On Thursday June 20th, Facebook instigated another battle with its biggest social media foe, Twitter, by adding a video feature to Instagram, pitting it directly against Twitter owned video app Vine. The launch of this tool, along with its new clickable hashtags, prove that Facebook is making a hard push to maintain its place at the top of the social media pyramid and keep runner up Twitter at bay. We’ve used both video marketing platforms, and Instagram’s video function takes the cake on just about every direct test. Let’s review some of the advantages Instagram has over Vine.

Benefits of Instagram

• Sociability:

  Instagram allows businesses to be more social with their video marketing. Vine allows you to post videos to its own platform, as well as to Facebook and Twitter, whereas Instagram supports these platforms, as well as tumblr, foursquare and email.

• Longevity:

  The brevity of Vine videos, 6 seconds, poses a creative challenge, but it also just plain limits what you can do with the social tool. Instagram allows users a full 15 seconds to create their videos, opening up a world of opportunities that are unavailable on Vine. Businesses can now demonstrate a whole process without the fear of being cut off or painstakingly capturing each step in minute stop motion.

• Technicality:

  With this new video tool, Instagram has introduced a new technology that stabilizes footage. This feature allows for higher quality video, allowing businesses to represent their brands in the best possible light.

• Diversity:

  Just as with their photos, Instagram offers 13 custom filters for their videos. This gives businesses the opportunity to play up certain color schemes to match the tone of their videos to maximize the resonance with their audience. Vine does not currently support any filters or styles.

• Flexibility:

  For Vine users, what you see is what you get. Short of reshooting your entire video, there are no options for editing Vine videos. On the other hand, Instagram includes two major editing abilities. First, they let users remove the final frame (a bonus for anyone who’s filmed a bit more than they want). Second, users can chose the frame still that they want to use to represent their video when it is posted, meaning that businesses can increase the chances that their videos are played.

Though Instagram is leaps and bounds ahead of Vine for the time being, it’s only a matter of time until Vine retaliates. So who really wins? Users and business owners! As these platforms attempt to one up each other, the video tools you have at your disposal will only get better and better.

Considering a video marketing strategy for your business? We’d love to help! Reach out and schedule a free consultation to learn how video can boost your business.