How Video Can Power Up your Social Media Strategy

Social video attracts 1200% more shares than image and text combined. That’s according to Brightcove, a cloud-based video hosting platform. Video marketing is the in-thing in 2018, and this trend doesn’t look like it’s slowing down anytime soon.

Social media networks such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are continuously developing new features to accommodate the new trend and make it super easier for their users to generate and consume video content.

Small businesses can leverage the full power of video to increase engagement and generate more attention on social media. In this post, I’ll highlight powerful ways in which you can integrate video into your social media marketing.

1. Share short, simple instructional videos with your audience

One way to bring video into your social media marketing plan is by sharing short and simple instructional videos with your audience. These can be just about anything related to your product or brand. They might demonstrate how a product can be used to solve a particular problem for the viewer.

For example, firms in the restaurant business can create short recipe videos and share them with their online fans. Web designers could share videos showing clients how to optimize their websites and marketers can share videos highlighting the latest marketing hacks for local businesses. You get the point!

When creating this type of video for your social media followers, make sure that each video is reduced to basic steps that are easy for everyone to follow. Less is usually more, and I recommend that you keep it below the 60-second mark. People have an increasingly short attention span these days, and few of your visitors are going to watch a video that’s too long all the way.

Start by creating the first instructional video for your audience. You might be surprised how much engagement this attracts from your product or brand.

2. Share product or service explainers

You probably already have a video explaining how your product or service works. If not, you really should consider it. A lot of business owners use text and graphics on landing pages and main website pages. But if a picture is worth a thousand words, then I’d say a video is surely worth a million words.

Don’t get stuck explaining your product or service in lengthy blocks of text. It’s the video age! Add a fascinating explainer video to your website to see how that impacts your bottom line. According to Unbounce, including a video on a landing page can boost conversions by 80%.

Even if you have a complicated product or offer highly technical service, a well-made explainer video will help break it down into simple steps that your audience can grasp. Let’s take, for example, a business that deals with Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies. A lot of ordinary people will it hard to comprehend these technologies. But with the help of a video, it can all be simplified down. And the customer will be able to understand everything in just a minute or so.

3. Engage your customers with special dates and events

Do you often say Hi to your customers on special dates such as Valentine’s and Independence day? If not, you probably should. This is an excellent way to show your audience that you care about them even when they aren’t buying something from you.

A fun, enjoyable video created for your audience on Valentine’s day can do wonders. Simply share it on Facebook and other social platforms and you’ll be surprised how much people appreciate the simple gesture. Think about making it funny, entertaining, or emotional. People respond better to videos that provoke a specific emotion (happiness, joy, sadness, etc.).

4. Share video testimonials for your product or service

This is another great way small businesses can use video-based marketing to increase engagement and create positive brand awareness on social media. Testimonial videos need to include real people and should focus on the audience’s major pain points. The video should be personified and good enough to make consumers feel like they could be the ones standing behind the camera.

Consider inviting your best customers for a video testimonial contest. Offer a few tips on how they can record a good testimonial at home, or have them come to your premises so your team can do it. Promise substantial rewards to those who make the best testimonials. This is a great way to attract great video reviews from customers who already trust your business.

Make it complete don’t leave out the call to action

It’s common that entrepreneurs forget to put a powerful call to action at the end of a marketing video. This is like literary leaving money on the table. Your testimonial video should not end with phrases such as that. You’re basically telling people to move on, that there’s nothing more here.

Make sure to implement a good call to action so people can engage your brand after watching the video. Ask them whether they’ve tried your product or service. What do they think about it? What would they like your business to do better? This is a great way to get likes, comments, shares, and also valuable feedback for your firm.

How low cost of advertising is making it easier for startups to use video marketing

Video can be an immensely powerful marketing medium, more so for B2C businesses that have existing products. Video marketing is surprisingly inexpensive and doesn’t require a Big Brand scale budget. Video clicks on Facebook are especially very affordable.

Even better, you can use the network’s targeting features to make sure you only direct your video to the right group. On top of Facebook, you may also want to promote your video on Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Get started with video-based marketing

Customers are more open to sharing videos than any other content type. In today’s marketing landscape, the video gives you the best opportunity to foster engagement and create an instantaneous sense of community on your social networks.

Not to forget, search engine bots and social media algorithms love video content (meaning better ranking and increased reach).

For small business owners who do not have enough time to keep up, my video marketing service makes it easy for you to leverage the full power of video while still focusing on what you do best running your business.

Let me know if you’re already using video in your social media marketing? Are you seeing better results compared to static advertising methods?