Vine: A new social network for business

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Jordan Burt, a Utah resident, has over 2.4 million followers on Vine and makes his living doing advertising on the new social network. Photo by Jordan Burt.
Jordan Burt, a Utah resident, has over 2.4 million followers on Vine and makes his living doing advertising on the new social network. (Photo by Jordan Burt)

Vine announced that the social media app specializing in six-second videos had reached over 40 million users in August. This is an impressive feat for a mobile platform that launched January 24, 2013. Many brands and consumers are adopting the new social media approach of using Vine and Instagram’s video capabilities, also released this year, to communicate with consumers and drive sales.

“Social media marketing is ever-evolving,” said Karene Torgerson, BYU AdLab manager. “It is definitely opening up new avenues and new ways that people can engage with consumers.”

Torgerson said the AdLab is currently working with a client on a social media campaign focused on Vine and user-generated content, planned for launch in January. She said that with social media it does not take a lot for the consumer to be engaged with a brand.

“A consumer who can take 15 seconds to film and post a six-second Vine and then see it endorsed by a brand has a huge effect in brand loyalty,” Torgerson said.

One example of this seen on Vine is the “world’s longest apple drop” campaign by General Electric. The campaign celebrated Gravity Day, September 8, by inviting Viners to catch and drop an apple using #GravityDay in the post. The company collaborated with famous Viners as a way to get the word out and ultimately received hundreds of submissions and thousands of likes and “revines” on the social network.

Jordan Burt, a Utah resident and famous Viner, was one of several Viners who worked with General Electric on the campaign. His Vine, featured on the company’s channel, has received over 60,000 likes to date.

Burt is employed by Grape Story, a New York “mobile-first marketing agency” that specializes in Vine as a direct channel to consumers.

“I thought there were a lot of possibilities,” Burt said about his first time using the app. He recalled making four short films his first night on Vine. While his viewership was small, that quickly changed when Vine editors picked one of his Vines to show on the front page of Vine.

“I think I got to 1,000 followers, and I just thought it was insane. From there I just had a lot more motivation,” he said.

Burt, who moved from Provo to Salt Lake City earlier this year, said he has always had a knack for short films and has wanted to use them for advertising. By creating six-second stories, he has seen his Vine grow to over 2.4 million followers, the 13th most popular Vine channel, and he now makes enough money to live on by doing advertising on the network.

So far, Burt has created content for companies such as AxeCampbell’s CanadaMorris Rescue Watch and Trident Gum.

“I think that Jordan kind of showed me that you should be yourself and do your own thing,” said Tanner Konold, a BYU law student and friend of Burt.

Konold, who grew up with Burt in Poway, Calif., and roomed with him in Provo, has been featured in several of Burt’s Vines. Although Konold does not produce his own Vines, he has his account to follow friends like Burt.

“It may turn into something that may be a financial success,” Konold said, “but whether or not, you should do (your own thing) just because you love doing it.”

Whether Vine is being used to promote a product or one’s self, it holds promises to companies and brands. The short videos of Vine and Instagram appear they will stay, so the question is, how will you use this new social media for business?

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