Key Elements Needed For A Perfect Social Video
There are dozens of different video platforms to choose from but it is important to tailor your video accordingly to that platform and see what type of video usually thrives on that platform and use it as a platform for the development of your own. When choosing your platform make sure it is the right platform to engage your target audience and also attract new people to the product or service the video is promoting. Platforms like Facebook and other social media platforms allow your video to reach a wider user base of different ages, genders and income levels, others only reach a narrow section of users. An example of this would be that the platform Pinterest has an age range of approximately 25 to 44-year-olds whereas Snapchat only reaches out to teens and young adults so it is important to know your audience. When creating the video there are two questions you have to ask yourself who am I trying to reach and why am I trying to reach them, this should give a good idea of how to target your video.
The aspect for your video can change from platform to platform, most platforms support several different video aspects, for example, Facebook alone supports more than five different formats. Make sure to check the recommended specs before uploading to your chosen platform and make sure that to optimize for each part of the video to avoid stretched images or black bars around your content.
Not every platform is compatible with one another-another reason to optimize your videos for different social channels. An example of this when you upload something to YouTube those links won’t work very well on Facebook as YouTube is a direct competitor to Facebook. By uploading directly to the platform the video will look and run a lot better and get more organic shares.
Be mindful of time
When creating your video, the ideal length of the video should be around a minute to keep the viewers engaged. With only five percent of people to stop watching after one minute, 60 percent will after two. Not only are short videos easier to finish they use less data so it makes it easier for mobile users to watch the video. Lengthier videos can be effective too, on platforms like Facebook videos that are around 90 seconds long get more views than 60-second videos and on YouTube, a user’s average viewing time over a session is around an hour so it depends whether the user has the time to watch a longer video.
Optimise for mobile
Over half of all videos are viewed on mobile and for Twitter that is as high as 93 percent so it is important to make your video mobile friendly so it can be viewed on all devices. Simplify your graphics for mobile users to make sure that the visuals look great on a small screen, to achieve this think bold, bright and legible. Remove visual clutter to boost comprehension and test your video on several different screens before posting. Most viewers will be watching the video on mute as they will be in public places or in work so it is important that the video is engaging to the viewer without any sound.
Use analytics
There are tons of helpful social media analytics tools out there. Keep tabs on how your videos are performing, and consider what you could do to improve them. The analytics can show useful and interesting statistics about what type, age and gender are watching the video so that you can help to target future videos at a viewer group that is viewing it the most. Furthermore, their questions that should be asked such as are people watching my videos from start to finish, are my videos underperforming on any platform and which topics are getting the most views or shares? Using analytics is also great for generating ideas for the future as you can see what type of videos were the most successful.
Offer quality content
One of the most important factors to consider, if not the most important is to make sure your content is worth it and worth the viewer’s time. It can be even beneficial to invent a story in the video to better capture the viewers’ attention and get them involved into the video but as digital storytellers, you will need a hero, plot, setting, conflict, etc. to make it a lot more compelling and intriguing. Writing out a script, using a storyboard, or talking a colleague through the key plot points in your video are all great ways to make sure your story is strong. Emotion can also be a powerful way of communicating to the audience and getting them to relate to the video in order to feel a connection with the product or service or information that the video is trying to get across. Positive messages are more shareable than negative ones, high-intensity emotions are the most shareable. Videos can be a lot more emotional than photos and connecting with viewers on a human level can go a long way.
Start with a bang and end with a call to action
Forty-five percent of people who watch the first 3 seconds of a video will continue for at least 30 more. Hook viewers right from the start with something that sparks their interest inspires their curiosity or catches them off-guard. Videos have one of the highest conversion rates of all content. Including a video on a landing page can increase conversion rates by as much as 80 percent.
Include a clear Call to Action at the end of your video to benefit from all the effort you’ve put in. Whether your goal is to get viewers to buy a product or simply to follow your brand, this crucial step moves your hard-won audience to the ‘next step’ in your sales funnel. Videos have one of the highest conversion rates of all content.
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