Hospitals

Is Vine the newest and coolest tool in hospitals’ social media repertoires?

  Now that Pinterest and Instagram seem to have solidified spots in hospitals’ social media lineups, let’s talk about a new app that’s finding traction among brands, including a few hospitals. Twitter’s new app Vine lets users create and share six-second, looping videos directly from an iPhone or iPad. They can capture video in tiny […]

By Deanna Pogorelc on March 05, 2013

 

Now that Pinterest and Instagram seem to have solidified spots in hospitals’ social media lineups, let’s talk about a new app that’s finding traction among brands, including a few hospitals.

Twitter’s new app Vine lets users create and share six-second, looping videos directly from an iPhone or iPad. They can capture video in tiny segments by touching the screen when they want to start recording and removing their fingers to pause.  Or they can use photos from the device’s gallery to create a montage. Then, the finished video can be posted to Twitter directly from the app.

It was released in January and seems to have found fans in companies like Urban Outfitters (@UrbanOutfitters), Red Vines licorice (@RedVines) and General Electric (@generalelectric), which has filmed more than a few share-worthy clips related to science and inventing.

So, what about healthcare? Will hospitals, drugmakers or digital health companies take to the app the same way retail companies have? Given the emergence of YouTube as a great tool for doctors and hospitals, combined with the popular practice of live tweeting procedures, I can see how it might be useful.

I could see Vine serving much of the same function as the now-outdated Flip Video: shooting quick, raw video footage that’s easy to upload to the Web. That’s how University of Colorado Health has used it, as Health Care Communication News called our attention to today. It tweeted short video clips of the view from the operating room during a partial knee replacement.

Vine videos also seem to be especially useful in product or service campaigns. During New York Fashion Week, Walgreens tweeted several videos promoting its healthy snacks.

Meanwhile, Detroit Medical Center has been tweeting six-second clips of some of its facilities, including its new heart hospital that’s under construction and set to open next year.

What do you think? Is Vine a fad or a new staple for brands on Twitter?