Practical Tips for Creating and Sharing Your First Vine

I’ve talked about why you should strongly consider adding Vine to your social media marketing strategy. But there’s still the question of how.

To that end, I’ve put together a list of practical do’s and don’t to help you create your first Vine.

DON’T:

Don’t do it halfway. I’m a firm believer that you get back what you put in. Putting the minimum amount of effort in may sound appealing, but it won’t get your brand anywhere. Find the best way to say what you want to say.

Don’t let it be low-quality. It doesn’t need to be high-def with flashy special effects — many people record Vines just using smart phones, after all — but it should at least be well-lit, steady, and clear.

Don’t let it be shaky. Tripods are cheap, but if you can’t be bothered to buy one, find a book or other sturdy, flat surface to prop your camera on. The goal is to titillate viewers, not make them seasick.

Don’t try to fit too much in. You’re already familiar with Twitter’s character limitations. Similarly, with Vine, you’re restricted to six seconds. Use them wisely! Pick one idea or theme and simplify it down to its most basic, then shoot that — kind of like you’re editing a tweet. As Matt Cooke, CTO and co-founder of Unruly, said:

“Vine is being used in a very complementary way to Twitter, with the 6-second video becoming the ‘ad’, much like the 140-character tweet.”

DO:

Do limit your shots. Again, you only have six seconds — switching between multiple points of view will end up being a confusing, head-spinning jumble. Do three or four shots max, or try building your Vine video around a single continuous shot.

Do be unique. Find new and creative ways to show off your brand. Think outside the prominent logo shot and brainstorm ways to appeal to your viewers’ feelings.

Do be creative. Stop-motion, custom illustration, unusual angles — this medium is the right place for different kinds of expression.

Do have a plan. Your goal should be to tell a developing story. What the story is depends on what kind of impression you want to give your followers.

Do consider audio. But only if it adds value to the video — it definitely should not be the centerpiece. Remember, you should still be able to successfully tell your story if your viewer has audio off or the volume turned down.

Targeting the best time to share

Now that you’ve got a great Vine video, you need to develop a strategy for sharing it. A little metric insight can help you build a plan.

You’re likely already familiar with how to best engage your audience on Twitter — what times your audience is most active, and what kind of tweets get the most response. But don’t make the mistake of assuming that your metrics will be the same for tweets with Vine links in them!

Unruly collected data from over 10 million Vines during one month. From this data, it gleaned that:

• Most Vine activity occurs between 10:00-11:00 a.m. EDT.
• Weekends are vastly more popular for sharing Vines. More Vines are shared during the weekend than all of the weekdays combined.
• On average, 5 tweets per second included a Vine link.
• “Branded” Vines are four times more likely to be shared than other branded online videos (such as YouTube).

This data is a good framework to build off of, but remember, you know your audience best. Experiment with sharing Vines at different times to hone in on what optimizes your engagement.

Happy Vine-making!