With so many new social media platforms popping up left and right, it can be tough to determine the best place to post your videos, or whether to post them at all. Not all platforms are equal when it comes to video, but with video becoming an enormous aspect of the social space, it’s more important than ever to get it right. 

In this post, we’ll go over why creating videos for social is important, and give some examples of what to post and where.

Importance of Video

Throughout the last two decades, video has taken the spotlight as one of the best ways to grow your brand. Companies big and small have heavily invested in video to utilize a number of its benefits. This includes lead generation, SEO, storytelling, product and service explanations, and more. Not to mention that consumers simply love video; for example, 68% of consumers prefer to watch videos to learn about new products and services over articles. Needless to say, video is going to be a huge asset for your brand, and the same goes for videos on social media. 

Videos on Social Media

Over the last several years, social media has cemented itself as an important aspect of marketing. More recently, there has been a huge shift in favor of video as the format of choice. We’ve seen this across the board from long-standing social media giants like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and even Linkedin, while newcomers like TikTok have hit the ground running, focusing entirely on video content. So the big question to ask yourself at this point is: should my company invest in video for social media? The short answer is: yes, absolutely. The long answer: also yes, but with a few caveats. 

Benefits of Posting on Social

Many of the same benefits you gain from producing normal video content bleed over into the benefits you gain when posting on social media. Additionally, there are a few extra benefits with posting to social sites, like more exposure, appealing to younger audiences, increased sales, the ability to convey your company’s personality, and much more. For an in-depth look at these benefits, check out this article from Later Media. 

Social Video Expectations

Every type of business has the opportunity to create great videos across multiple platforms. However, it’s important to note that the type of video content you should share will vary depending on a number of factors, such as your industry, your goals, and the resources that are available to you.

Videos created for a B2C (business-to-consumer) clothing company will likely look quite different than videos for a SaaS B2B (business-to-business) company. Videos for brand building may convey your brand story, while ones that are created to drive conversions will have more overt sales messaging in them. Furthermore, if your company has a large budget and production team, the quality and quantity of those videos are going to be a lot different than those produced by a small business with a few employees. 

For the highest chance of success, be sure to evaluate your unique situation and set realistic goals and expectations around what you want to achieve with your videos on social. 

Types of Videos To Create

While each business has different goals and objectives, there are a few types of videos that work best across the board, especially when getting started.

How-To Videos

How-to or educational content is one of the cornerstones of the video marketing world. Providing your audience with valuable information is a powerful way to position yourself as a thought leader in any industry, and these work especially well on social media since many users are craving helpful information in a quick, digestible format. 

Customer Testimonials

One of the best ways to promote your business is by having someone else sing your praises, and this is where customer testimonials come into play. These types of videos are great because they add a very human touch to your social video efforts. Having a customer explain on video how your product or service helped improve their business is a very effective way to build trust with your audience.

Product Videos

Creating product videos is an absolute must. Because your product is the star of your business, it deserves to be highlighted on a regular basis. These types of videos can explain your product, showcase new features, or simply show off your product in a simple, visually appealing way.  These videos can also be highly beneficial if your product or service is a bit more complex, since conveying your message through video on social makes it easy for potential customers to absorb the information.

Which Platforms Should You Post On?

Where you post will depend on the bandwidth of your creative team. In the most ideal situation, you would craft several videos, each specific for the type of platform you are posting to. While Facebook and Twitter generally work well for all types of content, you can also position Linkedin videos specifically toward a business audience. On the other hand, Instagram and TikTok videos are more ideal for short, visually impactful content or behind-the-scenes content.  

However, it is common for businesses to lack the bandwidth to create a large variety of content. In this case, the best solution is to plan to make great content that can live on various platforms. This typically involves cropping or editing the video, which requires some effort, but far less than creating several different types of content on a regular basis. For a full guide on planning video shoots to accommodate different social platforms, check out our Shooting for Social How To Video.

Experiment On New Platforms

We also strongly encourage experimentation. The best part of having so many different platforms is the ability to cast a wide net for your target audience. While there might be some overlap, there is a good chance each social platform will have its own separate audience.. 

If you have the bandwidth, try posting on TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, and any other new social media sites that crop up. Be sure to adjust your content to fit the overall vibe of the social platform, and commit to a consistent test period. The best-case scenario is to reach a new audience and grow your community of customers or fans. If your efforts don’t pan out as expected, you’ll at least know you gave it your best shot and tried something new.

We hope these ideas will help you maximize the value of your investment in social video. If you have any other ideas about unexpected ways to leverage your video content on different social platforms, share in the comments below!

The post The Importance of Sharing Videos on Social appeared first on SproutVideo.

At the core of a durable business continuity plan is an effective communications strategy. Of course, it should include video. In a time of crisis, video provides the ability to communicate fully and with nuance, which is essential when so much is unknown. Here’s how to incorporate video into your continuity plan to prepare your business for anything.

What is a Business Continuity Plan?

A business continuity plan is your company’s roadmap for maintaining productivity in the face of adverse events beyond your control. Usually, you only turn to a continuity plan when a serious disaster of some sort strikes. Think floods, pandemics, earthquakes, or even armed conflict.

It’s easy to assume you’ll figure things out when and if the time comes. However, it’s far more advisable to have a plan ready to go so you aren’t scrambling. 

A basic business continuity plan consists of guidelines for adjusting key business processes when everyday resources are not available. For instance, a solid plan should account for losing access to your office space; moving employees to remote work; postponing, rescheduling, or relocating major gatherings; reassigning roles if essential personnel are indisposed; managing supply chain disruptions; as well as many risks related to technology, software, and cyber crimes.

Why You Need Video

Beyond answering the basic question of, “how will work get done?”, your continuity plan should also address your communication strategy for when things are going belly up. 

Video is an essential tool for both fronts. For both internal and external purposes, video is the glue that can help hold an organization together and keep things moving forward.

Displaying Leadership

If you’re turning to your business continuity plan, you’re dealing with some sort of crisis. In times like these, strong leadership is essential. 

A faceless email can only do so much to reassure anxious coworkers. Seeing a familiar face, with the right tone of voice and nuanced delivery, can really enhance the impact of a message. 

Internal Communications

Regular messaging from executives can help align teams and keep employees focused on your company’s mission. Try to set a cadence you can maintain, assuming a busier-than-usual workload. 

This is a perfect opportunity to take stock of the situation, offer reassurances, and provide critical updates company-wide. 

To ensure your videos remain for employees only, video privacy features like single sign-on, IP address restriction, or requiring viewers to login are easy ways to control access. 

Public Relations Messaging

Remember, it’s not just your employees who might look to you for leadership. It’s also your customers, and potentially the general public. By displaying leadership in a crisis, you can help ensure others will think of your brand as reliable.

