How to Create Videos for Social Media: 9 Practical Tips

by José Cara Published on May 8, 2023

This is the era of social media. Businesses, people, and the world are on every social media platform to get connected and it is impacting lives as never before. Social media content, especially videos are quite engaging and amuse the users in the best way possible. That is why, most of the content is video-based and businesses are gaining lots of leads online through their videos.

According to research by Sprout Social, businesses are getting over 93% of new customers through their engaging video content on social media. That speaks a lot about the value of social media videos and no doubt neglecting the importance of videos for social media can be damaging to any business having an online existence.

That’s why we are here today with the 9 practical tips to create effective social videos so that you can bring your business to the limelight in no time and with a little effort.

How to Create Engaging Social Media Videos: X Tips to Follow

Follow these valuable practical social video tips below to come up with amazing video content for your social media handles and get noticed in no time.

1. Design A Clear Strategy

You should always have a clear strategy even before you start creating social video content. Your strategy should revolve around your research for the target audience, competitor research, unique ideas, scheduling of content posting, budgeting, task allocation, and other things related to pre-production. Social videos are easy to make so you do not need a plethora of equipment. So, if you need any, gather them and come up with great concepts to hook your audience.

A well-designed strategy will set your social media videos apart from the rest of your competitors and you will end up being the center of attention all over social media. You can also have a strategy around curated animated content.

Animation brings videos to life like nothing else. In fact, 2D animated videos are really popular. Brands can tell stories in a way never told before.

If you wish to create animated social media videos, keep in mind the following while designing your strategy:

Do want your brand awareness?
Do you want to create curiosity about your new product launch?
Do you want to attract new customers?

Whatever the scenario is, you have to keep in mind your goals and be clear about them. It will reflect in your strategy and you will come up with a plan that is aligned with your overall business objectives and goals.

2. Stick To Short Videos

People are used to scrolling on social media so much that they can’t wait to see the next post for 10 to 15 minutes. That is why it is of utmost necessity to keep your videos short, crisp, and consumable while having great value for the viewer. If you pay attention to all your saved Reels, you will notice that most of them are short, which is why many successful content creators prioritize brevity as a key element in their social media strategy.

For this, you have to keep the useless and excess details aside and keep the most relevant and targeted information in the videos. Your social videos should be engaging enough to capture spontaneous attention, deliver your message, and be compelling enough for viewers to take action immediately in a short time span.

Another case is the complexity of your topic. In this scenario, break down your topic into smaller pieces and then create short video series rather than compiling all the information in one to make it longer than your users can consume.

You can take the best example of Airbnb. They have created the following video of 15 seconds and nailed it with the right messaging.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sV5dlrbHu4

3. Keep The Opening Impactful and Unique

The average attention time span of people on social media is 8 secs maximum. So before creating your social media videos, keep in mind that you have to capture your viewer attention in this short time. The first few seconds of your video are the deciding factor for your audience if they want to continue or scroll on to the next post.

So how do create the first few seconds of social media videos impactful? You can do the following:

Create curiosity through a triggering question.
Use strong hooks.
Incorporate an inspiring quote
Use eye-catching and powerful visuals.
Use appealing music.

If your brand is already established, try to:

Include animated logo
A brand name with catchy typography.
Start off with your tagline.
Highlight your product or service.

In this way, people will immediately understand what the video is all about and what message you are trying to convey to them. Whatever the scenario, create curiosity in the intro of your video so that people will watch it to know what’s more the video has to offer ahead.

Additionally, a video’s thumbnail is just as important as attractive thumbnails can enhance your brand.

You can see the example of Hinge. They have done it with absolute precision

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePDO5st8jv0

4. Pay Attention To Natural Lighting

Proper lighting is of utmost necessity when it comes to creating impactful social media videos. The best way to make your videos stand out is by using natural light. If you are shooting indoors, shoot near windows or doors to capture sufficient light.

