Videos That Work Wonders on Social Media Platforms

social-media

Since the early 2000s, varied kinds of social media platforms have transformed the way we interact with our friends, family, and acquaintances. Various social media sites have come and gone over the years, with some like Facebook and Twitter gaining great prominence, around the world. Over time, the commercial potential of these social media websites has been recognized and harnessed by marketers and advertisers. The rise of social video marketing and other types of social media content marketing has given savvy marketers numerous opportunities to reach out to and engage with potential customers in new and interesting ways.

The Use of Video Marketing on Social Media Platforms

Almost all modern businesses use one or more social media platforms to connect and interact with their customers and other stakeholders. Social media video clips advertising new products and promoting old ones are quite common and ubiquitous. Of the various types of content available on social media, videos are some of the most popular.

Different types of content have their own audiences. However, according to social media video statistics, videos tend to generate greater curiosity, interest, and engagement amongst users when compared to simple text or audio. Videos, unlike all other forms of media, can engage both the auditory and visual senses of human beings, thus grabbing their attention completely than any other type of content.

Videos that Work Best on Social Media Platforms

There are many different types and formats of videos that businesses share on social media sites in order to generate traffic and create a buzz about their product or service. The different types of videos for social media platforms have been listed below.

Engaging and Entertaining Videos

In order to gain traction and popularity on social media, a video needs to be fun and entertaining over everything else. Now, entertainment can come in many forms and a video need not be confined to humorous or upbeat topics in order to be entertaining. A sentimental video that incites a certain emotion in the viewer positive or negative – can be quite entertaining and can help in bringing people back for more. After all, there is a reason why genres such as horror and tragedy are so popular across all mediums.

Watch Lido Live TV video production on National Night Out at The District

A social media marketing video can work based on a multitude of ideas and factors. In order to make a video memorable and attractive, businesses must ensure that the social media videos they produce have a coherent and relatable story to tell their viewers. Good production values are also a must when it comes to attracting and retaining viewers.

Behind the Scenes Videos

Behind-the-scenes videos have always been popular with viewers for one very simple reason – people love secrets and untold stories. It is a natural impulse for human beings to try and gain information that they don’t have. The more relevant that information is to their own lives, the greater the curiosity. This is why people are always interested to know how a product that they always use is actually manufactured.

Socially conscious consumers also want to know more about the policies and guiding principles of the companies or businesses that they patronize. Behind-the-scenes videos can also include interviews with long-time staff members and customers of the business. These types of social media video clips are a good way to build trust with current and potential customers.

Live Videos

Live videos are currently very popular on a variety of social media platforms. One of the major reasons for the popularity of this type of video is the immediacy and sense of urgency that they bring to the table. It is a well known fact that live videos are good at generating interest and engagement from the audience.

According to Facebook’s head of News Feed, Adam Mosseri, live videos help enhance interaction by generating six times more traffic than pre-recorded videos. This higher interaction and viewer engagement also affect conversion rates and has a positive impact on the profitability and popularity of a business. Therefore, it can be said that real-time videos are a highly effective means of audience engagement and traffic generation.

Unusual and Unique Videos

One of the indisputable facts about human nature is that we love novelty. Humans are obsessed with new ideas, styles, and execution. Not only do we like new things, we even adore new versions and presentations of old and familiar ideas and concepts. This can explain the popularity of Claus Pilgaard, who uses his passion for music to sell chili sauces on YouTube and on his website.

His unique way of advertising chili peppers through chili-tasting music videos got him fans and followers from around the world and helped his business to grow and flourish. Businesses can adopt the same approach to marketing and selling any service or product. The power of music, art, theater, recitation and all other forms of artistic endeavor can be harnessed to market and popularize a brand or product.

Instructional Videos

When it comes to choosing a type of social media video to streamline their marketing efforts, companies cannot go wrong with instructional videos and tutorials. This is because instructional videos provide real value to viewers. They teach them something that they didn’t know before, thus adding to their skills and consequently giving a boost to their self-confidence.

Everybody likes learning something new every now and then, and there is no better way to build credibility with your customer-base than to provide knowledge and information that will make life easier for the viewer. Instructional videos and tutorials are especially useful for companies selling gadgets, software, or equipment that new customers and potential buyers might not be familiar with. With a single tutorial video, you can create awareness about the product while generating social media buzz about your brand.

