Posting video on your social media channels is a great way to get people’s attention and to show off your work. You’ll want to put some thought behind those posts first. How you shape video content can help you meet your engagement goals.
Here are some reasons why video works on social media:
- Videos are easy to consume
- People can retain more information
- It allows you to build your brand personality
- It increases brand exposure
The options are endless when it comes to topics for your social videos. Some popular uses include product showcase videos, a nod to one of those national holidays, or even the anniversary of your favorite movie being released. These are all opportunities that can help accomplish your marketing goals.
At Plum Media, we “streamlined” our own take on the stapler for the anniversary of the release of Office Space:
Plan First: What Do You Want the Audience to do?
What do you want your video to accomplish? In other words, what’s your call to action? You’ll want to determine this before production begins on the video.
Some of the typical goals of video on social media include:
To Gain Attention
Use words! Add text to your video that includes your primary message. Text can grab a person’s attention and get them to stop scrolling – eventually looking further into what you have to say.
Plum used this approach when showcasing our in-house puppeteer on Instagram.
To Drive Action
If your goal is to get your social media following to do something like click on a link or participate in a poll – videos can deliver the instructions.
To Educate
Videos can be used to increase awareness on a particular topic or to show off the latest feature of a product. Since people are more likely to watch video than read a long article, it’s an excellent way for your audience to retain information.
To Engage
Using live video on social media is a great way to interact with your audience. It allows them to build a deeper connection with your brand through interactive features like live q&a, polls, or general comments.
Our client, Concept Design Group, uses this technique.
To Relate
Video is a great medium to show your audience that you understand them by displaying it on a platform that invites them to interact and comment with you.
To Entertain
Sometimes, you just want to make your audience smile. Video can not only do that – but it can also display your talents and personality at the same time.
The Plum Media crew likes to have a little fun with this one sometimes.
Decide What Social Platform You Are Using
What social media channel is your audience using? Every platform is different. Knowing the social channel and its rules will help you create a video that will increase engagement. For instance, on Instagram, there is a time limit for the length of videos.
Also, take into consideration how your viewers are watching your videos. Specifically, from a desktop or cell phone? That will help you determine if your video should be vertical, landscape or square.
Finally, think about your audience and their audio. In general, 85% of people view videos on social media with the sound OFF. Before you take this stat into consideration, look at your audience analytics and figure out their habits. How do they consume your content? Knowing the viewing behavior of your audience is vital for making future posts successful.
Edit for Social Audiences
While it’s easy to just post a video to social media from your phone – you’ll want to put some extra effort into that upload. Tailoring videos for social by adding graphics, captions, and editing for time can result in increased engagement and ROI of your video efforts.
And don’t forget to pay attention to the text in the post accompanying the video. You can use that space to help punctuate the desired action of the video.
Use a Professional with Experience in Social Media
If you’re considering a social media overhaul, work with a professional video partner that has a proven social media track record to get more bang for your buck online. Just having a good video may not be enough to reach your audience goals. By sharing your goals, they can find ways to get out of the social slump and make a huge difference in your ROI.
Related Posts
- Social Media Videos
- Plum Media wins multiple awards for social media video
- The Value of Pre-Production