This post is all about having success with video on social media as a tool. When done effectively, it will help you build trust, brand love and drive sales. I am going to convey how productive video has proven to be for social media marketing. We will also bust some myths and break some common bad habits (no offense!) because I truly want everyone to get better results with their online presence. Video is key! I am also going to break down a few different types of videos that do not require professional gear or an expensive production company. There is a place for that, and we will get to that point in a bit.
While this article is as robust as a workshop, I go even more extensively into video in my courses and workshops. After reading this article, check out the full-rounded one-on-one courses I offer with my Social Media On Steroids packages. Or you can contact me to talk about addressing the video marketing aspect ala cart. With over 20 years of successful video marketing experience, I know I will be of value to you.
The Value of Video
Let’s first begin with some statistics. And please bear with me if you are not a stats-minded person, because it is important I do my part to make sure you understand the value of video. On social media, video typically gets 3 x’s more reach and 5 x’ more engagement than status posts. Most people say they want to receive information via video.
Social Media Marketing (SMM) is all about storytelling. And there is no more effective way to tell a story on social than with video. When done effectively, it’s compelling, emotive, evocative, and literally takes the viewer on the journey we want them to go on.
Let’s look at some statistics, real statistics. The sources of these stats are from YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Marketland, TechCrunch, Buffer, Wordstream, and Mashable, respectively. Please take a moment and gaze into these TV screens and let these numbers marinate for a moment:
Embracing this the first step to achieving success with video on social media. Even if there are dazzling stats above that are on platforms you don’t use, it’s important to embrace the fact that video usage is growing in social and digital marketing. Those who do not use video effectively will be left behind.
Embrace Proven Strategies
There is always resistance. I am 57 years old as I write this. Not exactly some young wiz-kid who happens to be hip on what’s hot, born with a tablet in my hands.
I am drop-jaw floored regarding how many people 10 – 15 years younger than me who refuse to embrace social media marketing. And these people are often in the mid to upper management marketing or biz development positions with large companies. And equally disappointing to me, they are people of my tribe: Musicians. Most just refuse to learn and instead are following each other of the cliff doing it wrong. It is truly heartbreaking.
The fact is this:
If you don’t keep up with what’s working and learn to master the trends that are, your results won’t change. And I don’t mean follow trends in a sheople sense. I am referring to proven strategies that will get you success with video on social media. If you want to get better results you’ve got to get out of the box, get out of neutral. This requires putting other proven effective strategies in gear in order to move from where you are.
Numbers Don’t Lie
I was excited when the video feature came to Facebook. Drum Talk TV was in its first year. Before Drum Talk TV, which is a lifestyle media company, I had a video production company for 14 years. I saw the video trend coming before there was Facebook o YouTube. My bread and butter work was turning the sea of text on most Mainstreet businesses websites into video modules to make their information more compelling messaging. I also did marketing videos, product launch videos, and training videos.
When the video feature arrived on Facebook, our number one platform I immediately worked hard to develop several strategies that skyrocketed our numbers past all our industry peers. Some had been around 15 to 40 years. The numbers you see below are very typical of any other average 7-day period on our Facebook page and has been since we began using it in our first year, 2013:
Three Types of Video
There is no one single category that will give you the best success with video on social media. You ought to have at least two. After I spell this out, I am going to give you content category ideas. After that, I will review the two biggest mistakes most people make with video, and these errors flood my feeds daily. Here are three types of videos for you to consider. The first two you can easily put into action NOW:
Just Get It Done!
These are easy-to-do videos with a smartphone or a program using your webcam (like Zoom) tr any other DIY method. You certainly want to project yourself, your brand and your message in the best light. And more people than not agonize over just getting good content done.
In my blog post “Five to Keep Your Brand Alive” two of the items I cover are staying present and relevant and the importance of frequency in putting out content. If you know your stuff (and you do!), you are ready to go. yes, do some planning and record a couple of tests to review yourself, but don’t over plan, over-rehearse or over-think anything. Here’s why:
The more comfortable you get with this process with less rehearsal and being less critical of yourself, the more genuine you will come across. Being genuine scores HUGE points with your viewer. Consider the fact that we are all bombarded with so much content. Whether sought out or unsolicited, people generally appreciate those who are more “real” and genuine. Would you agree? After all, how you and your message comes across has a lot to do with your success with video on social media.
Live Stream
Here is the most golden of golden video opportunities to achieve success with video on social media! Ever since this feature came out a few years ago, I began live streaming on Drum Talk TV a few times a week. It is the number one relationship builder with your audience/followers/target market you could possibly employ without being with them in person.
Some people are freaked out about the concept of going live. But if one overcomes those inhibitions you will be fine. Do you know why?: Because all you have to do is be YOU. Who’s better at that than you? NO ONE!
The dynamic of interacting live with your viewers is a great opportunity. They can ask questions, you can ask questions, get feedback (like it or not LOL!) and this element of to-way participation builds interest, trust and bend love. This is a winning combination.
