Video from General Electric.
Two of the hottest new visual tools are taking over. Earlier this year Instagram reportedly reached 90 million users checking into the application at least once a month, while the newer vine reached 13 million users. Instagram recently launched videos capabilities on their platform on June 20, 2013 reaching 5 million videos uploaded just on the very first day.
Using visuals to tell your brand’s story can be a powerful marketing tool. It engages users online and also gets users excited to follow your brand. Try these six ways to use Instagram or Vine for telling your brand’s story.
1. Give a sneak peak. Are you gearing up for a new product? Or beginning a sketch for a new design? Giving a sneak peak at your work can encourage excitement online. Your community will want to support you and see what you’re working on next, so show them a teaser or two. Check out watch Kate Spade’s behind the scenes footage or Acura’s Insider posts.
2. Show how to use the product. How can you show ways to use the product? Fun, quirky videos like Gillet’s show their product in an interesting way on Vine. Below is an example of Lululemon showing how to use their product in a fun video that attracted over 23,000 likes.
3. Be the source. Next time you’re out at a conference, show your community what your brand is doing in real time. You can report information and highlights that they’ll want to know about. Think about using text carefully to enhance your visual through short descriptions. You want to be the source of information and entertainment for your following. General Electric is the creative source of science facts.
4. Show personality. What’s your brand’s personality? Are you always humorous and playful? Serious or personal? This should already be established before getting on a new social media site. Creating fun videos like Tyra Banks goofy posts or educational facts may be more suited for your brand. Kobe Bryant gets personal with his brand on Instagram video, showing special moments like recovering from an injury. Vine and Instagram should continue to present this personality, whether it’s a personal or corporate brand.
5. Ask for user input. Social media is for sharing, and users love to share their photos. Try asking for photos for a contest or an event. Make sure you assign one solid hashtag to help track metrics online and curate content afterwards. Try rewarding users throughout. If there’s a winner at the end, give users a sneak-peak at who’s in the lead. This can increase user participation. Nike has been applauded for their innovative Instagram campaign where users can snap a photo and apply color and design to their sneakers.
6. Never forget your style. You wouldn’t leave the house without grabbing the right bag or hat for the day, and you shouldn’t hit publish until your brand looks good too. You’ve already established a certain style: color tones, word choices, logos, and more. Make sure it comes through in your visual marketing. A solid, consistent style helps contribute to a recognizable identity online. Starbucks visuals all have a similar look to their images.
Both Instagram and Vine can help enhance your brand online. Vine can encourage more creativity with its short time span, but Instagram can have a wider range of uses for marketing.
Whatever outlet you use for social media, make sure you measure what your community loves the most. After all, at the end of the day it’s about sharing your story and growing your community online.