Customers will want to know whether your company will continue to provide goods and services going forward. If you anticipate disruptions of any kind, it’s best to be transparent since most customers will understand there are mitigating circumstances at play. Further, leaving people to wonder what’s happening when their order doesn’t ship or they can’t reach anyone on the phone will only make things worse.

If your company is taking special steps to help those in need during the crisis, video is the perfect way to explain what you’re doing, and encourage widespread sharing of your message. Video helps make dense information easier to digest, and people are more likely to share information if they have an emotional reaction to it.

To reach customers, embedding a video on your website or blog, or including a video in an email campaign is a great way to get the word out. To reach the general public, sharing your content on social media or in a press release are excellent options.

Reaching Remote Employees

In this day and age, not coming to the office is hardly a reason to stop working. However, there are challenges to remote work that video is uniquely suited to solve.

Video Resources

When you can’t just wander over to someone’s desk for help with a problem, you need somewhere else to turn. Creating video resources for employees to answer quick FAQs about key business processes, especially ones newly enacted to deal with changing circumstances, is essential to helping people adapt to the new reality.

If you are scrambling to put these resources together, our guide to making video with just a laptop might help. We also cover how to make a professional screencast in our How To Video series.

Once you have your content in place, create a video resource center by embedding video in your intranet, or by creating a secure video portal with a third party. For instance, SproutVideo’s websites offer single sign-on, password protection, and more privacy tools to ensure only employees can access this content.

Video Chats and Messages

While Slack, Microsoft Teams, and other professional messaging apps have displaced email significantly, it’s hard to replace face-to-face meetings in lots of circumstances. Video chats are essential when you can’t be in the same place at the same time and need to discuss something important.

The key to ensuring everything moves online smoothly in a crisis is already having a tool in place. Introducing new tools when teams are already dealing with extraordinary circumstances can lead to confusion and lost productivity.

Slack, Zoom, and Whereby are all popular choices for video chats. No matter which tool you use, setting an agenda, avoiding interruptions, and noting key takeaways and action items, are essential to keeping video chats productive.

Sometimes, you can’t even manage to schedule a video chat. However, video can still be used to share important messages with your team. For instance, providing feedback using a screen capture instead of typing it up could be more efficient. 

Online Events

In situations where large gatherings are no longer possible, conferences, big meetings, and similar events can be a headache and a half to cancel. Online video offers alternatives that can save the day.

Try to get recorded presentations from the participants to share, or use webinars or livestreams to showcase the presenters instead. You might not be able to get the whole lineup on camera, but hearing from some of the experts will still feel valuable to erstwhile attendees.

Failing that, our tips for leveraging video for public relations above should come in handy if the event needs to be delayed or canceled outright.

Putting it All Together

No matter where you are in your disaster recovery planning process, it’s never too late to make changes for the better. Review (or create) your plans today to identify the points at which video can be leveraged. Then, ensure the teams involved are aware of the communications strategy you’ve put in place, and that they have the resources they’ll need to produce and share video accordingly.

In trying times like these, we are here to help with any of your video questions, large or small. Share them in the comments below!

The post Business Continuity Plans: Why Video is Essential appeared first on SproutVideo.

In this post, we’re looking at all the different options for sharing video on Instagram, with specific advice for maximizing your content on the platform.

Why Share Video on Instagram?

Many think of Instagram as a photo-first platform, but in recent years, video has really taken off. Because of the nature of video, there is high potential for more engagement than still images. Instagram is unique in the fact that it offers several different ways to share videos, each of which can be used to enhance your marketing strategy.

You might already have tons of content worth sharing on Instagram. While posting it and hoping for the best is an option, we’ve devised this comprehensive guide to maximizing current and new video assets through the different sharing options on Instagram.

The Feed

In June of 2013, Instagram added the ability to add videos to the feed. Since then, videos on Instagram have evolved dramatically.

At first, video in the feed consisted of blurry videos filmed with the Instagram camera. Today, users are posting videos with much higher production value. Whether off-the-cuff or polished videos are a better choice for your brand is up to you, but let’s go over some details on how to maximize feed videos.

CONTENT IDEAS

When sharing videos in the Instagram feed, these four best practices will help you grab viewer attention, and keep it.

First, your video will autoplay without sound by default. Viewers have to specifically enable sound to hear your message. That means the first few seconds of your video have to be very engaging and pique viewers’ interest. In addition, you have to plan for your video to be comprehensible without sound. People may not tap to listen to what you have to say.

Second, your video will remain visible on your Instagram profile next to all your other content after you share it. Consequently, a smart choice is to share more evergreen video content in the feed since it will be saved in your profile unless you delete it.

Also, you’ll want to make sure it fits with your other images and videos in terms of visual branding. An easy way to ensure that is to choose an engaging frame as your cover photo during the upload process.

Finally, video in the feed is really flexible. It’s a great option for sharing many different types of videos. The key to getting it right is to factor in your viewers’ state of mind when designing your content.

A viewer scrolling through the Instagram feed is likely to be looking for new and useful information, and entertainment. If they’re scrolling through your profile content, they’re looking to get to know your brand better and possibly check out some products. This puts you in a great spot for relaying news, tips and tricks, longer sizzle reels for your product, and more.

Technical Specifications

Currently, Instagram allows you to post videos between 3 seconds and 60 seconds long in the feed. If you’re looking to share longer videos, skip down to the Instagram TV section below.

As Instagram is a highly visual platform, we recommend sharing videos in the feed that look and sound high quality. Usually, that means you’ll have to record and edit the video outside of the app prior to uploading it.

When doing so, be sure to check your aspect ratio. Instagram suggests uploading videos as 1:1 or 4:5 to best utilize space. To learn how to plan for these unique dimensions, refer to our newest How To Video, “Four Secrets to Optimizing Video for Social Sharing.”

Instagram Stories

2016 was the year that Instagram introduced Instagram Stories. When Stories first launched, many thought it was just a sly rip off of Snapchat. However, it quickly surged past Snapchat and evolved into something new. Instagram’s popularity helped Instagram Stories surge to over 250 million daily users, far beyond Snapchats 173 million.

CONTENT IDEAS

Stories are one of the best options on Instagram for interacting with your community on a daily basis. Here are a few reasons why:

First off, Instagram Stories are by nature extremely short (currently restricted to 15 second clips, more on that below). Because of this, uploading multiple clips is commonplace. With some creative planning, that constraint allows for a great narrative. Choose several video clips to form a larger story to post in a sequence so your audience gets the full picture.

Secondly, Instagram Stories only last for 24 hours, which means the content you upload or create can be a bit more experimental. This is where you can show the fun or goofy side of your business — as long as it still aligns with your brand and aesthetic.

Last but not least, one of the more fun aspects of Instagram Stories is all the additional elements you can add to your videos. Gifs, music, drawings, text, and emojis all add a playful element to your videos. Hashtags, questions, countdowns, and polls all can be used as engagement tools that encourage your audience to interact with your post.

