. So why should you be using Vine for your brand? Here are 4 great reasons:

1. It’s short, sweet, and smile-worthy.

Vine provides the perfect amount of time to shoot something that says it all in a matter of seconds, but the trick that’s working successfully for brands is the light-hearted emotion it captures. A perfect example is Dove’s Vine video that used a bar of its soap as a bowling ball, knocking over its shower gel containers used as pins.

2. It connects users through emotion.

Corporations have mastered the talking-head interviews, and they’ll be happy to know, that the tactic isn’t completely dead. Interviews with brand ambassadors, players, and partners make for great Vine content, so long as it’s energetic and relatable. Filming a greeting from a star-spokesperson, for example, before an opening game is something that is already working for fashion brands who have used models to grace iPhone screens in the same way.

3. It captures live event coverage.

Live-tweeting was so 2012. In 2013, post tweets and looped videos live and on location to bring your audience even closer to the happenings with your brand, especially behind the scenes. Providing exclusive clips fills in the holes between staged shots and planned events, allowing them to see your brand as a person – not some thing but someone – they can relate to. Think sneak peeks into player practices, pop-star stage warm-up, and other things of that nature.

4. It teases like a trailer.

Whether you are a brand promoting a product launch or an upcoming event, the Vine app can provide the perfect medium for a teaser on what’s to come. Promos, giveaways, or contests looming? You can build buzz alluding to plans in the works in a way that’s fun to share – just like blockbusters do.

A few final notes

In order for large companies to use the app to its full potential, the reins on content approval for each and every video will have to be let up, at least a little bit. Since it’s all mobile and meant to be at people’s disposal at all times, true creativity comes out of flexibility. Checking in on social media managers is good, but triple checking each clip for various levels of client approval will water-down the creative and make it old news.

Lastly, remember that because Vine is owned by Twitter, so don’t expect to be able to share Vine videos directly to Facebook-owned platforms any time soon. On the other hand, that doesn’t mean you can’t get around it. It just means that it’s going to take a little bit more planning on your team’s part to convert it in a way that is shareable on all channels meaningful to your brand.

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