Over the past few months, Dunkin’ Donuts, Mountain Dew, Tide and others have turned to relatively new social media platform, Vine, for (very) brief ads. While only five or six seconds in length (Vine videos last a maximum of six seconds for those of you who haven’t made an account yet), the ads have the potential to be a powerful marketing tool especially, as these brands hope, with teens and twenty-somethings. The ads which are all over the internet have now made their way to TV (Dunkin’ Donuts and Mountain Dew) and even billboards (Tide uses stills from their Vine videos for driver-safety reasons).
One of Dunkin’ Donuts’ Monday Night Football spots:
While unproven, the ads’ have some promise. First, there could be an argument in favor of being brief, particularly when targeting a younger crowd. Second, the production costs for these spots are surely minimal. Finally, the brands using these commercials are recognizable enough that they don’t need to explain anything in the Vine ads, rather they flash the brand name a few times, hope solicit a laugh and conclude (abruptly).
It will be interesting to see if other brands adopt the Vine ads, but there is certainly some logic behind the strategy. This guy, who may or may not have any credibility on the issue, seems to think the platform has potential. One thing is for sure, attention spans have reached an all-time low.
Compilation of Tide’s seven Halloween-themed Vine videos: