Video clips are becoming an increasingly popular feature of social media marketing, and there are several examples of Vine used both well and poorly by different brands.

Ever since Twitter’s acquisition of Vine earlier this year, we have seen different brands sharing examples of Vine – sometimes used in an innovative, excellent way, and other times we feel as though they missed the mark completely.

In some cases, when companies use Vine and other short video tools as part of their social media marketing, we can have both good and bad examples of Vine by the same brand.

General Electric tends to use Vine quite often. They have done some very unique and exciting things with the tool, but there have also been instances where they missed the target by a mile. Below is an example of each with some explanations as to why one works while the other falters.

Vine Used Well

On Pi Day (you know, March 14th, or 3.14) General Electric decided to wish everyone a Happy Pi Day with a quick Vine of an endless Pi-themed pie.

https://vine.co/v/bd1xMduMTp9

Why It Works

It is easy, clean and gets a friendly message across is a simple way. While there is a lot you can do in six seconds, you certainly don’t want to do too much. If you’ll recall, The Wolverine tried to pack a two hour movie into a six second Vine. This makes it hard to follow and instead of conveying everything, you end up with nothing that resonates. General Electric hit the right note with this Vine. People who knew what it was for were very appreciative, and it was clear enough that some people probably learned about Pi Day as well.

Vine Used Poorly

Even if you are right on target 99% percent of the time, that still leaves one in every hundred that will not work. This was the case with Inventor’s Day and General Electric’s attempt with Vine. 

https://vine.co/v/bvdXevrLW5p

Why It Doesn’t Work

First of all, if you listen to this Vine with sound, you are wondering what in the world is happening. The biggest issue here is that the concept might make sense in theory, but the execution is all wrong.

The Harlem Shake videos were short to begin with, but they work on their own because of certain key features, namely the music and style. They cannot be condensed into six seconds. The issue with this Vine by General Electric is that it is clearly forced, and trying to take advantage of a popular concept for the sake of relating to a mass audience.

The idea does not work organically, and it shows. The key to a Vine is to do something intelligent that fits into the parameters. For this case, it simply did not work on Vine.

What other examples of Vine used both well and poorly can you think of? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!