Best Practices to Optimize Your Social Media Video Strategy

05 Apr Best Practices to Optimize Your Social Media Video Strategy

Videos are everywhere on social media now, and with stats like Facebook videos receive, on average, 135 percent more organic reach than a Facebook photo or that people leave 10x more comments on live videos than regular videos it’s no wonder we are starting to see a shift towards this content format. If you want to start using videos in your strategy here are a few best practices to optimize your social video strategy.

A Few Best Practices to Optimize Your Social Video Strategy

1. Upload video natively when possible

Uploading videos directly to your channels where available is step one in optimizing your social video strategy. This tactic helps increase the reach of your videos on Facebook and Twitter. This happens because:

• Native videos auto play on each network
• Preference is given Facebook videos in the algorithm
• Posts with videos linked from YouTube have a different (less eye catching) look than those uploaded directly to Facebook or Twitter. Take a look at the examples below
• 
• 

Note that if your objective is to get more views on the YouTube video you are sharing to your other networks, then posting your video as a link might be the better option. Test both native uploads and links to see which may work best for you. On another note not all networks allow native uploads (like LinkedIn) but luckily your YouTube links will look like a native upload.

2. Sound

Remember that most people don’t have the sound turned on when they watch videos – will your audience be able understand what’s going on? Maybe adding a note in the caption or using text within your video can help. When recording videos with sound you may need a mic to drown out background noise or wind.

3. Play with video length

Try posting videos of different durations to see what your audience’s preference is. Of course this is all relative to the context of the video and what channel you are sharing it to but play with the parameters and check your stats to see what makes your audience watch your videos until the end. Here are some video length guidelines:

• YouTube: 15 minutes unless your account it verified
• Facebook: 45 minutes
• Twitter: 140 seconds
• Instagram: 60 seconds

3. Create shorter teaser videos

Extend the life of your longer videos and optimize your social video strategy by creating smaller snippets of your video.  I suggest 30-60 seconds to fit the time constraints of all social media networks and make sure your audience watches them all the way through. You can use the smaller snippets to tease your and drive traffic to the longer form videos where ever you may be hosting them.

4. Try Live Streaming

Live video streaming can be a little scary – but using features like Facebook Live Videos, Instagram Live Videos, and Twitter (or Periscope) can add to your social video strategy. Surprise and delight your followers with spontaneous content or pre-plan and promote a live demonstration or Q & A. For a little live video inspiration read: 4 ways to use live video for your business.

It’s amazing how much more reach and attention live streamed videos get! Here is a breakdown of social networks that let you share live video streams:

• Facebook: Facebook live videos can be recorded from your phone. You’ll be able to save the video after it’s recorded
• Twitter/Periscope: There is now a live stream button within Twitter which will open your Persicope app so you can live stream. Periscope broadcasts are embeddable and you can save them after they’ve gone live.
• Instagram: With Instagram Stories you can share your day with your fans in real time! Videos can be saved and reposted to your feed right in the app. UPDATE: You can now share live videos with Instagram’s new update.
• Snapchat: The king of sharing your day via live stream – A Snapchat Story will let you show your fans what you’re up to with videos that disappear within 24 hours. You can save your videos from the app before or after you’ve shared them.
• Youtube: YouTube lets you live stream and embed live streams while they are happening. The video will then be archived on your channel after it’s gone live.

5. Don’t forget video tags

On the networks that allow you to use tags on your videos go ahead and take the time to fill them in. This will help optimize your video strategy because tags will make your videos easier to find.

6. Re-purpose videos or post them more than once

Optimize you social video strategy by repurposing your social media videos. Embed them into blog posts for extra views, or gather them together to create a video library or playlist. Don’t be afraid to share videos more than once – just make sure you have some time in between so your audience doesn’t grow tired of the same video (this is where getting those smaller snippets come in handy)

Now that you have some basic best practices down, here are a few ideas on what you can share to optimize your social video strategy

So what kind of videos can you create for your social channels? So many options. Remember your videos do not need to be overly complicated in order to deliver value and engage your audience. Here are some for what kind of videos you can create for your business on social media

Video greetings: These are extremely popular on YouTube, but you can easily create a greeting video for any social media channel. Let visitors knows who you are, what you do and what they can expect from you on your channel. Then go ahead an pin that video to the top of your profile or set it as a featured video.

How to’s, tips, or product demos: Got a product? Show your customers how to use it in a quick video. If you provide a service share a few tips. Add value to your follower’s lives by creating quick videos packed with information they can use.

Behind the scenes: Make your audience feel special by letting them in on behind the scenes action.

Q & A: Have your followers submit questions or use a live stream to answer questions from your audience. This is another great way to add value for your followers.

Regular updates: I work with a restaurant client who launches a new special every week. We’ve started to integrate live videos into the announcements each week. The videos keep consistency on the account, and have been great at increasing reach for their social media networks!

I hope this post has helped you brainstorm some ideas on how you can start to optimize your social video strategy for more engagement and reach! Before you go click here to learn how you can easily create great video content (without a budget).

<3 DhariLo