People flock to social media to be entertained. We actively consume updates on friends and family, follow celebrities on vacation and watch countless cat videos. Although you may have a comprehensive recruiting video on your website, the social media video version should have a different flavour.
The platform you’re using to post video will have some influence on the kind of video you’re posting. Inversely, the kind of video you’re posting will impact the platform you choose. Let’s take a look at some of the most popular places to post online and how to tailor your social media videos to their destinations.
As a social platform, Facebook is custom-made for direct audience engagement. It’s a great place to post awareness videos since people are already following you and can like and share your content. And viewers are committed, commenting ten times more on Facebook Live videos than others and watching for longer stretches.
In general, Facebook users watch a lot of social media video. And most of them—85%—are doing it without sound. So think about posting videos that work when they’re muted. Also, note that videos running thirty seconds or less perform the best.
Instagram and Social Media Video
Instagram is a good place to post targetted social media videos. Running between three and sixty seconds, a video on this platform needs to be succinct. Even if you post a cut-down of a longer video, make sure you’re giving the kind of information that will drive the viewer to your website to get the full picture. Along those lines, optimize your caption by directing individuals to the link in your bio, and don’t forget to use relevant hashtags to expand your reach.
Instagram skews young. Keep that in mind when you’re posting and try to be casual. Leave the more serious content for your webpage. Give the viewer a good dose of your brand with a quick hit of something (product demo? office tour?) that speaks to company values. Finally, make sure you tap the expand button in the bottom left corner if your video isn’t square to avoid unwanted cropping.
Twitter is the online version of an outburst. Although Twitter has increased character and social media video limits in the last year, you still have only 140 seconds to speak your piece. Yes, you can actually post longer videos if you really want to. However, given the way most people use Twitter, it’s best to keep your posts short and sweet.
Twitter made video a priority last year. That’s good news for companies that like to use the platform for marketing. The businesses that succeed keep things light, casual, and quick. They also engage in the process by following lots of people, retweeting, liking tweets, and responding to tweets.
YouTube
Every day, people watch almost five billion videos on YouTube. Five. Billion. Videos. Obviously, this is the place to be seen if you can cut through the sheer volume of social media videos offered. Tip: since YouTube is owned by Google, videos placed here get a higher search ranking. Take advantage of Google SEO by using related keywords in your video, titles, images, and descriptions. And remember to fill in the metadata fields.
YouTube is a good place to build your brand since people typically visit the site to watch videos, not to buy products. Take this opportunity to show your product in action and tout its benefits. A client testimonial would also be a good fit for YouTube.
Make Social Media Video Work for You
No matter what social media platform you’re using for video, follow a few simple rules. Upload with a setting that will autoplay your video in newsfeeds to get more views. Make the first few seconds count by really grabbing a viewer’s attention. Have a clear Call to Action, and try to post videos that play just as well without audio and are mobile-friendly. Finally, contact us here at Key West Video for a free quote on videos that translate to sales.
