In 2017, LinkedIn made the smart move to make it possible to upload native videos to the platform via its mobile app. Whilst most other social networks allowed for video to be embedded early on, LinkedIn didn’t see it as a necessity, as it is primarily a business network.
However, marketers are starting to see the benefits of using video to advertise their business and connect with others, and using video on your LinkedIn page is an excellent way for you to increase awareness of your business. According to research, LinkedIn users are more than 20 times more likely to share a video than any other type of post on the platform.
87% of video marketers agree that LinkedIn has been an effective marketing channel for them, and 2 out of 3 marketers say that they are intending to use video content on LinkedIn in 2020.
So what kinds of videos should you be producing for LinkedIn?
Presentations And Tutorials
LinkedIn is the perfect place for you to create and post presentations or tutorials to do with your business or industry. It remains close to your business’s purpose, so that you don’t feel as though you are breaking away from your business persona, and your audience will naturally be interested parties who are far more likely to share the content.
To create these, just set up a screencast, which is just a video recording of your computer screen, overlaid with your own audio narration talking the viewer through a task step by step. You can write a script so that you don’t get lost, and all you need is screen recording software and a microphone and you’re good to go!
For those who are inexperienced when it comes to creating video, don’t have a big budget or are camera shy, this is the very best way to get started with creating business-based video.
Give Your Brand Personality
LinkedIn fills a gap between your professional and social face, as a business network that allows you to connect with others and build on already established business relationships. It is here that you have the opportunity to break away a little from formality and give interested parties an idea of who you are, the person behind the brand.
Perhaps you could create a video which shares the story of your business, why you got started or what your goals are. People will get to see you and listen to you talk with passion about your company, giving it a human side.
Share Customer Testimonials
Social proof is the lifeblood of business, potentially even more important than a great business plan or huge financial backing. If people like you then other people will trust you and be more likely to get involved with your brand. A video which features real people talking frankly about their experiences with your business offers one of the most convincing forms of social proof possible, drawing attention better than plain text and giving potential customers the chance to see who they are joining.
You can also save time and money on video production for testimonials, as people tend to trust unrehearsed and unpolished video testimonials far better than overly flashy ones. The best way to gather these is to reach out to your existing customers and offer them a discount, freebie or other incentive to send in a video testimonial of your product. Most people will be happy to, and then all you have to do is cut these videos together.
Tips For Sharing Video On LinkedIn
Sadly it is not as simple as creating a video, posting it on your page and then waiting for the business to roll in. Whilst LinkedIn’s algorithm does favour video content over other forms of post, you still need to be savvy about how and when you post to make sure that your content gets the attention it deserves.
Optimise For Mobile
According to statistics, 57% of all engagement on LinkedIn is via mobile. This makes sense as the majority of internet use overall is on mobile today, with people tending to check their social networks when they are on the move rather than when sat in front of a desktop. This means that, just as you have to optimise all of your websites and content for mobile, you’ll have to do this for your video content as well.
To do this, you need to use the correct format, which will be a high-quality video that can be orientated to fit smaller screens. Choose an aspect ratio between 1:2.4 and 2.4:1, and make sure that the video is less than 5GB. If possible your video should be as small a file size as possible, as even at 5GB LinkedIn may struggle to load the video. It is also important to add subtitles, so that people can watch the video silently in public.
Keep It Short
With more and more content vying for our attention, the average internet user’s attention span is getting smaller and smaller. According to research from 2017, the average video length on social networks was 3 minutes and 48 seconds, of which just 10 seconds of content was actually watched.
Bear this in mind when you create your video. The longer you take to get to your point, the less chance there is of anyone still being there when you finally do. It is far better to create 5 short, snappy and intriguing videos than to try to cover everything in one lengthy one.
Try to get to your point within 6 seconds of video, and then make sure that your script and visuals are bold and intriguing, so that users want to stick around until the end.
Link Your Video Everywhere
Once your video is created you will need to promote it as much as you can. One of the best things about how many social networks there are now is that, as a business, you can link to a single post from a variety of different platforms, helping to build your audience without having to create several separate pieces of content.
Not only can you link to your video from other social networks, you can also link to your video from elsewhere on LinkedIn. If you post something relevant or related somewhere else on the platform, drop a link to your video to go along with it.
To find out more on how to create your own video please contact Maxweb today on 0151 652 4777 or email info@maxwebsolutions.co.uk to see how we can help you.
Posted on Friday, March 13th, 2020 in Social Media.
