Looking for a sure-fire way to achieve success with your Facebook video content? According to the experts at Social Media Today, it’s as simple as the 4’s.
1.Short Videos
Keep your content under two minutes long. Attention spans are waning, yet two minutes is plenty of time to tell your story – you just have to be savvy with how you plan your content. The first 3-7 seconds are crucial. This is the time where viewers decide whether to turn on the sound and keep watching. So get creative and consider your hook (the thing that will hook the audience into watching) – it might be interesting visuals, humour, extraordinary cinematography or even just relevant closed captions or text headings.
2.Specific Topics
Know your brand and know your topic. Keep your brand message narrow and know your strategy and what you are setting out to achieve before you even turn on the camera. You’ll see from the examples below that the most successful brands never go off-topic and constantly serve up videos, in their niche, that their audience want to see.
3.Sound Optional
Did you know that 85% of Facebook video is played with the sound off? Consider making videos that are just as effective with the sound off. Add captions,where relevant, to keep the viewer on track so that your videos are equally enjoyable without audio. It also makes them easier for viewers to enjoy in a public area or at work/school without attracting attention or annoying those around them.
4.Satisfying
Each video should have a purpose and a specific message. They should leave the viewer wanting more and seeking new opportunities to engage with your brand. To truly be satisfying, you need to know who your audience is and what they want. For example, Tastemade (featured below) uses video to visually present recipes from start to finish. If they started showing videos of kitchen equipment, best knives or saucepans then it is likely they will see a dip in viewer numbers. This brand knows that their audience is hungry for delicious recipes presented in a simple way so they are undaunting to the average home cook. This is the sort of content that leaves people coming back for seconds.