TV is still the best place to advertise and reach a mass audience, but who amongst us can afford air time? Not many, so most of us use Social Media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and Youtube to post our videos for free. But are we placing the right videos on the correct platforms for maximum return? Here's some info that may help you gain some more success in your video marketing campaigns.
Facebook is best for posting short explainer or fun videos that can be viewed and understood without sound (much of your audience is at work and probably shouldn't be watching videos). The sweet spot for length is between 30 and 60 seconds. Be sure to upload your videos natively to Facebook, since it loves video, but Facebook loves video playing from its own servers even better, and will give your video higher priority. Remember, shorter is sweeter on Faceook.
Facebook Live has become very popular for both business and friendly conversations. Some great uses of Facebook live include updating your followers on your latest work and ideas, employee training, conferences, and behind the scene moments. The biggest drawback is that most users are just using phones to broadcast live, so the quality of the production is limited. However, that can be offset with great content and spontaneity.
Instagram is a great platform for posting short and visually creative videos. Again, 30 to 60 seconds is the optimal length for keeping your audience attention and calling them to action. Hashtags are very important in having your video found, so be sure to research what hashtags are trending so that your video gets lots of views. More than 250 million people are watching videos daily on Instagram, so be sure to take advantage and tell them your story with a great video.
LinkedIn is just beginning to make bigger in-roads into the video realm, and is a great place for informative and longer form videos, tutorials, opinion or Vblogs, testimonials and more. And some good news on video lengths... latest surveys are showing that the second largest sweet spot for video length is 6 to 12 minutes, which is very helpful for engaging your audience and leading them to the next step in your marketing funnel. At this point, use a video posting platform like Youtube, Wistia, or Vimeo and link to them in your LinkedIn posts.
Twitter is best used with short teaser videos that lead viewers to your website or blog. The maximum limit on Twitter is 2 minutes and 20 seconds, but the ideal length is typically 30 seconds. Like Instagram, hashtags are huge in helping you get viewers for your videos, so be sure to research and find trending hashtags to help attract an audience, and learn to use Tweetdeck as well.
Youtube is not only the place where billions of people watch videos everyday, it is also the second largest search engine. Therefore, it is vital that your business have a youtube channel, which you get free with every Google account you open (Google owns Youtube). People go to Youtube with the purpose of watching videos, so your videos can be longer here. The second biggest sweet spot for viewing length is now 6 to 12 minutes, so be sure to put your longer videos on Youtube. Break your videos up into appropriate playlists, so your prospects and customers can easily find and gobble up your video content. Youtube Live is also gaining popularity, and it allows you to post pre-produced video in a live fashion. Keep in mind, people want to be entertained, so make your videos funny, engaging and informative, so that your prospects become customers, and your customers become raving fans and evangelists for your online brand.
If you need help with creating your videos or your social media campaigns, HBSU is here to help you. Check out "Video Marketing Made Easy", by Michael Connell, and learn to create great videos yourself, or call Mike for a free coaching session. Click the button below to learn more about video coaching from HBSU.
