The “new wave” in digital has been alive and thriving for a handful of generations now. Not to knock the *Metaverse* (Jury’s still out on if Zuck’s digital playground will ever be widely adopted.), but Video is where it’s at, and its impact will only grow bigger in the future. Here are a few helpful strategies for social video content.
The hold that video has over consumers now is shown in a statement by Google VP, Prabhakar Raghavan – “In our studies, something like almost 40% of young people, when they’re looking for a place for lunch, they don’t go to Google Maps or Search. They go to TikTok or Instagram.”
This means that Google is facing competition on their own turf – search engines. When consumers are looking for product recommendations, reviews, first-hand knowledge, and real human takes, they overwhelmingly prefer video. One common trope is searching for a simple recipe on Google, only to have to scroll past some obscure blogger’s life story to get to the instructions. TikTok and video-first searches, in general, MUST grab your attention, doing so by focusing on the creation and experience of making the food. Distilling a wall of blog text into a humorous voice-over video in under a minute is heaven-sent for consumers.
Beyond making these pain points disappear, video gets us as close to the online consumer as possible. This allows content creators and brands to form para-social relationships with their viewers, fostering a high level of trust, which in turn gives consumers the power to make immediate purchasing decisions. From the mundane to the life-changing, the impact that video has cannot be understated.
Whether you are creating videos for TikTok, YouTube, or another social media platform, consider these five key strategies to help you create high-value content. The costs and time associated with creating video content make the pre-planning and reasoning behind the effort very important.
1) Discovery –
We are all used to hearing about viral TikTok products, recipes, “hacks” etc. Show your audience your industry-specific snippet of knowledge that you can share as an expert in your field. Or take them along with you as you show them product demos, results, experiences, or behind-the-scenes. The biggest goal here is to inspire new viewers to essentially ‘Discover’ you. The internet has, for better or worse, sped up the product life cycle, so being as timely as possible with new trends is important. Yes, even using that funny trending sound with your videos is important for helping you reach new eyes.
2) Algorithm-Specific Niches –
TikTok is one of the best at this, the ‘For You’ page is a tailored feed based on the types of content users engage with. This creates an ever-expanding map of what the app knows you will like, and uses that to branch out to new content niches and increases the more you use the app. Use your product or service category to your advantage by engaging with content creators in your niche, answering viewers’ questions directly through video, and showing off your brand’s expertise. The aim should be to become a welcome space for your community to join the conversation, as well as provide a low barrier to entry for people who know nothing about your brand.
3) Brand Humanization –
One of the biggest hurdles that brands are having to jump when it comes to creating valuable video content, is that they don’t have a real human to put in front of the camera. Some solutions to this are best shared through examples:
• Chipotle using another creator to show a “Chipotle Haul”
• Scrub Daddy using their product as its own character, and riffing off of #cleantok trends.
• Teen Vogue behind the scenes with cover models and green screen breakdowns of pop culture articles.
• Crocs pairing up with artists, athletes, and creators to show off their crocs.
• Our Place Pans creating content that focuses on a broader subject, sustainable foods, which makes content seem less sales-focused and more authentic.
4) Advertising Transparency –
When you are creating high-value content, you want to remain high-trust as well. Be transparent with your audience when you are advertising to them. It’s easy to become inauthentic and cold to a viewer if they feel that you are only engaging with them for a quick buck. Make your promotional videos as memorable and genuine as possible – it is part of a healthy long-term content strategy.
5) Listenable Videos and Closed Captions –
This one is so important now. Audio is just as important as visuals. The hashtag #listenable is big on YouTube and TikTok, because similar to a movie, viewers can engage with the content while multitasking. Closed captions are important for accessibility and clarity of content. And by providing or switching on Closed Captions you are sending a huge signal for the algorithm to analyze your content and suggest it to ideal users, ultimately boosting your SEO and reach.
Final thoughts on video content: if you value-adding video to your social channels, or have wanted to start a TikTok channel, give yourself the task of committing to at least 4 weeks of developing, creating, and interacting on the channel of your choice with video only. What you’ll likely learn is that yes, it is a very valuable tactic in your social media strategy but it takes an incredible amount of time and commitment to run it properly. That’s when you might want to reach out to us, and try on a Pink Jacket.
