3 tips for creating your first social media video

With video content being one of the most powerful marketing tools of the 20th century, the pressure is on for businesses to create interesting and engaging video content for social media.

What it's like for a beginner:

As the manager at The Hive Wakefield, it is currently my job to drive our social content to promote our fabulous meeting rooms and coworking spaces. I would love all of our videos to be professionally produced and edited by our sister company, PAB Studios just like the one below, but the reality is that social media videos for Facebook and Instagram have a better impact when filmed "off the cuff" and in a more organic setting.

Thankfully, I have the luxury of a social media sidekick, Shannon from PAB Studios to help me create and manage our social media campaigns. I myself am no social media expert. Being able to collaborate with others to create content and assist with the filming makes the task much easier.

With the knowledge that video is more engaging than text and images, we decided to deliver our recent October Offers by video. The idea being, that I would speak about the offers, and Shannon would film the video on her iPhone. Iphones are one of the most used devices for filming video content in 2021 due to their advanced technology and quality cameras.

How we did it...

Following a little bit of amateur editing via Inshot, we would share the final edit across our social platforms. Easy, right...? If you want a laugh, see how I got on filming our videos in this blooper reel...

Creating videos to promote your business via social media doesn't have to be complex or overly professional. Ok, granted, the first few times you record yourself speaking, you will likely feel as awkward as Theresa May walking on stage dancing to Abba. These initial recordings may not be as seamless and relaxed as you may hope, however, after a few attempts, it will get easier and in time, you will come across much more natural.

Here are my 3 top tips for creating your first social media video:

1. Know your message - before speaking on camera, write down the message you want to get across, as succinctly as possible, the what, where, how, and why. Knowing what you want to say will prevent you from waffling and going off-topic.

2. Look directly into the lens - Filming a video whilst looking at yourself is a one-way ticket on the train of lost thought. If you speak directly to the lens, this creates the appearance you are speaking directly with your audience and will help you remain more focused on the message you want to get across.

3. Edit the video - If you're like me and prone to waffling and going off-topic, then using an editing app will be a life-saver! You don't have to be a tech whizz as these apps are really simple to use. This will allow you to trim and snip parts of the video and add annotations such as text and stickers. I prefer Inshot as it is free and easy to use.

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