Conclusion

Apart from the types of social media videos mentioned above, you can also use other creative and innovative formats and styles of social media video clips to build your audience and attract a following on the platform of your choice. Consistency and innovation are two of the main ingredients that marketers need in order to build an effective social video marketing plan and successfully promote a brand, product, or service on these platforms.

Why is Silent Facebook Video So Popular Among Brands?

facebook silent video

The late 1800s saw the emergence of motion pictures, albeit without sound. These films were short and conveyed the message with mimes, expressions and in some cases, text at the bottom of the screen.

A similar trend can be seen now in one of the most popular social media platforms – Facebook.

According to a study by Digiday, Facebook users and followers now watch more than 100 million hours of video on that platform every day, and almost 85% of them are non-verbal videos

Silent Facebook Videos

Facebook is a social networking site that offers a continuous feed of images, text, and videos that are published by individual users as well as by brands for promotion. Facebook has built a social media ecosystem that doesn’t require the user to turn up the volume to watch the video feeds, thus creating the concept of the silent Facebook video. The intent behind this is to make it easy for its users to engage with the video content that is being presented on Facebook in public places and other areas where audio might be inconvenient.

This requirement and preference for auto-play and non-verbal videos set by Facebook, has made the publishers and brands clamor to find new ways to convey their message, and capture the attention of their users without using sound. One of the ways this has been achieved is by using text overlays or captions on top of the videos, altogether eliminating the need for audio. Muted Facebook videos have subsequently gained significant popularity with social media users worldwide.

The Emerging Trend of Silent Facebook Videos

Brands and digital entrepreneurs are therefore clamoring to learn how to mute a video before uploading it to Facebook, one of the biggest social networking sites on earth. It is common knowledge that each of the leading social media platforms has its own specific content requirements. While Twitter has set the limitation of 140 characters for posts, for Facebook it is about mapping the algorithm with user interests and trends in mind.

Studies done by Facebook indicate that people prefer watching videos without sound. The reason being loud advertisements can be very distracting when one is browsing one’s news feed. Sometimes, the mobile video ads can play loudly when least expected. More than 80% of people do not favor such loud auto-play videos and prefer non-verbal videos instead.

In a study conducted by Nielsen for Facebook, it was found that 47 percent of the value of a video campaign was delivered in the first three seconds and up to 74 percent in the first ten seconds. Moreover, brands also need to create videos that audiences prefer to watch but not listen to – they need to create videos that can capture people’s interest and hold their attention without the need for auditory stimulus. The need to remove audio from Facebook videos has therefore led to many types of innovative ideas being implemented by companies to attract viewers without the benefit of sound. To beat the flood of content, publishers need to attract the user’s attention in seconds, as they scroll through the feed.

Making Silent Videos Work

So, if the users’ preference is to watch videos without sound, then how to enhance their experience and engage them after removing the audio from Facebook videos?

One solution is to use text overlays or captions. News publishers and brands are fast embracing this technique and are adding captions and quotes to their videos, thus diminishing the need for sound.

Research conducted by Facebook suggests that video ads with captions or text overlays increase the view time by almost 12 percent. The company is now adding a tool to allow its publishers to add video captions automatically. Advertisers now will be able to add, review, edit, and save the automated captions quite easily.

On the other hand, silent Facebook videos or non-verbal videos are very popular among brands because they can appeal to the imagination of their audience while tapping into the viewer’s curiosity – which all stimulates the user’s interest in the brand.

Conclusion

Rye Clifton, Director of Experience at GAD&M has said that while sound is still an option that advertisers can opt for on Facebook, it is definitely not a requirement. According to him, brands who can advertise in a compelling manner without sound will be ahead of those who are not yet thinking that way.

Nowadays, silent videos account for more than 75 percent of all traffic on Facebook. Non-verbal videos have become omnipresent across all the major social networking sites. Users are becoming increasingly media-savvy and expect more innovations and experimentations – text overlays, captions, and visuals that can capture their interest and attention in a jiffy.

These techniques will enable brands to convey their message, but when combined with masterful storytelling and exciting visuals, it can be taken to the next level, making the brand stand out from its competitors.