Branded Buzz: Video Tips For Social Media
Big brands understand how important social media video marketing is, but local advertisers should also take advantage of this massive audience found on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.
Recently, April Pilolli, technology director at the Knight LMA BloomLab, who has vast experience understanding what performs well on social media, joined the Branded Content Project's Video Bootcamp to give advice to local media outlets hoping to monetize on the proliferation of social media videos.
"When we're thinking about creating content, we really want to create quality content, rather than just creating as much of it as possible," Pilolli said. "What's really important, is how do we make this work? You have eight seconds to capture people's attention."
With such a massive amount of messages we are seeing online (4,000-10,000 advertising messages a day!), attention spans have shrunk, and advertisers need to be aware of what will resonate with consumers. Not only that, but according to Pilolli, 45 percent of content is never seen.
Entertaining people and making them smile with humor is one sure-fire way to get attention. So is using short-form vertical videos. Social media networks have made things easier for advertisers by including interactive features like polls, fill-in-the-blank, Q&As and quizzes. By adding these features, you'll get about 30 percent more ad recall.
"When you're creating in this space you want to relate to your audience. People want to follow people who have influence, who have opinions and really create content that they can understand and engage with. Let people into the conversation, let them engage. Do something that is unexpected," she said.
Pilolli recommends referencing the acronym REELS before each social media video is created.
Relate to your audience
Express your perspective
Engage in the conversation
Let go of your fears
Surprise people
Whatever social media video strategy you come up with for your local advertisers, make it consistent. She also says if you aren't sure which social platform to start with, to try Meta since it shares ownership of Facebook and Instagram. But don't sleep on TikTok, which continues to grow, especially among Generation Z.
The Meta Branded Content Project is designed through a strategic partnership between the Local Media Association, the Local Media Consortium, and the Meta Journalism Project to help facilitate additional growth, engagement, and revenue success for more publishers of all shapes and sizes.