Technical Specifications

If planned correctly, you can work Instagram Stories into your video marketing plan, and produce highly engaging videos. There are two ways to create a Story.

First, you can film it directly in the app. Instagram Stories are the only form of Instagram videos where we would recommend using this technique. The quick, ephemeral nature of Stories is perfect for recording videos in the moment. Recording in app also allows you to use different camera modes and filters reserved mainly for capturing video directly in the app.

Secondly, similar to feed videos, you can upload pre-recorded videos. This option allows you to plan your content in advance and upload higher quality videos. The advantage here is similar to the other types of videos on Instagram.

Videos posted to Instagram Stories work best when formatted as vertical 9:16. The Instagram app is designed to be used vertically to match the way phones are generally held. Formatting 9:16 takes full advantage of the screen real estate.

Stories can range from 1 second to 15 seconds long. While you can upload videos longer than 15 seconds, Instagram will automatically split your video into 15-second portions.

Live Videos

Instagram Live was also introduced in 2016 as a part of Instagram Stories. However, it can easily be considered its own entity. It operates exactly how it sounds: broadcasting video live from Instagram to your audience.

CONTENT IDEAS

Live video hasn’t made its way into many video marketing plans, however, we think there are some benefits you could capitalize on.

Live video is as close as you can get to sitting and communicating directly with your audience, so think of it as your chance to really talk to them. Q&A sessions, news reports, behind-the-scenes content, special offers, big announcements, and more are great avenues that promote dialogue. Remember to monitor the comments and respond in real-time to the audience to drive engagement.

Currently, another huge benefit is that followers still get a notification when an account goes live, which is a great way to garner attention. A dedicated notification is a great way to break through the noise.

After your live session is complete, make sure to save and share your stream so those who missed it can still see your content.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Unlike sites like Facebook or YouTube, Instagram Live can only be accessed from your phone. This means no pre-produced content at all.

Combining a good internet connection, a tripod, flattering lighting, and a microphone can help enhance your production, but not much else can change the outcome of your live video. In addition, be sure to shoot vertically so your audience won’t have to turn their phone to watch your stream.

Instagram TV

Launched in 2018, Instagram’s latest big endeavor, Instagram TV (or IGTV) is 100% made for video. This is Instagram’s attempt to compete with longer format video sites like YouTube.

You can access these videos directly through the normal Instagram app, or use the standalone IGTV app, providing more ways for your audience to discover your content. Instagram even makes a nod to traditional TV with the ability to create a series and referring to your page as a channel.

CONTENT IDEAS

Technically, anything goes for IGTV. With few limitations, this option gives you the ability to post the highest quality content possible.

First, IGTV lets you post in either 9:16 or 16:9. The latter gives you the flexibility to upload videos in a more traditional format and still see the benefits of uploading to Instagram.

Next, IGTV picks up where feed videos end with a minimum of 1 minute to encourage longer videos. The more generous run time limits encourage creators and businesses to upload longer higher quality videos.

To further encourage quality, videos for IGTV have to be created prior to upload, unlike Instagram Stories. Instagram clearly wants you to upload IGTV content that is a bit more polished with higher production value.

Furthermore, IGTV allows you to post a preview of your video right to your feed. The first minute of your video will be available to be seen like a feed video, then, viewers will have an option to watch the rest in the IGTV section.

Technical Specifications

The limit for IGTV videos goes from 1 minute all the way to 10 minutes. Verified accounts get a max time of 60 minutes.

Similar to feed videos, IGTV allows you to choose a frame from the video as the cover photo. In addition, you can upload a pre-made cover photo. This gives you the flexibility to create unique eye-catching graphics that might be exactly what you need to capture even more views.

Lastly, you can actually add links to the description of IGTV videos, something you can’t do anywhere other than the bio section of your profile. They can only be accessed when the video is viewed in the IGTV section, but that extra call-to-action might be worth it.

Instagram can be a great outlet to try new video ideas. Try to stay on brand, but don’t be afraid to experiment now and again.

How does Instagram fit into your video marketing strategy? Let us know in the comments below.

The post Maximizing Video On Instagram appeared first on SproutVideo.

So, how can you make sure your video will work no matter where it’s being shared without quadrupling your workload?

In this episode of our “How To Video” series, we’re taking a look at how to plan your video shoot for optimal results on social media.

Join Nick LaClair, Creative Director at SproutVideo, as he takes you through four simple tips to make the most out of your next marketing video project.

Shooting Social Video

To engage viewers, it’s ideal to optimize multiple versions of your video for as many different platforms as needed. You can achieve this in an efficient manner with these four proactive steps.

1. Plan to Crop

With so many different video platforms, there are a ton of aspect ratios to keep track of. Shooting 16:9 and hoping that a crop will work is not ideal. You can usually see right away when videos do this because they’re cropped in slightly too close, like the two examples below.

There are two main options: you can either plan your videos with cropping in mind to allow for better composition, or shoot a different video for each platform. The latter would be very time-consuming, but luckily, the former is easier than you think.

Shoot in 4K

First, shooting in 4K can be very helpful. While 4K is overkill for just about anything except TV or cinema, it can be your saving grace when shooting for social. The 4K resolution will give you the ability to crop for any platform.

For instance, Facebook’s max resolution is 1280p x 720p, and Instagram is 1080p x 1080p. Since 4K is 3840p x 2160p, it has those formats covered with room to spare.

Refer to this guide from SproutSocial to stay current on the ever-changing social video standards: Always Up-to-Date Guide to Social Media Video Specs

Use a Wide Shot

Secondly, when planning to crop, you’ll need to use a wide shot as opposed to a close-up. This will allow you to fit more of your subject in the frame. Then, when you crop your video in post-production, you’ll have more to work with. Otherwise, you run the risk of cutting part of your subject out of the frame.

Some cameras or external monitors will allow you to set custom markers or frame lines so you can see exactly where the crop will go. If your camera doesn’t have that option, pieces of tape on your viewfinder or external monitor will allow you to preview the crop.

Below is a table of measurements for your reference to help you create tape guides on your monitor.

Framing your shot for various aspect ratios is a great chance to get imaginative with your shot. Have fun with it and try out new things that you generally might not do if you were shooting just 16:9.

2. Maximize Your Depth of Field

Our second tip deals with utilizing depth of field to improve the cinematic look of your video. Here’s why that matters.

A shallow depth of field will keep the subject looking crisp, while the background will appear blurry. This makes your footage look professional and cinematic, which can help it stand out when posting on social. Take a look at the example below.

Choose a Camera With a Large Sensor

Consider the relationship between sensor size and the depth of field. As a general rule, the larger the sensor size, the shallower the depth of field will be. Try to choose a camera with a larger sensor to help improve the final output in different aspect ratios.

Use a Prime Lens

When choosing a lens for social video, we recommend prime lenses over zoom lenses. Prime lenses allow you to open the aperture wider, which lets in more light, and further enhances the shallower depth of field.

