Why there’s never been a better time to add video to your social media marketing mix

Did you know that video is the top content marketing strategy used by businesses at the moment?

And that social media is ranked as the best channel for sharing the videos they’re creating?

Hubspot’s 2021 State of Marketing Report is packed full of stats like these that prove video’s dominance is showing no signs of waning as we move into 2022.

Blogs are still used by more than half of marketing teams. Infographics remain a great way to present your products or services in a visual sense. But video provides marketers with a much more captivating way to spread their message – and using short clips and films within your own strategy could catapult your engagement, too.

(If you fancy getting up to speed with what’s trending in the marketing space, you can download the full report here.)

All of this data confirms that there’s never been a better time to start using video content across your socials.

Here are a few insights into why video is so effective, and which platforms you should be using to showcase your work.

Arguing the case for video a little further…

Everyone consumes content differently. Some people prefer to scroll through an article, while others would rather watch a short video on a subject. Given that our attention spans are shorter than ever before – especially when we’re online! – it’s not surprising that more and more people are drawn to watching rather than reading.

And the key thing is, video actually drives business. According to Internet Retailer, viewers are 85% more likely to purchase a product after watching a product video. 52% percent of consumers say that watching product videos makes them more confident in their online purchase decisions, too. So, you can use video to not only grab the attention of prospective customers but get them really hooked on what you’re offering and ready to convert. Perfect!

Which platforms support video content?

Pretty much all of them! But here are four sites that are making it incredibly easy to host and share video content, and some of their features that will help you get ahead.

TikTok

This entire platform grew from the newfound demand for short, snappy snippets of video, so it’s no wonder it’s leading the way!

If you create a video in the app itself, you’ve got up to 60 seconds to play with. But if you conjure up something using third party software, your videos can be longer.

Funny or entertaining videos go down the best here, but you can also host and share more informative content, if you want to.

Most TikTok users view their content on mobile devices, so vertical videos are best. You can upload .mp4 and .mov (although TikTok’s ads platform also supports .avi and .gif files).

Instagram

Adding a video to your post on Instagram has been proven to double the engagement of posts that only contain images – so working the video trend on this platform is a no-brainer.

Like TikTok, Instagram supports video files in a range of formats. Instagram users can’t tilt their phones, so your video will need to be in portrait or square format if you want it to be easy to follow. Videos in feeds can be up to 60 seconds in length, but ads can last for 2 minutes.

You’ve also got Stories and Lives to play with! Stories are quick 15-second clips, while you can stream a Live for up to 4 hours.

And I need to give Reels a mention, too. (You know I’m obsessed, right?) You can get creative with this tool, which lets you overlay your clips with audio and all kinds of special effects. 

Click for my take on Instagram Reels vs TikTok, or see how I fared when I embarked on my own 31 days Reels challenge.

Facebook

Pop a video in your Facebook feed, and it’s almost guaranteed to get you more views than a standard text or image-based post. For the best results, keep your video under 30 minutes long, and upload it in .mp4 or .mov format. (You can upload bigger and longer files, but they’ll take longer to process.)

Running a Facebook Live is a brilliant way to share your tips and ideas with your audience. You can let your followers know when you’re planning to start broadcasting, or you can just hop on and start an impromptu discussion with whoever is online. Viewers can react and comment in real-time, and as we all know, there’s more value in a two-way conversation!

YouTube

Possibly the biggest and best video marketing platform available, YouTube is used by millions of marketers worldwide. It’s well suited to longer educational or informational videos, but you can host shorter films on your channel, too.

One of the greatest things about YouTube is, it allows you to manually optimise your videos, so they have a better chance of being found by users who are interested in what you have to offer. Adding keywords via your video’s title, description and tags will lead to better exposure for your content and work wonders for your SEO.

Ready to dip your tiny toes into video marketing? I’d love to help!

Video is such a huge topic, that I’m going to be posting a series of articles on the topic over the next few months. Next up, I’m going to teach you how to create quality videos for your socials, so you can start sharing your creations with total confidence.

Keep an eye on my blog and my newsletter for the link!