Twitter introduced Vine earlier this year as a way to take a six-second video and share it with friends and followers via social media sites. Instagram countered last month by rolling out a 15-second video function with its app. While Vine took an immediate hit in popularity after Instagram's video launch, both Vine and Instagram have a place in the world of social media video-sharing since they have different functions.

Business loves Vine

Businesses were quick to jump on Vine because it offered them new marketing options. With Vine, they could easily and quickly show off work environments and showcase their employees in a short time frame, without having to worry about allocating big bucks to high-budget videos. WeWork made a Vine video that showed employees doing a version of the Harlem Shake. This kind of video shows the company has cool, laid-back employees, and a grasp on what the newest social media trend is.

Vine has also provided quickie commercials for companies like Taco Bell to reveal new products. And, of course, Vine offers businesses an interactive aspect. They can host deals, contests and much more by way of a short, six-second video clip.

Along with it's established user base, Vine has its own culture. Vine users tend to be creative and seek challenges. They want to make compelling videos, not just post clips of their dogs doing funny tricks.

Instagram Edges Ahead

Instagram, on the other hand, had a huge user base (around 100 million) before it even introduced video as an option. Mashable proposes Instagram will eventually run Vine out of business. Mashable reports of the top 100 brands, 154 of them, including Ford and MTV, posted video via Instagram within two weeks of the feature's launch.

Instagram offers a longer video clip, and those extra nine seconds are not as arbitrary as it sounds. Most brands are used to working in 15-second clips for advertising, so it's as if Instagram was catering their video feature to brands. Lulumon was the first brand to make a video on Instagram, notes TechCrunch.

Even though Vine encourages creative thinking and problem solving to get a message through in a shorter time, it's harder to build that audience. This is where Instagram had an immediate advantage. Two-thirds of the top 100 brands were already registered users of Instagram, which may be why so many were instantly posting and sharing videos via Instagram. This built-in audience works for companies like the Gap, which already has around 4.5 million Facebook fans and more than 140,000 Instagram followers. In comparison, the company only has around 6,000 followers on Vine.

The promise that videos would share to Facebook via Instagram is a major reason why many marketers prefer using it to Vine. The Gap, for example, put out its first video on Instagram right away, and expects to produce two per week.

Instagram also boasts a superior app that includes the ability to edit clips by deleting frames, to choose a cover frame when sharing, to choose a filter (just like the photo portion of the app), to focus, to stabilize the camera, and to see just beyond the video frame. That means videos can be edited directly on a phone, instead of having to rely on editing software, a desktop computer and service from Internet providers.

On top of that, Instagram is owned by Facebook, which makes it much easier to build a following using Facebook friends, where Vine does not have this capability. Facebook blocked Vine from allowing users to "find" Facebook friends.

Celeb endorsements

Among the top celebrities to follow on Vine are comedians, DJs and rappers, most notably Jimmy Fallon and Snoop Lion. Since Instagram's video rolled out, it's almost impossible to list all the celebrities who are taking advantage, including Jimmy Fallon, who found a lot of success on Vine.

Politicians are even getting in on sharing videos. Democratic Representative Mark Tacano of California uses Vine to give his constituents a look behind the scenes, as he signs bills and goes to work for them. Again, here it is difficult to tell how this will be different for Instagram users. Many politicians were already using Instagram to share pictures of themselves on campaign trails and out working for the public. It can be assumed the new ability to also share video will just be another way for them to share.

Do you prefer Vine or Instagram for social videos? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Author Bio
Katie Sluiter is a freelance writer and teacher who should probably be grading papers or changing diapers but is more likely blogging, tweeting, or just overusing social media in general. She chronicles all this on her blog, Sluiter Nation.