Especially when cropping your footage, the lens choice can make a big difference. The combination of a large sensor size and a fast prime lens is ideal for creating that cinematic look after a vertical 9:16 crop.

For a full comparison on prime and zoom lenses, check out our post Optimal Optics: a Primer on Lenses.

3. Be Conscious of Video Length

On social media, shorter is generally better for most content types. Part of that is down to audience preferences on the platform, while some platforms have technical constraints on the length your videos can be.

Adding to the difficulty, new platforms and new guidelines emerge all the time. By keeping your video short, you’ll be more likely to be able to share it wherever you’d like without further editing.

Instead of trying to cram all your ideas down to a minute or so, start off by preparing your script to match the ideal time limit. Use the chart below as a reference when writing your script.

Keep in mind that each person’s manner of speaking is unique. Try timing yourself to find “your number,” then use it for planning future scripts. You’ll improve your timing with practice.

If that still isn’t enough, try different editing techniques to shorten your video. For instance, you can cut out dead space or shorten your transitions or intro’s and outro’s.

4. Create a Standalone Teaser

If the video you’re planning is on a bigger scale, and you want your audience to see it as intended – with no cropping or time limits – consider creating a standalone teaser. Similar to a movie trailer, a standalone teaser is a great way to hook your audience and keep them wanting more.

Your teaser can simply introduce the full video, and tell your audience where and when they can see it. Take a look at this simple teaser script that could be used for the video above.

Hi, this is Nick LaClair, Creative Director here at SproutVideo. Don’t miss our next episode of How To Video, where I’ll give you some tips on shooting for multiple social platforms. Click the link to check it out.

This quick and concise message is very easy to film when you’re making the rest of your video content.

Alternatively, creating a more vague teaser is a great way to stir up some buzz for your video. You’ve probably seen this technique used by tech companies leading up to a new product launch.

For example, below is the teaser video Samsung used to introduce the new Galaxy phones. They shared this video on social media up until the launch, then published the full video on sites like YouTube, Facebook, and traditional TV advertising.

Granted, this sort of teaser can be more work, but the results might be worth it.

With these four tips, you can be sure that your next video will shine no matter which social platform you publish it on. If you have any more tips for shooting for social, let us know in the comments below.

The post Four Secrets to Optimizing Video for Social Sharing appeared first on SproutVideo.

In this blog, we will be discussing the differences between polished videos and off-the-cuff videos. We’ll look at how we define both styles of video, the pros and cons of each, and explain why you might choose one over the other.

What’s the Difference?

In this video, Ikey Ajavon, a marketing content strategist at SproutVideo, breaks down the distinctions between off-the-cuff videos and polished productions. Learn the benefits and drawbacks of each, as well as what’s required to make your own.

What is a Polished Video?

Most people are already familiar with polished videos. For many companies, this is the only type of video they produce. And for good reason – they have a very professional look and feel, and can be used in many different ways.

For instance, polished videos are perfect for advertising and marketing videos, demo and explainer videos, in-depth interviews, branded shows, and more. You can share such videos in advertising campaigns, on your website or blog, or post them to social media.

Pros and Cons of Polished Videos

There are plenty of benefits when it comes to polished videos. They are generally reusable, they can be shared almost anywhere, and they ensure you will get that professional look. Investing in your video production can also pay dividends in terms of viewer engagement and brand-building.

Of course, there are some drawbacks. These videos are usually very time-consuming, expensive, and require a lot of planning to produce. If you don’t have a reasonable budget or plenty of lead time, polished videos are likely out of the question.

How to Make Polished Videos

For this type of production, you’ll need a few key components to get the best results. First, you’ll need a script, actors, and probably a location for your shoot. Depending on the video, you’ll also need props, lights, and microphones. Next, you’ll want to ensure you have the right camera for the job.

We recommend using a DSLR or mirrorless camera at the very least. A camcorder or cinema rig will ensure even better quality if you have one. For more on picking the right camera for your project, check out our comparison of the real world features that matter for different cameras.

If you have an in-house marketing or video team, they might be able to produce this type of video. Otherwise, you’ll need to hire a video production company. The level of technical expertise involved usually requires the assistance of video professionals with hands-on experience.

For post-production, if you’re handling it in-house, we recommend using industry-standard tools such as Premiere Pro, After Effects, DaVinci Resolve, Audition, and other applications to ensure the final product is top-notch. If you’re working with a production company, they should be using professional video editing software.

Why Make Polished Videos?

So, why would you go through all this “trouble” for a polished video? As mentioned earlier, this type of video will last for a long time and can be used for multiple situations. They also reflect well on the quality of your company or product.

In some regards, polished videos also feel like a safer option. They scripted and heavily produced. You’ll have plenty of chances to correct any issues before the video is shared.

In certain cases, your video needs to be polished to get the look you desire, such as with multi-camera interviews. When working with more than one camera, the footage really needs to match, or the result will feel disjointed and be very distracting for viewers.

Due to the complexities of operating multiple cameras at the same time, you can’t shortchange the production. In cases like this, it’s best to plan on a higher quality production from the get-go to ensure the final result turns out the way you want.

What is an Off-the-Cuff Video?

Off-the-cuff videos are essentially the opposite of polished videos. They generally require much less planning, far fewer resources, and are much faster to produce than polished videos.

Anyone can produce this type of video, and it’s everywhere online. While many brands are still wary of testing this format, it’s becoming more and more commonplace to see major companies producing and sharing off-the-cuff videos.

Examples of off-the-cuff videos include short interviews, timely updates, or social media-specific videos like Instagram stories. You mainly see this style of video on social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Pros and Cons of Off-the-Cuff Videos

Off-the-cuff videos are quick to plan, simple to produce, inexpensive, and easy to share. They’re an important part of most companies’ marketing strategy since they feel authentic and help forge connections with viewers.

However, just like polished videos, off-the-cuff videos have their weaknesses. With limited control over production, and lower quality overall, off-the-cuff videos aren’t always appropriate for every type of video.

As a result, they have a shorter shelf-life. They aren’t as evergreen as polished videos, and are unlikely to have much value over the long run.

How to Make Off-the-Cuff Videos

Creating an off-the-cuff video is very straightforward. You won’t need actors or outside companies to produce it. Your marketing team (or anyone in your office who is willing to be on camera) should be able to handle the entire process.

The overall look you’re going for is much more casual than with a polished video. Natural light sources and everyday hair and makeup are perfectly appropriate for these types of shoots. Of course, it never hurts to wear a clean shirt.

For recording off-the-cuff videos, any relatively new smartphone will be just fine. If you have a point-and-shoot, DSLR, or mirrorless camera, any of those options would work even better than a smartphone, and elevate the quality.

The last step is post-production. Depending on the video, you might not need to edit anything at all.

