Between YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter, there’s a lot of social media channels through which companies can engage video marketing. While not every social media channel is right for a company, among those it does utilize, it can help if the company understands the rules for video success and the role videos perform on the channel.

Diving into Social Media Video

Social media are the forms of electronic communications through which users create online communities to share information and other creative content. Social networking and microblogging take place on various media sites outside of posting videos or personal stories. This allows different types of relationships to form on the virtual platforms. Each social media website has its own guide for video marketing.

YouTube

Accumulating more than 5 billion video views each day, YouTube is one of the best online platforms for engaging audiences. Videos posed on YouTube should follow these guidelines to be effective:

  • Keep the length of a video five minutes or less.
  • Advertisements, if included in the video, should be added before the playback. Ads should be kept short and to the point.

Facebook

With more than 2 billion active users, Facebook leads the industry as one of the most prominent media companies. The ability to share videos on Facebook has driven companies to increase their Facebook activity to further engage with their audiences. To increase a Facebook presence using videos, try the following:

  • Use humor, personal stories, and clips of your products in action to attract a high number of views and comments.
  • Attract attention through live broadcasts. Live broadcasts help gain consumer interest.
  • Overlay your video with text. By default, Facebook runs videos in users’ feeds without sound. Because of this, 85% of Facebook videos are watched without it.

Instagram

Companies with Instagram accounts find video posting to be all about timing. While they can showcase their products and services like on YouTube or Facebook, consumer engagement is unpredictable since users come and go. However, video ads for companies show up between organic Instagram feed and have a high view rate because users must scroll pass them to get to the next Instagram post.

Paid Instagram clips are an effective marketing tool if used as recommended:

  • Keep your Instagram videos between30 seconds and one minute.
  • Optimize captions and comments with hashtags to connect with related topics or posts.
  • Use tools like Boomerang and Layout to better grab users’ attention.

Snapchat

Snapchat started as a simple app for teens in which photos disappeared once sent. As the social media platform has evolved, companies began using Snapchat to record videos of their product launches, events, trade shows, and musical and social events. Companies who want to produce successful videos on Snapchat should keep the following in mind:

  • Interest in Snapchat videos dwindles after about 10 seconds.
  • Make sure the first video your company posts in a series of clips is highly entertaining. 22percent of viewers leave the app entirely after watching the first “snap.”

Twitter

Videos taken on Twitter drive more engagement than content shared from other social media sites, as it better grabs users’ attention in their fast-paced feeds. Companies should generally upload video announcements, advertisements, and promotional content onto Twitter using the following guidelines:

  • Videos should be around 30 seconds to one minute, like Instagram.
  • Video posts should be compatible with smartphones (square shaped). Consumers view 90 percent of media content on their smartphone.

Video marketing is one of the best ways to create engagement between a brand and consumer on social media. As a key component of marketing, it’s important to understand social video formats will continuously evolve. At Promote Productions, our team is on top of the trends and will help you create a unique video to appeal to your audience, wherever they might be watching it.