Everywhere we go, odds are that if you look around, you’ll see someone staring down at their phone. A large part of that time is spent watching videos or advertisements–mostly short, simple videos that encourage the viewer to learn more or save the video for future viewing.
So how do you create videos that encourage your audience to do that?
Remember to keep it short.
Social media is all about scrolling. You only have a few seconds to capture the viewer’s attention, and even then, won’t keep it for very long! Come up with eye-catching intro shots or graphics, or on-screen copy that draws them in. Starting the video off with a simple, but attention-grabbing motion will differentiate the video from the stills that the viewer is seeing while scrolling.
Avoid videos that focus on people speaking.
Once you have the viewer’s attention, you can direct them to content focused on people, but you have to get them there first! Captions on the screen or even something that doesn’t require explanation are a great way to draw people in. Make sure any graphics are simple and easy to follow – you don’t want to lose an audience because what you were showing them was too busy or complicated!
See what you can do with and without sound.
Most people will scroll with their social media apps muted, so make sure your video doesn’t require sound to be understood or interesting, but can also be played with the sound on and it won’t detract from the video or dissuade people from watching!
Make it shareable.
Think about the “why” behind your video. Is there a message or point to it that will make people want to share it with their friends and followers? Is it a product that is interesting or depicted in a way that encourages your viewers to save it, share it, or learn more? Take into account what platform you’re sharing it on as well. Videos that perform well on Facebook or Instagram might not have the same success on Twitter or Youtube, and vice versa. Little tweaks or slightly different versions of a single video can help optimize it for a variety of platforms.
Make your content relate to each other.
As you start to develop an audience through consistent posting and audience engagement, platforms like Facebook and Instagram take the actual content into account when suggesting additional videos to your followers. A series of videos about related topics, or videos that are connected by subject, are a great way to increase that following through the algorithms already in play.
Remember that consistency is key!
The more consistently you post content, the easier it is going to be to develop an active following. Come up with a social video strategy with a schedule; maybe you do one video a week, or every other week, or once a month. Whatever you decide, we can help develop the content you need to fill that calendar.