If you need light editing, there are lots of apps in the App Store or Google Play store that allow you to edit efficiently right on your phone. Apps like iMovie, InShot, Splice and more are an excellent place to start. If you would like to edit on a computer, we’d suggest using Adobe Rush, which is a scaled-down version of Premiere Pro with an accompanying mobile app.

Why Bother With Off-The-Cuff Video?

You might be thinking, why would I sacrifice the quality of a polished video for an off-the-cuff video? Well, these videos can foster a strong feeling of authenticity for the viewer specifically because they look and feel less produced than a polished video. They read as much more personal than a typical marketing video.

As a result, they are particularly well-suited for timely or live updates from an event or product launch, or for creating interesting behind-the-scenes content. Any time you need to quickly get the word out to your audience, an off-the-cuff video is likely the way to go.

They also allow for a much more casual approach to your content. They don’t have to be perfect or replicable – in fact, that’s the entire point.

It really is the more the merrier when it comes to off-the-cuff video. Since each individual video has a short shelf-life, producing them on a frequent basis is key to success with this style of video. That way, you can build an engaged audience over time.

Best of Both Worlds?

We think there is one type of video that works well in both categories: internal communications. For company updates that happen on a recurring basis, we’d suggest keeping it off-the-cuff, low-cost and quick. Examples include quarterly sales results or a welcome video from the CEO for new hires.

Basically, you want those videos to feel as personal and real as possible, and they inherently require a quick turnaround time. Those factors make off-the-cuff videos the right choice.

On the other hand, if your company is expanding rapidly and the training material won’t be changing in the near future, it might be worth the time and effort to produce a polished video to give new hires the best first impression. Similarly, a year-end company performance review might be worth spending more time and effort on.

When deciding which direction to take for your internal communications videos, consider the intended shelf-life of the video, the audience, and the time and resources available to you.

Whether you’re producing more polished content, sticking with off-the-cuff videos, or a combination of both, we’d love to hear how you’re implementing video to improve your business. Let us know in the comments below.

The post When is an Off-the-Cuff Video Okay? appeared first on SproutVideo.

What if we told you there was a way to get your customers to tell you exactly what type of videos they wanted to see? Luckily, this isn’t as difficult as it sounds. Through social listening, you can get great insights into how to improve your video marketing strategy.

In this blog, we’ll cover the differences between social media monitoring and social listening, and how you can use the latter to strengthen your video marketing strategy.

Social Media Monitoring vs Social Listening

Social media is the perfect way to communicate with your customers. Equally important, it lets your customers communicate with you. This is where social media monitoring usually comes into play.

Social media monitoring is the process of tracking and responding to what is being said about or directly to your brand. Typically, you’d want to track when customers mention your company, speak directly to your company, or even keywords and phrases surrounding your company, industry, and competitors.

The goal of social media monitoring is simple. You’ll know exactly when you have been mentioned, and can respond quickly with a simple message to acknowledge that customer, keeping them happy and engaged.

The types of interactions range quite a bit, but are narrowly focused on your company, brand, and products. For instance, sometimes you might be communicating with dissatisfied customers, answering questions about your services, or responding to praise.

Social Listening

Social listening is just as it sounds: listening to conversations relevant to your brand and industry. The scope is much larger than the narrow back-and-forth exchanges typical of social media monitoring.

Awario, a company that provides tools for social listening, says it best here:

“While with monitoring you observe, collect, and get involved in individual conversations, social listening considers how your company, your products, your representatives, competitors, and markets are discussed on the whole. As opposed to interacting with separate conversations, you interact with large amounts of social data and analyze it to gain valuable insights into customers’ perception of your company, competitors, social events and so on.”

Basically, social media monitoring is performed as a micro activity, where you respond to individuals directly, while social listening is a macro activity. It’s more akin to trend analysis than anything else.

For example, comprehensive social listening incorporates direct brand or product mentions, as well as your industry, competitors, and topics your target audience engages with. It also includes the sentiments, language, and cultural cues embedded in the tweets and posts your audience shares online.

How to Monitor and Listen

You can easily monitor your social media the old-fashioned way by going to each platform, checking your mentions, and searching for any specific keywords relevant to your brand.

However, a monitoring tool can greatly simplify the process. These tools put all your mentions and tracked keywords in one place so you or your team can respond to messages more efficiently. This will save time and reduce the chance of missing a mention.

You can use HubSpot, SproutSocial, Awario, Hootsuite, or one of the many dedicated social monitoring platforms. Most of these tools double as social listening tools as well.

Requirements for Social Listening

Social listening isn’t the same as monitoring. You’re not just looking for mentions of your trademark, after all. Still, as explained above, you might be able to use the same tools.

Research keywords, hashtags, topics, and influencers relevant to your brand. In addition to tracking your direct interactions online, you’re looking to compile data on the conversations taking place in these broader areas online.

For example, you might notice that as the holiday season kicks into gear, more of your followers are sharing content related to baking, travel, and family gatherings. Meanwhile, their general sentiment might shift from feeling relaxed over the summer, to a little more stressed as daily life gets busier.

Ideally, you’ll pick up on trends and insights much more specific to your niche. By performing this exercise on an ongoing basis, you’ll be able to dissect seasonality and understand how things change over time.

Using Social Listening to Improve Your Video Strategy

Now for the fun part – using all that information and analysis to improve your video marketing strategy. First, make reviewing the insights from your social listening practices an integral part of your content planning process.

Instead of pulling ideas from thin air, look at the data to understand what people are sharing and engaging with online. Identify relevant takeaways for your brand, and any opportunities to add value to the conversation. Pay particular attention to the vocabulary, hashtags, emojis and other cultural cues included in what’s being shared.

Finding New Opportunities

You should literally give the people what they’re asking for. Using the lessons learned from your social listening, ideate new video campaigns relevant to your target audience.

Leveraging Positive Feedback

For example, if you noticed lots of positive feedback after a new product launch, double down on it and create videos promoting and highlighting the aspects people most enjoy about your product or service. You’re already receiving positive feedback from a large number of people, so it’s likely this content will resonate too.

Another simple idea is to check how people react to the videos you’re already creating to see what’s working. Using your audience’s reaction as a gauge of success is especially helpful when your team is experimenting with new video styles or series.

For instance, you could use SproutVideo’s engagement metrics to understand whether viewers are watching, rewatching, or skipping parts of your video. That way, you’ll know if viewers are really watching your content, or if they found part of it particularly interesting.

Take care to use similar language as your happy customers. When coming up with a script, describe the features and benefits in the same wording as your audience used. By framing your messaging in this manner, it’s more likely to strike a chord with new prospects.

Leveraging Less Positive Feedback

For other types of feedback, this is your chance to address it on a larger scale. You’ve already answered these customers individually while monitoring social media. Take it a step further to create videos surrounding common issues that a number of people are having.

This might range from frequently asked questions, to disgruntled customers that aren’t happy with your product or service. For the former, you could create a video series to address questions that multiple people have asked. It’s easy content to create, and if some people are asking, there’s a good chance others might be thinking the same thing.

