In the Game of Social Media, Video Takes All
In the big world of social media, one thing is indisputable. Video is king. According to Sprout Social half of social media users prefer video over other types of content and 54% of marketers say video is the most valuable content for achieving social media marketing goals.
I recently made the transition from broadcast news to public relations and in my personal experience, it’s clear video rules across industries and platforms and continues to grow.
If this makes you want to hop on the video train, but you don’t know where to start, keep reading.
How you film a video is important because it can either save you time or cause you unnecessary stress and added time on the backend. For starters, it’s great to have a fancy camera set up, but if you don’t, don’t sweat it. Our phones are so advanced these days that I often used my iPhone to shoot news interviews and videos. In fact, Hubspot says 44% of marketers use an iPhone as their primary tool for video content. So, grab your phone and go!
1. Before you start filming, know what you want your message to be and have an idea of what you want to say. In my experience, the best dialogue is organic, not practiced or rehearsed to the point where it’s obvious you’ve done so. Put your message in your own words and talk like you’re talking to a friend. Take a breath and take it slow!
2. You’re ready to set up. The direction in which you hold your phone matters. If you’re posting stories or videos, turn your phone vertically. If you do this, your video will fit to screen and show up perfectly on the social media profile grid and news feed. Make sure you have good lighting, a pleasing background and that your subject is framed well. Allow for headroom, but never have too much. Make sure nothing you want to show is cut off. If your framing is off in filming, you’ll have to adjust during the editing process.
3. Now, you’re ready to shoot your video! Keep in mind when recording, shorter videos have a better completion rate.More than half of viewers will watch the entirety of a video if it’s less than 60 seconds. If you have a longer video you would like to share, consider posting it to your website or YouTube. On social, you can make a short teaser video (15 seconds) linking to the content on your website.
These steps provide a simple outline for you to follow when getting started. Don’t get overwhelmed. Remember it’s supposed to be fun.
3….2….1…. action!