Howdy BGB’ers.
So.
On average, five tweets per second contain a Vine link, according to research from tech company Unruly.
Consider Vine reports more than 40 million registered users and parent company Twitter reports more than 241 million active monthly users, and you can imagine the potential reach of those six-second videos.
Like, woah.
YouTube gets more than 1 billion unique visitors monthly, according to the video website.
And according to Nielsen, YouTube also reaches more 18 to 34-year-old adults than any cable network!
Pretty crazy sounding when you think how big cable networks like Brighthouse are, or satellite networks like Direct TV are.
And then in walks lil ‘ole YouTube, sweeping up a lion’s share of demographic in one fell swoop.
Needless to say, big and small businesses alike are taking advantage of these easy-to-use video platforms and their vast audiences to increase brand awareness.
You can do the same for your small biz with some of these handy dandy tips. (Ya’ll know you love the handy dandy tips.)
Share a Mix of Videos
On both YouTube and Vine, you can grow a list of viewers.
Fans subscribe to a channel on YouTube and follow a profile on Vine, or Twitter if they already follow the associated profile on that platform.
To increase followers and visibility for your brand (just like with blogging in fact), offer a mix of content.
LifeLock’s YouTube channel, which offers identity theft protection services, does exactly that.
It offers access to commercials but also to original content focused on the company, identity theft, and other related industry goodies.
A video about identity theft educates viewers and includes takeaway tips they can use to protect themselves.
The company also features exclusive interviews with professional skateboarder Danny Way, subject of the documentary “Waiting for Lightning” on its YouTube channel.
It wraps LifeLock branding around the video and ties the film to its services through the subject of identity, introducing the company to an audience it might not normally reach.
Creativity and ingenuity rocks, eh?
And while McDonald’s might not need to increase its brand awareness, the restaurant chain still uses Vine to introduce new products, among other marketing goals.
Its first Vine video was a Tic-Tac-Toe battle between its french fries and its new (at the time) Fish McBites.
Nintendo did the same when it launched its Wii U ZombiU Deluxe Set, giving viewers a scary surprise within the video.
All of these tactics of course, can be scaled down for smaller businesses, no matter the industry.
That means you, yo. 😉
Incorporate User-Generated Video
Calling for user-generated content about your company, product or industry gets customers—both existing and potential—buzzing about the topic in a nifty free-to-you way.
General Electric has used this tactic with great success.
It used the #6SecondScience hashtag in August of 2013 to introduce a Vine video showing what happens when you combine milk, food coloring, and dish soap. Oy.
It led to the #6SecondScienceFair, which also included user-generated videos that continued to be created and shared across Vine, Twitter and Tumblr six months later.
Who knew a little milk, food coloring, and dish soap could be so intriguing?
While the videos do not spotlight a particular GE product, they highlight a love of science and boost the company’s brand within the industry and beyond.
Your Homework Today
Think about your industry and what might make a successful user-generated video campaign.
And not to leave you hanging, consider using some of the additional (duh, kinda) advice below to knock your video shenanigans out of the park.
- Post regularly, but not too regularly—it can feel spammy to subscribers and followers.
- Use text and sound to provide additional information.
- Keep it short—not hard to do with Vine, but you will notice that not a single video on the LifeLock pages goes over four minutes, with most only half that length.
- Use hashtags and keywords to boost discoverability for your videos.
- Moderate your YouTube channel and Vine profile. Thank those who leave positive comments and diffuse negative comments with excellent customer service. (Duh.)
Over to You
Do you use video for your brand with positive outcomes? Or are you skeered (like moi) of doing videos so tend to avoid them altogether? We should work on that. Regardless, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.