It might seem like you can post videos on social media regardless of whether they’re optimized for each specific platform, but you’re more likely to be effective on social media if you create and optimize them based on what has been shown to be most effective on each network.
Social Media Videos
A key difference on social media is that videos are discovered instead of actively sought. Videos are more likely to be searched for on YouTube or Google. This is usually in order to learn ways to go about a certain situation or a how-to with relation to certain hobbies. However, when it comes to Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter videos will just be found as a person scrolls through their feed.
Will they watch the whole thing? That depends on whether it’s eye-catching and engaging all at once. Something could still be eye-catching without being engaging (e.g., if it’s silly), or engaging without being eye-catching (e.g., the cat video), so it really just depends on what kind of message the creator is trying to convey.
Thankfully, there are a number of ways to go about helping a video along so that it ends up in front of more eyes.
Various Video Types
If you want your videos to perform well on social media, it helps to know what types of videos do this, but even with the same type of video, audiences might like different aspects than other audiences. For example, one audience might love how a video is edited, but another might prefer the content of the video itself.
When trying to create videos that perform well on social media, try ideas that are different from each other.
Here are some of the various video types to explore for social media:
Behind-the-Scenes Videos
Pulling the “curtain” back a little is always a hit with people. Aside from offering a real look into company culture, this is a great way to build a connection and trust with audiences old and new.
Having everyone in your office take photos together, taking photos backstage of the events you’re involved in, or showing your new products are some of the best ways to make behind-the-scenes videos.
Feature/Product Videos
Nearly 80% of respondents in a recent study said their buying decision was influenced by the posts of a brand on social media. Videos are more convincing than text in highlighting a product or demonstrating a specific feature, and they encourage viewers to click “buy.”
Q&A/Interview Videos
“Question & answer” (Q&A) videos and decidedly informative interviews are a fantastic way to engage audiences. They are sure to have burning questions and it would be great to answer them on-camera! This is also a great opportunity to sit down with a team member, thought leader, and the like. Questions can be prepared interview-style or can be gathered from fans.
The Q&A format is especially helpful for solo videos, answering questions followed and submitted directly. These can either be live or recorded.
Conclusion
Social media is a great tool for business promotion. Videos created specifically for these platforms will go a long way. Consider Q&A/interview videos, behind-the-scenes videos and feature/product videos.
Need commercial video production? Drop OpenEye Studios a line today! We specialize in video marketing for online content and social media.