A Note on When To Live Stream
There are two schools of thought on when to do lives: Consistent days and times or random. Here’s some insight for you to decide what’s best for you: I do mine at scheduled times, but they are the same times on the same days consistently. I do live streaming at a different time each of the three or four days a week. The reason this works for me is that I have followers in all 24 times zones in more than 130 countries. So there is no one time where people from all locations would catch me live. So if I had the same time every day, an immense amount of my followers would never see it.
Making it Work
If your followers and target market are anywhere between one and four connected time zones, you can likely find a time to broadcast consistently. If you have followers in North America and in Western Europe, for example, you can either take my approach or have to separate broadcast times. However, broadcasting at your equivalent time to 8:00 or 9:00 AM Pacific will hit all those time zones. I have broadcaster at 10:30 PM Pacific to be able to hit Australia and Asian Regions at prime times, being that that’s a 12 to 17-hour time difference span to me.
On a Techincal Production Note:
For both of the video types mentioned above, don’t worry about the “perfect setting.” the setting should indeed be eye-appealing, have good lighting and of course, clear audio without load background noise, like traffic, waves on the beach, pets, kids or your dentist. Regarding “Production Value,” there is so much latitude for what “quality” means on social. However, keep in mind the purpose of the video should be a guideline for this as well. Video Blogs, or “Vlogs,” have a lot of latitude. Relax. Don’t develop a Spielberg complex. It’s not a movie.
An interview, product launch video, how-to, and human resources and other official videos, for example, should be done in the quality we will cover next.
THE NUMBER ONE MISTAKE!
I don’t understand this phenomenon of everyone recording video on their phones vertically. This IS NOT success with video on social. Thank goodness my mother was wrong about “If you keep making that face it will get stuck that way!” Or maybe she was right! I am constantly cringing at the newsfeeds everywhere I look. This is regarding the unknown reason why most people hold their smartphone vertically instead of horizontally when recording video. No offense, but this looks like hell on a laptop, computer monitor or flatscreen. Look at the difference:
The top image is the error. The black represents the unused video space when recording vertically on s smartphone and watching it on a normally shaped video monitor. It’s like looking through a cracked open door.
And then imagine how awkward it looks trying the speaker if they move. Here’s what video looks like when properly shot on a smartphone and viewed through a YouTube or Facebook video player, and any other video device:
Let’s say you are at a trade show making a quick video to show off your booth. What is the best representation, This?
Or THIS?
At the risk of me over-demonstrating, please humor me and go through the rest. I promise it will be helpful. Musicians and concert-goers have got to be the most frequent perpetrators. I can’t get my head around why so many people think this is acceptable …
When they can simply achieve this. But it’s not about me, it’s about you getting the best results possible and I am here to help.
Would you ever watch a movie like this?
Or does THIS make more sense?
So, which road would you choose?
So remember:
Going Big
As mentioned above, some video content categories warrant a professional production. Think of anything that falls into the category of a Television-quality commercial for your business, product or service. And having said that, there is some amazing consumer production software available. One is a multi-camera shoot software program that works with any iOS system. Even with just one camera, you can fly in text, graphics, video clips – it’s amazing!
We used it for the first time in August when filming two documentaries in Japan and one in Singapore, all on a few iPad minis linked together. And streamed live at the same time. We now use it for my Vlogs when I play drums to get different angles. If you are interested in checking it out, they are giving folks who use the code “ASM2020” a 30-day trial instead of 14 days. Go to https://bit.ly/SwitcherStudioTrial and check it out!
Finding The Right Vender
So if you find you need a professional videographer or full-on production company, here are some tips in seeking out the right people to work with:
- Have a clear way of conveying to them what you need.
- Be sure you work with someone who will help your vision come to life with the integrity of your brand and message. Avoid working with someone who will turn your needs and project into their vision. If they can’t work within the scope of bringing your vision to life, they are not for you.
- Review their portfolio and even if they have testimonials, as to speak with people they worked with. Even a glowing testimonial reflecting a wonderful end result may have had to endure a journey riddled with tension, disagreements, a not so pleasant experience. Be sure you can work with them cohesively and have fun so you can be as effective as possible!
More to Come
In a future blog post, I will breakdown a long list of video content categories so you can learn more about how I have achieved success with video on social and use it. And it’s still just the beginning. I teach how much content needs to be produced and at what frequency in order to truly be effective to achieve more reach. Often, when we get to this part of a workshop or course, people feel like they will never have enough content to put it all together. I help them turn that around and give them more ideas than they ever imagined!
Thank you!
Thanks for swimming through this article with me. Remember, video is something I cover very extensively in my courses and workshops. Remember, if you are interested in one-on-one consulting for developing best practices for easy and effective video marketing, you can check out the full-rounded courses I offer with my Social Media On Steroids packages. Or you can contact me to talk about addressing the video marketing aspect ala cart. With over 20 years of successful video marketing experience, I know I will be of value to you. And please subscribe to my list to receive tips, notifications about FREE live online workshops with me, course discounts and more!