For customers that weren’t happy with the product or service, we’d suggest cataloging that data. Then, when you come out with new features that might satisfy them, create a video to announce it. You may even want to go so far as to acknowledge the issues this latest release will solve. This is a great way to show unhappy customers they are being heard.

Going Beyond Your Own Brand

There are many other ways to find inspiration based on the insights you garner from social listening. Look at competitors, adjacent brands, or even brands outside of your industry with appealing videos that you admire. Looking at their best-performing and worst-performing content can provide valuable takeaways for your own videos.

Lastly, taking note of what your customers are saying outside of your brand can also inform some smart video decisions. Pop culture, current events, social causes, and more can all serve as a catalyst for improving and creating new content. The key is to identify the topics your audience actually cares about and engages with online.

This approach will likely lead you into new content areas you previously were not addressing. You’ll reach new audiences and capture more viewer attention by factoring these trends into your video marketing strategy.

For example, SproutVideo learned our audience loves to share video how-to’s, gear tutorials, and best practices for producing video content through active social listening. We developed our How To Video series to address those specific topics in our own way. That series now consistently drives strong engagement in our email marketing and on social media. It also attracts many new visitors to our blog through SEO.

Being a Good Listener is its Own Reward

Basically, this will help you get to know your audience better across the board. The better you know your audience, the more likely you’ll be able to make content that resonates with them.

Using social listening can lead to an abundance of content that could fill your content calendar for months. All you have to do is listen to find out what the people want.

We’d love to hear how you’re planning on using social listening to improve your video strategy. Let us know in the comments below.

The post How Social Listening Can Inform Your Video Marketing Strategy appeared first on SproutVideo.

Before things get out of hand, you need to start engaging with your customers in a helpful and meaningful way. That’s where video comes in.

Video can be a powerful tool to respond to your audience in a time of crisis. However, there are several keys to getting it right. From employing empathy, to adding value, and showing rather than telling, here’s our guide to fighting fires with online video.

Why It Works

Compared to other mediums, video allows you to convey more emotions more effectively. People can see and hear how you deliver your message. That’s particularly powerful when empathy really counts.

For instance, it’s one thing to write, “We are sorry for this issue.” It’s quite another to record a short video to a customer apologizing to them directly. It feels more personal, because it is.

Written responses, although concise and easier to produce, tend to feel scripted and automated. This can leave your online community feeling like they’ve been given a “stock response” rather than a genuine interaction.

In this case, it’s ok if the video isn’t totally polished. It’s ok if the camera angle is a little off. What’s most important is that you really mean what you say.

It’s unexpected.

Although nearly all companies leverage video for marketing, far fewer use it as a tool for addressing customer problems or concerns. Video responses will help your brand stand out. If done strategically and authentically, you will surprise and delight your audience.

It’s responsive & timely.

Speedy customer responses show you’re listening and eager to engage with your online community. If you’re able to share authentic and professional video replies quickly and efficiently, you might even be able to get ahead of the game.

Chances are, others are skimming the complaints, but not reading your replies to each one. Video stands out and helps draw attention to your message. People are more likely to be impressed by your attention to issues and your dedication to helping individuals.

When You Should Use It

It’s true that you don’t always need to make a video in response to every customer issue. You’d be overwhelmed, and customers would disengage.

In order to keep the video responses feeling authentic, it’s important to pick and choose the perfect situations to use them. Before you hit record, ask yourself, “How does this add value to the viewer?”

Your video should provide information that can’t be easily conveyed with the written word. It should show, and not just tell, the story of what went wrong, and how you’re going to fix it. It should leave the viewer feeling positive, friendly, and upbeat, even if things are not going well currently.

Here are some general situations where you might find video is your best not-so-secret weapon.

As a PR crisis tool.

Some things are unpredictable. Mistakes happen, and problems can occur with the services or goods your company is providing.

Whether it is out of your control or a genuine error doesn’t really matter. The key is that your customers are very unhappy.

Producing a video response is a succinct and professional way of delivering a useful explanation for the problem, and your plan of action to solve it. You may still want to cite specific complaints in order to address them individually, and be sure to provide honest and genuine apologies for the disrupted service.

As a thank you.

Not all fires are bad. Sometimes, positive messages about your company or brand spread rapidly online, and you need to jump in and participate in the conversation.

For instance, short, snappy video content can be an effective way to respond to social media posts. Perhaps an online personality or influencer has mentioned your products or services. A video response from your brand can tap into the excitement, and help engage their followers.

You could even use the video to encourage the influencer to be in touch via direct message. That way, you can send them some free swag, or discuss sponsorships, giveaways, or even affiliate programs they might be interested in.

Of course, not only the “internet famous” will be talking about your products. All platforms allow for consumers to post their own thoughts and experiences.

If you spot someone using your products in a novel or interesting way, make a short video to engage with them. All you need is a quick video to say “Hey, ABC, that’s awesome! Thanks for sharing!”

This type of video will help fuel the excitement and discussion, and increase the community’s engagement with your brand. Bonus points if your video features someone from the company they’ll recognize – like the CEO or an employee with name recognition in the community.

As a mode of clarification.

See some confusion or disagreement in a lengthy online discussion? Jump in with a quick and clear video to clarify the details and thank everyone for being part of such a passionate community. It is especially important to make sure that the video is first and foremost appreciative of the community, and isn’t singling anyone out. Just make sure your intervention helps to quell the fire, not fuel it!

This could also be used as an opportunity to quickly demonstrate a product if the confusion lies in how to best use it. Or, suggest alternative uses of the product. This is then not only an effective response, but a resource your customers can return to again and again for information.

Where to Use It

The best place to leverage video really depends on where your audience is most active, and your goal for sharing your video. You may even find a multi-pronged approach is necessary.

For example, if your audience is primarily posting about you on social media, quick video responses to individuals might be merited. Or, you can leverage tools specific to each platform, like Instagram’s question feature, or Facebook’s live streaming.

However, if you’re facing a larger crisis, your company blog might be the best place to release a more in-depth video. Then, use social media posts to direct traffic to your blog to ensure it reaches the right people.

Using the Power of Video Successfully

Different circumstances require different approaches to the video content being deployed. Here’s a breakdown of how to create several types of videos that you may need to fight fires online.

Short, snappy response style:

If you’re looking to post a quick response, whether on Twitter, Instagram, or your company blog, you don’t need much. Just find an interesting backdrop and (if you’re not doing the talking yourself) someone happy and willing to chat into a camera.

For this, production time is likely to be mere seconds. As for equipment, all you need is a phone or tablet with a front-facing camera, and a smile.

Try not to be too scripted or repetitive. However, writing out key points to cover will help ensure you don’t leave anything out.

Also, accuracy is key. You only have a few seconds, so be sure everything you are saying will help solve problems for your customers, and won’t cause any additional headaches.

