Meagan Cignoli is a photographer, filmmaker, and director who also creates professional videos for Vine. She began using Vine in 2013 to create and share six-second video clips. Cignoli's first major Vine campaign was for Lowe's, called "Fix in Six", which featured home improvement videos and was very popular. In the interview, Cignoli provides advice for communicators on how to best use Vine, including engaging with the community, finding your niche, and planning videos without a save function. She also discusses how brands can stand out on Vine through memorable, value-adding content like Lowe's "Fix in Six" videos.

1. Meagan Cignoli is a photogra-
pher,filmmaker,director and profes-
sionalVine creator,based in New
York.She has worked with top
brands,designers and publications
and houses her work at ilovemea-
gan.com and @meagancignoli on
Twitter.
She began using the mobile app
Vine,owned byTwitter,to
create and post six-second
video clips to share and
embed on social network-
ing services.
Cignoli has worked with
numerous clients onVine cam-
paigns.Her first was with BBDO for
Lowe’s called the“Fix in Six”cam-
paign,which featured a series of six-
second home improvement videos
that went viral and won an award at
the 2013 Mashies.
Here,she shares advice for com-
municators on the growing medium:
Howcancommunicatorsbest
harnessVine?
Vine is a community.The best
way I can suggest to get involved is
by making yourself known.When I
first started usingVine,right after I
posted something,I would go
through all the newVines that were
coming in and Like and comment
on everything.Now thatVine has
channels,it is a bit easier to browse
through and find things you are
interested in,but you can always
search hashtags as well.When
someone gives you a compliment,
it is always a good idea to send back
a thank you.The more you throw
yourself out there,the more
you will gain in return.These
people will become your
friends and supporters,so you
want to make sure you are giv-
ing back and not just taking all
the time.
Whatshouldtheytakeinto
considerationbeforedecid-
ingif thisisthebestplat-
form?
The platform is mainly
consumed by comedicVines,
but that doesn’t mean there
isn’t room for anything else.If
you want to make a name for
yourself onVine,it is
important to have your
own voice.Find your niche
and stick with it.The most
successful people onVine
have a style and you can
always tell when something is
theirs.People can also put a
lot of time into theirVines,so
knowing that you are com-
mitting to something is a
good thing to have in mind.
Howcanusersbestplanand
prepareaVinesincethere
isn’tasavefunction?
It depends how in-depth
you want to go with your
Vine.Some people may just
think of things spontaneously,
while others may make a shot
list,and if you really want to
go the extra mile,you could
create a quick storyboard for
yourself so you know what it
will look like.Although,with
the newest version of Vine,
you can save up to 10Vines
on the app and also edit your
frames,which is a great feature for
when you run out of time or need
to come back to it later.
HowcanVinehelpmakeabrand
standout?
BrandedVines can be helpful
for companies because it’s a free
advertisement.That said,a
brand could still put a lot
of money into the produc-
tion of theVine.If a brand
is using the app regularly,it
also allows them to con-
nect with a different audi-
ence that they may not
reach otherwise.The
brands that stand out the
most are the ones that
give you something in
return and aren’t just
forcing you to see their
brand.For example,
Lowes has a #fixinsix
campaign,which is what
their whole campaign is
based on.It allows a view-
er to learn quick tips,
while also enjoying artis-
tic and cute short videos.
This helps to make the brand
memorable and increases their
amount of exposure.
Was the transition from photo
and video toVine (on a mobile
phone) an easy one for you —
how did you decide to start
using the platform?
The transition wasn’t very
hard.It is really just like using a
new camera.You just have to get
used to it and learn all the tech-
niques,so you can produce a qual-
ity video.A friend of mine first
introduced me toVine and I was-
n’t completely sure how I was
going to use it.When I finally got a
chance to play around with the
app,I started to discover all the
cool things you could do with it
and that’s when I really decided to
invest in the app.
ManagingEditorAmy Jacquesinterviewed
MeaganCignoliforthispiece.
Since making its debut in January 2013, the video social network Vine has acquired more than 40
million users, including the President of the United States. By letting users share mobile-phone videos
that are six seconds long or less, which they cannot edit,Vine may have introduced a new creative medi-
um, the news site says.
For creative and technical reasons,not to mention attention spans,“We knew from the start that the
videos needed to be brief,”Vine’s co-founder Colin Kroll told The Guardian.Vine’s format was a lesson
learned from Twitter,whose own 140-character limit initially began as a technical necessity.Twitter acquired
Vine in October 2012,more than three months before the launch of the video-sharing app.
Despite counting President Obama as a user,Vine is best known for video snippets of stunts,sketches,
in-jokes and pratfalls.Sixteen-year-old Nash Grier reportedly has 5 million followers,more than any other
Vine user.In a recent video clip,he confesses his love to a sandwich.When Grier visited Iceland this month
with Jerome Jarre — anotherVine“star,”whose most recent offering shows a fellow airplane passenger
picking her nose — the pair was mobbed by fans,The Guardian reports.The app’s youthful demographic is
attracting advertisers,with brands such asVirgin Mobile and Dunkin Donuts running TV commercials
composed of Vine videos. — Greg Beaubien
video/multimedia
TACTICS March 2014 13
Brands Do Grow onVines
Q-and-A with Photographer/Director Meagan Cignoli
Q&A
Vine: 1 year later
lowes/vine/meagancignoli
vine