If you are opting to shoot outdoors, keep in mind the following:

Understand how natural lighting works and know the right time to shoot.
If you want to capture the yellow red or orange color in your social videos, shoot in the Golden Hour. It is the 20-30 minutes right before the sun is setting. You will not face difficulty as during the Golden Hour shadows are not darker, with soft hues.
If you want cooler, rich tones in your videos, the Blue Hour is ideal for that. It is 20 to 30 minutes before sunrise and after sunset. You can capture the sense of peace and tranquility for your social videos as the sky reflects deep blue colors with blueish light in the background.
A softer, gloomy shade in the videos can be captured if you shoot on cloudy days. Although people think that it may make the videos look sad, it also makes the videos capture good natural light as cloudy weather spreads out the light evenly.

5. Craft the Story

Well, people love to see stories. There is no point in grabbing your viewer’s attention in videos if there is no story in it. It is necessary as it helps in gluing your audience to the end. That is why incorporate a good storyline with good content so that people get indulged in it. Your social media videos should not only be visually appealing, sound, and captivating but also has relevancy, a witty story, along with some value.

By including a story in your videos make them relevant and your brand can resonate with the audience really well. It gives an edge of personal connection with the audience to your videos as it triggers the emotions of the viewer.

Like a funny video has a humor element in it and people love laughing. Also, showing a family bond is a great example of incorporating a story in your videos as it relates to the vast majority. Story incorporation elevates your social videos to the next level and your brand will be winning people’s hearts without much effort generating effective results for you.

You can take the example of the Lipton Tea ad example here. They incorporated the story of father and son here in this ad and it is brilliantly executed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dkOrAngOoA

6. Focus on Sound Quality

Sound quality is equally important for your social videos just like other elements. The distorting sound may get bizarre for people and that is why it is not recommended to use the built-in mic In your phone or other equipment.

Using a voice-over can be a wise choice, and an AI voiceover generator can help create clear and professional voice-overs for your videos. And if your subject is speaking in the video, use an external noise-canceling mic to capture the sound effectively. Definitely, you would not like to disturb your subject’s voice with the background noises like a car passing by, birds chirping, or children playing. Invest in good-quality equipment to shoot the best videos ever.

7. Use Captivating Music

Use music wisely in your videos to make your brand stand out. Set a signature tune for your brand so that people can remember it. Like, Nokia has a specific tune for its brand and despite its failure, people still recognize it from the music tune. The music grabs the attention of your viewers, sets their mood, controls their perception of your brand, and makes a strong bond with your audience.

But if you are not creating your own music and using it from random resources, make sure it is legal to use it. You must seek for music owner’s permission. Or else, you will get a copyright strike.

8. A Powerful CTA Should Be Added In The End

Conclude your social videos with a powerful call to action to direct your viewers to let them know what action to take like a subscription, or buy the product. Your video serves the purpose of delivering your message. The viewer must have questions in mind after watching the video and your CTA is its answer. You can lead them to your desired action through an effective CTA.

If your CTA is purely a sales pitch, it is a big turn-off for the viewer. Keep it subtle. You can ask them to contact you or follow your social media handles, or even a simple subscription request is enough.

9. Customize According To Different Channels

It’s a very laid-back approach to use the same video for different social media platforms. Every platform has its own requirements and you have to optimize your video content accordingly. Like Facebook mostly focuses on meme-based or story-based content, while Instagram focuses more on visuals and stories.

FAQs:

What makes a video exciting for social media?

Well, incorporating emotional elements in videos make them exciting for viewers. Fill your videos with actions and energy to grab viewers’ attention, and use emotional elements to evoke them.

How do I create engaging video content?

Create videos that hook your target audience. Keep them short and crisp, with an engaging, captivating story.

Is it necessary to create videos for social media?

Yes, it is very important for any brand, business, or service to create engaging social media videos to get the audience limelight, and more social media engagements and videos are easy to consume and interactive ways to capture the audiences.

Wrapping it up

So, these were some of the practical tips to create the best social media videos and get the desired results. Follow them religiously while creating social media content and witness yourself skyrocketing success on social media platforms in no time.