Gary Vee: Valuable audience engagement

For an illustrative example of this type of video, meet Gary Vaynerchuck (@GaryVee). He’s a notorious online personality and entrepreneur. He is best known for his work in digital marketing and social media, and has published five books about entrepreneurship and social media strategy.

Gary Vee also chronicles his life on his YouTube channel with a massive 1.5 million subscribers. Whether you love him or hate him, he knows how to create an audience and keep them interested, so it’s worth paying attention.

How he’s using video

Gary Vee has been using video to respond to individual members of his community since Twitter introduced the option to post short videos around four years ago. In a blog post titled “Why Twitter’s new video feature matters for engagement, not just content,” he details the ways in which he uses Twitter videos to respond to his audience, and why these interactions are valuable. A video, for instance, is much more visual and personal without adding too much more time or effort on his part.

“It takes me nine to twelve seconds to make a video and reply, but those extra seconds hold a lot of meaning.”

These interactions are invaluable to us as the audience. It feels exciting when a celebrity, company, or influencer we admire likes a Tweet or responds to a comment we’ve posted.

To receive a video with that person speaking directly to us is much more intimate and direct. As a result, the individual has a more authentic and memorable interaction and comes away with a positive association. In comparison, a quick text response can be easily misconstrued.

Larger-scale, professional video:

For larger projects (perhaps PR apologies or big-gesture thank you’s) it might be wise to spend more time planning and scripting so that nothing important gets left out along the way.

• Try storyboarding the video so you know what needs to be shot and you or your editor has a guide to follow in post-production. This way, you can assess details such as shooting locations and projected run-time before the cameras start rolling. We have a useful guide about how and why you should storyboard videos that you can check out here.
• Script the video. This is particularly vital if you’re using video to apologize during a PR crisis. Scripting helps ensure nothing gets omitted or potentially misunderstood.
• Cast the video. You needn’t hold full-scale auditions, but it’s important to make sure your audience is seeing someone relatable. They’ll be much more likely to listen and respond. For apology-type videos, it would be suitable to have the CEO, or someone of similar status, so the community understands the video is serious and genuine. For something more lighthearted, you can be more creative.
• Go for a little more polish. You don’t need to put on a full Hollywood production. Make sure the lighting is flattering, the audio is clear, and the backdrop isn’t too busy. Keep it simple, and focus on your message.

Using video to respond to your customers and online community is a thoughtful and often unexpected form of engagement. When done well, it’s sure to leave a lasting positive impression for the individual. Whether to answer quick-fire questions, or to make a formal announcement or apology, a well-produced video will help you impress your consumers, and stand out against competitors online!

The post Firefighting: How to Use Video to Respond Quickly Online appeared first on SproutVideo.

Rather, you have to take into account a wide range of elements. From lighting to hyperlinks, special guests to authenticity, here’s a checklist of things all vloggers need to get right.

1. Rambling.

Consider what you want to say before appearing on camera. Learn the art of storytelling with The Secrets of Storytelling: 11 Ingredients for Better Videos.

2. Imitating your favorite vloggers.

There’s probably a long list of vloggers who have influenced you. But, coming up with your own content and style is by far the best homage you can pay to them. Be true to yourself and what you’re interested in, and you might just end up being someone else’s vlogging hero!

3. Failing to interact with your audience.

This doesn’t mean responding to each and every comment made by viewers, but from time to time it’s good manners to engage with feedback. Plus, it makes you more relatable. It’s win win!

4. Not being true to yourself.

If you try to assume a persona, your audience will know. The reason you started vlogging is because you have something to say, so focus on the message and your personality will shine through. The Best Way to Make Authentic Videos has lots of tips you won’t want to miss.

5. Inviting the wrong special guests.

These are guests who don’t have a message that your audience will be interested in. For example, if you’re a beauty vlogger, your best friend who’s a bug expert won’t have anything to say that’s of real value to them.

Super-vlogger Cassey Ho, who vlogs at Blogilates, understood the anxieties of her viewers and invited the ultra-talented musician and dancer Lindsey Stirling to make this vlog:

6. Not making time to set goals.

Decide what you want to achieve from vlogging and how you’re going to achieve it. A certain number of views? Becoming an influencer? Working with brands? Set milestones and deadlines to see if your content is achieving this.

7. Forgetting to include a CTA.

What should viewers do after watching your video? You could ask them to share it, signup for notifications of new posts, subscribe to a newsletter, or follow your brand on social media.

Whatever you ask them to do, make it as easy as possible for viewers to do it by linking to the relevant page right after your video concludes. Here’s how to include links in a post play screen using SproutVideo.

8. Following trends just to get views.

Unless you’re first to market with a breaking story or a really unique take, you’re unlikely to get traction. A wiser approach is to consistently make videos about topics you’re truly interested in. You’re more likely to attract a strong core audience.

Likewise, if everyone else is using a particular editing technique or special effect, ask yourself if this will add to your brand.

9. Negativity.

People want to be uplifted by video content. Vlogger Grace F. Victory creates hugely popular content that leaves viewers inspired and confident:

10. Poor lighting.

Because what’s the point if viewers can’t see you properly? Everything you need to know about lighting is in Video Production 101: Lighting.

11. Making long videos.

How long is too long? There’s no definitive answer, but evidence does show that people’s attention spans are decreasing – the average human attention span is now just eight seconds.

If you’re just starting out, we recommend making vlogs of a variety of lengths. Spend some time with your platform’s video engagement metrics and see how long most of your audience watch.

That analysis will give you the duration that is most appropriate for your viewer demographic. It’s possible it could vary by topic as well.

Our post Stop Right There! 11 Easy Ways to Grab Your Viewers’ Attention has some great pointers for engaging your audience from the outset.

12. Inconsistent posting.

If you’re going to be absent for a while, let your viewers know. Otherwise, they might assume you’re no longer vlogging and lose interest in your content.

13. Not making a vlogging plan.

This relates to the point above. Work out how many videos per month you realistically have time to make, then try your best to adhere to it. Have an idea of the content you want to cover on a monthly basis, leaving plenty of flexibility to address relevant topics when they crop up.

14. No social media plan.

Publicize new and older content on all relevant social media platforms. Don’t be shy about promoting videos that have been made some time ago, just be sure they are consistent with your brand.

15. Worrying about having the right tech.

You really don’t need to spend much to make great vlogs, we promise! Everything you need to know is in our post 6 Hacks for Making Great Video on a Tiny Budget.

The best vloggers are the ones who make it look easy, as if they’ve just turned on the camera and talked about what’s on their mind. But, it takes a lot of time and practice to make it look so effortless. Laying the groundwork with a vlogging plan, a solid understanding of your audience demographic, and great lighting will help to build your vlogging reputation.

Are you a vlogger? Share your top tips on making video with the SproutVideo community! We’d love to hear from you on Facebook or Twitter.

