How to Make Videos for Social Media

At Houston Video, we know that a good video for social media:  

• Captures your audience’s attention 
• Holds that attention; and 
• Offers the watcher something of value. 

Good videos are engaging, eye-catching, and relevant to your target audience. Your video should open with something that piques interest and invites investment. 

Knowing how to make good videos for social media goes beyond simply writing and filming. 

You want to create videos for social media that bring people to your website and help build your base of loyal customers. But you’re going to need more than just good lighting and decent-quality audio. 

In fact … 

If you have quality content that demands attention and holds interest, you can get away with slightly lower-quality production.

If you want to learn how to make a video for social media that achieves the goals set for it and adds value to your company, you’ve come to the right place. 

There are countless ‘tricks of the trade.’ 

But some basic principles can set you well on your way to better understanding how to make social media videos for your marketing campaigns.

Knowing your audience is key. 

A video that succeeds on Facebook might flop on LinkedIn and visa-versa. 

You can’t upload a video that you create for Instagram to LinkedIn and expect it to perform as well. 

Every social media platform is different and has a different audience. 

Content has to be optimized and created carefully for its individual platform.  

You wouldn’t attend a networking dinner on behalf of your company wearing board shorts and a cutoff tank-top in person, so why do it virtually? 

Knowing your audience is half the game.

Have you watched a video on a social media platform that just seems off? 

Maybe the audio hasn’t caught up to the visual, or maybe half of the screen is cut off. 

If you have ever been the victim of a highly pixelated video that made you want to throw your phone across the room, you know how important it is to make sure that your content is optimized for your selected platform. 

Each social media platform has certain recommendations that can help you create short videos for social media that stick out and draw a crowd. 

If you are looking to create videos for social media that bolster your client base and build your reach, you are going to want to make sure you follow these recommendations. 

Facebook offers tons of different resources designed to help you create content — and content that adds value to both you and your viewers. 

When you create videos for Facebook, there are some things you should keep in mind, such as:

• Are your videos mobile-friendly? 
• Do they meet the needed technical requirements such as length, dimensions, and size? 
• Are you including ‘engagement bait’ such as instructing people to share, like, or comment on your video? (Hint: these videos often get demoted by Facebook.)
• Do your videos have captions in addition to sound? Most people watch without sound. 

LinkedIn videos are different from other videos because they are targeted more like ads — rather than just content. 

LinkedIn is also a far more professional environment than Facebook and Instagram tend to be. 

While learning how to make animated videos for social media might be a great option for Facebook, LinkedIn typically needs a little more polish. 

LinkedIn’s requirements for content include:

• Naming the ad and adding introductory text (optional)
• Between 3 seconds and 30 minutes long (although the most successful ads tend to run about 15 seconds)
• Subtitles ought to be in SRT format

When it comes to Instagram, there are multiple types of videos you can create: 

• Adds
  • Intended to sell a product; usually includes elated customers and eye-catching visuals 
• IGTV Videos
  • Longer length, more information/entertainment-driven
• Instagram Stories 
  • Appear in people’s Story feeds between uploads from people they follow 
  • Typically a slideshow of products or an offer for a sale
• Instagram Reels 
  • Instagram’s newer video format 
  • Reels are similar to TikTok videos. (In fact, many of them are reposted TikToks) 
  • Short with humor or a popular trend such as a dance or audio preset

As with Facebook and LinkedIn, Instagram has guidelines that should be followed before you begin uploading your videos.

Have you ever asked someone to take a photo of you and a friend? 

And then you realized they took it with a landscape orientation instead of a portrait orientation? 

Few things are more annoying than having something that just doesn’t fit well on the screen. 

Knowing which platforms support which orientation better is a great way to keep your customers from experiencing this pain. 

Some orientations fit better with mobile, while others are better with desktop. 

When choosing between … 

• Landscape 
• Portrait 
• Square; and 
• Fullscreen 

… it’s important to ensure that you select one that matches the goals you have for the video. 

To thine own self, be true. 

Knowing and catering to your audience is incredibly important. But it is equally important to make sure that what you are advertising is what your new client will get. 

You’ve spent time, effort, and money developing your brand. So why hide it under the proverbial bushel? 

You can adapt to your audience without losing your authenticity. 

At the end of the day, you are marketing your company — not trying to become the most-watched content creator. 

Know your audience, and know yourself. 

You don’t get a lot of time to grab your audience’s attention. 

The average person spends about 1.7 seconds interacting with a given piece of content on social media — and that includes your video. 

So if your first couple seconds don’t catch their eye, you’re sunk. 

Pack the first three seconds of your video with action that makes your viewer want to stay and see what you are all about. 

Many people watch videos without audio. 

They might be at work or in another semi-quiet environment where they just don’t want everyone to hear their video selection. 

Use things like …

• Graphics
• Body language
• Animation; or
• Strong visuals

… to convey your message. 

If you have to listen to the video to know what it is all about, the video is falling short of the mark. 

Adding captions to your video is vital. 

Captions make your content more accessible to those with hearing impairments. But it also creates an opportunity for you to boost your SEO and give it a higher chance of popping up on Google.

Creating a successful social media video doesn’t end when you hit ‘upload.’

Tracking your video’s performance is important because it helps you know what you did well and how you can do better. 

Stats are your best friend when it comes to upping your social media video game. 

If learning how to make social media videos seems difficult, that is because it can be. 

With some research, work, and a little trial-and-error, it is possible to create short videos for social media that help boost your online presence and business.

But, you want to jump right in and enjoy the benefits of a well-made, high-quality video to bring your company into the social media world. 

Houston Video has the experience, skill, and history that you need. 

We’ve worked with companies like Adidas and Texas Children’s Hospital (to name a couple) to create videos that add value to them and their customers. 

Our award-winning process can help you take the guesswork out of the process and get to the results faster. 

With the right video, you can take your social media game from good to great.