NCET Biz Tips: Five Video Posting Tips and Time Saving Tricks
by Trina Gold, Master Creator for Big Water Ci
OK, so you’ve finished production of your latest marketing video package, your posting calendar is set, and it’s time to post the first video.
Where do you begin? Well, hopefully you began when you hired your production company. If you find yourself saying “Yikes,” all is not lost but be aware your video should be delivered in a video package complete with different ratios, SRT (caption) files, and thumbnails to match.
1. Platform Choice
I begin each project with two questions. what do you need to say and who do you need to say it to? The answers to these two questions will tell you the type of video and the platforms you need to focus on. Sure, we’d all like one magic video to service all but that is just not realistic so pick two main platforms and go after them.
2. Know Your Ratios
The aspect ratio of your video is important. Take the time to research which one is best for your posts. Where will your video be viewed? Desktop or Mobile? On which platform? Facebook, YouTube or LinkedIn? My preference for Facebook is 4:5 so I can cross-post to Instagram. But! I will create just for stories which is gaining popularity, I’m not seeing the ROI for story ads, as far as branding I feel it rules.
3. Native vs Link
“Native” is when you upload the video file to the platform you are posting on. “Link” is when you copy the link from another platform and post it on a different platform. As far as I know YouTube will not take a link, while Facebook and Instagram frown on links. LinkedIn takes links and unless I’m running ads, I’ll take the convenience until they start docking you for it.
4. Thumbnail
Don’t forget the thumbnail! This is visually how your feed presents and people spot your videos, so being random here will hurt your brand. Ratio and file size count, so do your research. YouTube’s thumbnails are1280 X 720, under 25 Mb. With Facebook, you need to leave off the text (I can’t wait for this to go away!) or you will get docked for it. Facebook has a cropping option for your ads, but I prefer creating my own to suit.
5. Closed Captions
Google’s algorithms are word-based. Do I need to say more? Yes, I agree, I would prefer to watch videos without the big black text going across the bottom. So, I struggle with this on every video and what it comes down to is this: Do I need the script to be searchable? Is the information SEO worthy? Sometimes my videos are simple visuals with a simple message, like “Buy Now” or “We’re Open.” I’ll forgo the captions here. So, get your videos transcribed or you may be missing a substantial SEO opportunity.
Now you’re ready so get posting. As far as how many posts and when? Well there are a lot of opinions. Mine is, there’s a lot of noise out there. You can join the crowd and scream daily or take a bit more time, hone in your message and deliver once or twice a month. So far, my numbers are backing this protocol. When or if it changes, I’ll let you know.
If you’re interested, I wrote an article on how I go about posting with a step by step example and the ratios I use: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/rock-ratio-trina-gold
Learn more about how video can help you deliver your message at NCET’s Virtual Biz Cafe on June 3rd. NCET is a member-supported nonprofit organization that produces educational and networking events to help people explore business and technology. More info at NCETcafe.org.
Trina Gold is the Master Creator for Big Water Ci. We create, post and Track Video for online marketing. www.bigwaterci.com