The post 15 Mistakes Vloggers Can’t Afford to Make appeared first on SproutVideo.

In this post, we share actionable tips on producing great content for the silent screen. We’ll take a look at the very best silent videos online and discuss how the brands got it right.

Soundless video: hurdle or opportunity?

As marketers, creativity is in our blood. That’s lucky, because when it comes to video making, there can be lots of hurdles to achieving great engagement. One of these hurdles arises from many viewers’ preference for silent video.

Rather than regarding silence as an obstacle, consider it an opportunity to showcase your video making skills. Thanks to the absence of distracting music, the audience won’t just be focusing more on your message. They will also be paying closer attention to the shots you choose, every expression made by the actors, and even Easter eggs you’ve hidden throughout the videos!

Soundless video is a means of communicating with viewers whose first language is different to your own. This is especially useful for organizations who are marketing in different territories. There’s no need to make videos in another language – just make it silent (and of course, ensure it’s culturally relevant and appropriate).

Top 10 Tips for Making Soundless Video

1. In the planning phase, distill your key message into visual elements.
2. Emotive storylines will help to hold viewers’ attention. We share our expertise in narrative in The Secret of Storytelling: 11 Ingredients for Better Videos.
3. People are interested in people, so start your videos with lifestyle shots featuring your product or service. We recommend checking out Anatomy of a Killer Establishing Shot if you want to get to grips with what makes an opening shot truly great.
4. A vivid background can grab viewers’ attention. If you’re interested in learning about proper set design, our post Setting the Stage for Your Video is a must-read!
5. Experiment with different editing techniques to spark interest.
6. Use graphics.
7. Captions are important, but should not compete with visual imagery. Don’t rely on the captions to tell the story. We explain exactly how to add captions using SproutVideo here.
8. Avoid using talking heads – this would require too much text.
9. You’ll have to be ruthless when you’re editing. If it doesn’t enhance the story, delete it!
10. Use split testing to boost comprehension, engagement and brand recall. How to Maximize Engagement by A/B Testing Videos has lots of helpful advice.

Our Favorite Soundless Videos

We challenge you to watch these videos with the volume muted. In this way, you’ll appreciate the methods used by the brands to make them engaging.

Huggies: Hug the Mess – Glitter

Thanks to the complete absence of dialogue, the need for captions has been removed. The visuals are bright and appealing, and who could fail to be charmed by the mischievous flying creatures!

Tasty: Four Ways series

The Tasty videos are instantly eye-catching thanks to their bright colors and use of hyperlapse style. There’s no preamble – they launch straight into cooking and deliver the facts quickly. Captions are minimal, so they don’t distract from the visuals.

Hotels.com: Silent Ad

A brave choice – it takes a gutsy marketing team to make a video that sets out to annoy its audience (watch this with the sound on and you’ll see what we mean)! This video hooks viewers by embracing silence rather than trying to work around it.

Mode: 100 Years of Fashion campaign

An engaging soundless video doesn’t have to be complex or packed with special effects.  This video has a simple backdrop and an uncomplicated, engaging story. If budget is a concern for your organization, spend some time watching this campaign for inspiration, then get filming!

Conclusion

With so many people choosing to mute videos, every video you make should speak for itself. The visuals must tell the story quickly, drawing viewers in with eye-catching production techniques and a simple storyline. Appeal to your viewers’ emotions with a storyline they can easily relate to. If captions are necessary, they should not distract from the visuals.

Whether you’re planning to upload your next video to your own website or social media (or both), consider how your audience will consume it. What’s the best combination of techniques to get your message across quickly and silently?

Share your favorite silent videos with the SproutVideo community on Facebook or Twitter!

The post How to Make the Perfect Soundless Video appeared first on SproutVideo.

What’s important is a thorough understanding of your target audience, a willingness to do something different when it comes to video, and a good network of ambassadors. Today, we’re looking at three brands outperforming their competition to see exactly what they do with video.

Red Bull

In the days before video was a must on every marketers’ to do list, Red Bull were were already video heroes. Remember Felix Baumgartner’s breathtaking free fall from space?

At the time of writing, this video had almost 42 million views on YouTube. Enviable engagement for any organization, but Red Bull capitalized further on the event by making yet another amazing video. In addition to allowing viewers to watch the supersonic free fall live, they also showed a video of the skydive from Baumgartner’s chest-mounted camera:

Events take so much time, money and energy to organize, it makes perfect sense to maximize the exposure they give your brand. Capturing the main attraction is the obvious step to take, but think of this as a starting point.

Use the event as an occasion to interview employees, exhibitors, sponsors and speakers, and get humorous behind the scenes footage. You can even use them to build up your library of b-roll. Our post 25 Cool Places and Spaces to Shoot B-Roll will get your creative juices flowing.

Dove

Is there anyone who hasn’t seen the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty? I doubt it!

There’s a reason why this campaign has become not just globally popular, but synonymous with the brand. It’s about the message rather the the product. The team behind it focused on their mission – celebrating their customers’ real beauty – rather than trying to sell them products.

Of the 13 million viewers who watched the Dove video above, how many do you think felt empowered after viewing it? Most of them, I’d say. Dove have realized that connecting positively with customers through video is a great way to build brand affinity.

An effective video might be one that makes your viewers feel good about themselves – like the example from Dove. Or, it might encourage them to use their skills or good fortune to help others (a technique used by many non-profits). The important point to take away from Dove is that a real, meaningful conversation with your audience is worth far, far more than a pushy hard sell.

GoPro

GoPro are the kings of user generated content. It’s the most obvious – not to mention cost-effective – type of content for this brand. It gets their target market actively involved, and shows off the product’s functionality.

Have you tried reaching out to your audience and asking them to contribute videos? User generated videos provide a new, impartial, voice for your brand. They’re an opportunity to build trust with your target market.

But, the video that GoPro is best known for has nothing to do with high adrenaline sports:

With almost 35 million views on YouTube, this video’s success is about more than a cute kitten. It tells a compelling story, cleverly integrating the product. With this video, GoPro reached out to viewers who up to this point had been outside their typical demographic. It was a brave move, but that’s something every brand has to consider in order to grow.

If you find that you’re repeatedly making the same type of video, take some time out from the production process. Reconsider your brand’s goals (particularly with regard to connecting with new customers) and how your video marketing strategy can help reach them.

Conclusion

We have a challenge for you. It’s one we’re pretty sure you’ll enjoy! Spend some time watching videos from your favorite brands (told you it was a good one!). See what you can learn from them:

• How have they built on this video campaign? (Competitions, calling for user generated content, follow-up content)
• How have they tried to connect with viewers? (Storytelling, emotive content, featuring real people)
• What have they done in this video that’s a bit different? (Pushing boundaries, thinking outside the box, unexpected perspective)

Who are your video marketing heroes? Share with us in the comments below.

The post Video Marketing Lessons from Red Bull, Dove and GoPro appeared first on SproutVideo.