If you aren’t using video in your social media posts, you’re losing visibility.
A video is one of the best ways to stop the social media scroll and grab your customers’ attention. Serial entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk considers video the number one strategy to use for success on social media.
But it’s critical to use video in the right ways when adding it to your social media marketing.
Check out these eight social media video marketing tips to grow your business to the next level.
1. Plan Your Strategy
Every video you post should be part of a greater strategy.
Determine the audience for your product or service. Then plan how to use your videos on social media to reach that audience.
Develop a campaign idea. Then break the campaign down into a series of two or three videos.
Think through questions like these:
- What is my call to action?
- What is my offer?
- What is the look and feel of the campaign?
- How much can we spend on production and ad buys?
When you have an outline for the campaign and the desired outcome, work through content and strategy. Create scripts and visuals to support your campaign strategy.
2. Choose Your Video Style
Social Media video is effective in a variety of formats. Different types of video can work better depending on the campaign.
An explainer video is perfect for describing a need or service. Appeal to an audience need and show them your solution to the problem.
Vlogs or live videos tell a story. Live videos help create urgency and grab the attention of viewers with notifications.
A presentation video shows off a service or teaches a course. Using a presentation video helps viewers see value in you or your company. This kind of value often leads to future business.
Demos or product reviews help make you an expert for a certain type of product. Giving regular, thorough product reviews helps build a loyal following over time.
And of course, video ads cut through some of the clutter found on social media feeds. A quick, entertaining ad is one of the most effective ways to gain visibility.
3. Watch Your Video Length
Depending on your social media platform of choice, your video length should vary.
Pay close attention to the length. It can make or break how well your video plays on each platform. Videos that run too long on a platform won’t show in feeds. Your hard work goes to waste.
Per platform, keep your videos within these recommended lengths:
- Facebook = 1 minute
- Instagram = 30 seconds
- YouTube = 2 minutes
- Twitter = 45 seconds
When creating an explainer or presentation video, you might need a longer video. Create an “appointment” for those types of videos. Make it an event in a group or a business page.
Tease the longer video session with shorter videos. The audience that wants to tune in to your presentation will make the time for the longer video.
4. Don’t Sacrifice Quality
Social Media videos are easy to create. Don’t be afraid to post videos using a cell phone and simple apps for editing.
As you develop an audience or your brand using video, consider upgrading your video and graphics quality.
For live videos, production should be minimal. The appeal of these videos relies on a spontaneous in-the-moment “live” television feel.
Explainer and presentation videos benefit from a better production design. Using a production house like KillerSpots can take your in-home video production to the next level.
As your audience and budget allow, higher-quality production can boost your visibility. But don’t go overboard with too much production. Make sure all production adds value to your message.
5. Add Keywords and Tracking
When building a campaign, you need to know if it works. When you started the campaign, you developed a call-to-action and desired outcome.
Measuring the metrics of your videos helps you plan future campaigns.
Add keywords when posting to social media platforms. Track clicks through buttons or other calls to action.
Using your business tools to track views and reach. Each social media platform has a way to check audience engagement. Use these reports to determine the success of each video.
6. Make it Share-Worthy
One way to measure the success of videos on social media is how many times people share it.
People share videos that are funny, insightful, or emotional. They tend not to share videos that are too informational or too long.
Many viewers prefer watching videos without sound. Add captions to videos to increase shares.
7. Experiment
Try different types of video to see what brings the audience you want.
Short-form videos like Boomerang are good attention-grabbers. They capture quick personality snapshots and create intrigue for more.
When using long-form video, make sure it has a start, middle, and end. Include a clear call-to-action: click for more, follow us, etc.
Include live video once or twice a week.
There’s no requirement to stick to only one video form for success. Mix and match to build your ideal audience.
8. Be Consistent
Generating an audience online takes time. Be consistent with your videos posts. Mix videos in with posts featuring graphics or other content.
Life can get busy. Social media sometimes feels like an ugly stepchild that doesn’t add enough value.
But don’t neglect your social media posts. A robust online presence is a major benefit to your business.
Use a post scheduler to load content and schedule it through the week. Going this route is a time-saver and helps ensure you don’t miss posting a critical post.
Build Your Audience With Social Media Video Marketing
The best way to build your audience is to use social media video marketing.
No matter what you sell or do, you should use videos to grow your business on social media. Understand each social media channel. Create video marketing that works within the ideal parameters to build your audiences per platform.
Knowing your brand is one of the most important parts of developing successful online videos. Read our article about the importance of social content marketing when establishing your brand online.
