If you’re taking part in the Matchbox Film Awards and new to exhibiting your work online, or you’ve just begun your journey into the video agency world, this one’s for you! The social-savvy aficionados over at Kitch Media share their expert take on how best to utilise your video campaigns on social media, and reveal the strategies brands are using to keep their content pinned firmly to the top of the feed.
Firstly, why choose video for social media?
In the world of social media, video content reigns supreme and ultimately it’s what the consumer wants that performs best. The platforms we use today have evolved from a place we connect with friends, into a destination for entertainment, education and e-commerce inspiration. With the rapid rise of TikTok, showing us how persuasive (and addictive) video is to consume, it’s no surprise that Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest have also pivoted towards video as the format of choice.
The question is – are you making the most of your video assets across social media? With online videos accounting for more than 82% of consumer internet traffic by 2022, here’s how you can maximise the return of your video content on social media.
Increase Exposure and Engagement
Video content is extremely eye-catching, easy to watch and is a fantastic way to hook your audience. It typically performs best in the algorithm as it captures the viewer’s attention for longer. The longer a viewer engages with that piece of content, the more likely an algorithm will boost that content to a wider audience.
It’s recorded by Mention Features that videos on Instagram generate more engagement than any other content type. With the increased popularity of IGTV and Instagram Reels, it’s the perfect time to get creative with your video content and gain some new exposure. Most social media platforms also give an extra boost to their latest functionality, many of which are new video features, encouraging you to jump on the bandwagon.
Whether you choose to share your dynamic content on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest‘s Video Pins, TikTok, Youtube or Twitter you’re almost guaranteed to see more engagement.
It has a longer shelf life
Due to the nature of video content encouraging more interactions and shares, it’s likely to stay around for longer and keep being bumped up the algorithm. This can ultimately offer a stronger return in investment from the creation of your video content.
It's growing in popularity across social media platforms
The consumption of online videos has seen an increase of 59% since 2016, with consumers now expecting brands to deliver more engaging content than ever before.
Since the Covid-19 pandemic began in March 2020, Facebook and Instagram have seen a 40% increase in usage, with views for Instagram Live and Facebook Live doubling in one week. With social distancing measures in place, brands have been forced to adapt and Live platforms have become a popular space for brands to connect with their audience. Building Live video content, conferences or events into a brand strategy can become an extremely powerful way to communicate online.
TikTok has also gained immense popularity around the world and is now the 7th most active social media app in the world with over 3.7 million active users in the UK.
How to Maximise The Return of Your Video Content on Social Media
Reach Audiences Across Multiple Channels
With the variety of video-sharing platforms now available at our fingertips, the same video content can be used to reach different audiences across multiple channels. Here are some examples of how you can repurpose your content:
TikTok videos and Instagram Reels both use the same 9:16 format and have a similar intent – ideal to be shared on both platforms. Although it’s been revealed by Instagram that Reels with a TikTok watermark will be deprioritised in the algorithm. Never fear, as here’s a handy trick for removing the TikTok watermark and repurposing your video content.
- Longer videos over 1 minute in a 16:9 format can be shared across IGTV, Facebook and YouTube.
- Short videos for Instagram stories could be repurposed for Pinterest Video Pins.
- Instagram Live videos can be shared automatically to IGTV – you can even download them and share them on Facebook.
Develop A Social Strategy
Creating great videos content isn’t enough. Having a strategy in place to get your videos to your target audience is a fail safe way to maximise the return on your investment. Whether you’re wanting to increase brand or product awareness, drive sales or encourage your viewers to have a conversation, start by knowing your target audience and when they are most active. There are now a range of social media analytics tools that not only publish your content, but also provide you with detailed insights into your audience.
One post won’t do it either, vary your content and engage your audience to get people to click through and find out more. Ensure you’re adding a CTA, whether that be to share the video, click the links or engage with you in the comments below.
Track Engagement
Tracking the success of your content is extremely beneficial. If you’ve invested in a video campaign, you’ll want to ensure you’re posting it in the right places, in front of the right audience, at the right time.
Utilise free tools such as Facebook and Instagram Insights to track everything from post engagement to clicks, shares, reactions and comments. Other important metrics can be found under Audience and Engagement. This is where you’ll find how many people your video reached, how many unique viewers watched it, and the number of viewers that engaged with it. Facebook also breaks down your demographics so you can see where you had the most engagement. This helps you see if your interactions are worthwhile, or if they’re coming from people who are unlikely to want or need your services or videos.
Social Media Advertising
With an advertising audience of 2.14 billion for Facebook and 1.16 Billion on Instagram, utilising these advertising platforms is a great way to get your posts seen by a relevant audience. As we know video reigns supreme and this is the same for advertising, with video significantly out performing images. As both Facebook and Instagram ads are managed through Facebook’s Ads Manager, you can set up and track your ads all in one place.
Start by looking at a warm audience first, those that have engaged with you or been on your website as they will be most likely to be aware of your brand and more willing to buy or book with you again. Then create some lookalike audiences based on their profiles to reach the right demographic and use the Facebook pixel to track their effectiveness. One of the most impactful features of video ads is the ability to create a Custom Audience through Facebook. You can retarget your video ads for an audience of users who have already watched some percentage of your video. This strategy can greatly increase engagement with your ads by building on your previous momentum with users.
So – video. It’s big on socials. And that’s not changing any time soon. Here’s a summary of the three things you can do to help you stand out.
- Attack the algorithms! Each social media platform has their own sneaky tricks to learn that can help boost your visibility. Do your research.
- Track! Keep an eye on how your posts are doing using in-built insight tools so that you have a better idea of what’s working well – and what’s not.
- Put some spend behind it! If you really want to get your video content noticed, it never hurts to give it a little boost. Use tools that help you retarget pre-interested viewers. Chances are, they’ll probably pay attention again!
If you’d like a chat more about how to maximise the return of your video content on social media or get some support, please get in touch with us and say hello@kitchmedia.com.
