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The video age is upon us, my friends, and Michigan Creative wants to help make sure that your business is not falling behind.

Log-in to your Facebook account and start scrolling through the Newsfeed. If you’re like most people, as soon as you log on, you’re going to see numerous videos on vast topics ranging from food, politics, or the latest memes on your Timeline. You’re also likely to see a ton of branded content within those videos, and though they have no sound, they will use captions, large text, or the speaker symbol to try to get the viewer to click on the video so they may receive the full viewing experience with sound. Sound familiar?

Video is used just about everywhere on Social Media channels. In fact, it is estimated that by 2020, a total of 75% of mobile data will be video-based. 75%! Not only that, but in 2017 alone, around 500 million people watched videos every day. That’s just on Facebook! So many people are consuming videos, if your business does not have any videos yet, then you need to get some done quickly. Even if you don’t think your business needs video to succeed, there is a huge untapped market there for letting people get to know who you are as a business and what your story is. You might not be using videos, but your competitors likely are, which gives them an advantage over you. That is the purpose of videos in marketing.

Okay, you may say. I know I need video to tell my story, but how many should I make? Should my videos really be only 6 seconds long? If not, how long should these really last?

Great questions! To answer, the number of videos you make are based on how many services you offer and who your intended audience is. For example: On our social media, if we focused on our Digital Marketing promotional videos and none of our other services, then those who need our other services won’t know that we have them. However, if I were to post a video about our Video Editing capabilities, then the business who needs these services are going to be more interested and thus click on our ad. It was focused solely on what they need, and we focused our tracking on the demographic who matched our criteria of interested individuals. Look into what your business has to offer, narrow down all the key problems that your business solves, and run video ads that surround those solutions. It will definitely help!

As for the 6-second video, the answer is a resounding yes! With so many users (as high as 70%) just scrolling through their Facebook feeds for quick entertainment while they grab a break from the business of life, the shorter and more relevant the ad, the better. This does not mean you need to film a lot of content to make a short 6-second video every time. There are ads where it is a GIF of images pushing through the motions. That’s it, nice and simple, and the subtle movement helps lead the customer’s eye to it so they will have a higher chance of gaining interest and clicking on the ad. Take advantage of these short videos and make as many as needed for every service and demographic your business focuses on.

However, if you want to make longer videos because you feel like your company has a message that lasts over 6 seconds, I would highly suggest posting them later in the day, when people are winding down before bed. Run that longer promo. (Not too long. Maybe 30 seconds to a minute if you’re pushing it.) Have it run at a time where people will be able to have enough free time to watch the longer format videos, or save the link if they need your services later. Basically, make those one or two videos that are more descriptive and know when to post them. Traffic will come!

One extra tip to remember for video on social media: People are going to watch them without sound. It needs to be accepted. Add closed captions or make the video mostly text to draw the point of the video across. If you don’t, your video will likely be scrolled over, and not as many people will watch it. We are busy as a society, and quite frankly, not everyone in a crowded room wants to hear your awesome ad when they aren’t interested. Add text, and let the customer decide if they want to listen to it. It’s nicer for everyone involved.

Alright, now you are armed with knowledge on why you need to start making videos and what you should focus on while doing so. Ready to begin your video journey? Contact us today, and let’s work together in letting people know who you are as a business in a quick, resourceful, and simple way!