Recently, Nils Smith joined Trent Dunham on the Cause+Effect podcast and shared social media video insight we hope will empower and encourage you in important decisions.
YouTube is now the second largest search engine in the world. And there’s a reason for it.
If you lead a ministry, church, or nonprofit, the use of video has recently become incredibly important to your communication strategy. No longer is every generation “googling” something they want to know more about. The younger generations today are turning to YouTube instead.
While some might say, “Tell me about it,” they’re saying, “Show me.”
Video and social media
Think of a podcast as your pillar content and social media as your micro content. When you create a 30-second reel for Instagram allowing people to consume a piece of your pillar content, you create interest and move them to the podcast or website to consume the full content.
The goal is to not leave people on social. Instead, create an opportunity to move your audience to your owned properties. That’s why video content that is chopped up for social is a win/win!
One podcast episode could create 10 social media posts by finding those key 30-second to one-minute clips that you create in a vertical video on your social platforms.
How long is too long?
Your video should be as long as it needs to be, and as short as it can be.
The average video view on YouTube used to be three minutes. Now, it’s over 10 minutes. It doesn’t have to be short. The average TikTok user spends over an hour a day on the platform but these videos are mostly just 15-30 seconds.
It all depends on the platform, audience, and content. Joe Rogan has one of the most popular podcasts today and each episode is four. hours. long. Let the content drive the timing.
To go live… or not to go live…
Thanks to the recent pandemic, many churches were thrown into the live-streaming world, like it or not. How does live streaming fit into overall video consumption and how do we know when it’s right (or wrong) to go live?
Here’s a good rule of thumb: Don’t go live without good reason. Live often creates complications. When you’re not live, you can edit, make changes, or push it out five minutes after you recorded it. It’s not as if more people are going to see it because it was or wasn’t live.
You might go live if something is urgent or timely. Maybe you want to do a Q&A and take live callers. But in all actuality, even ‘live’ streams often lag a minute or two, which causes you to lose the effect of a Q&A in real time.
There just are not a lot of good reasons to go live these days.
Quality matters
If you want to get people to engage beyond consuming your content, be thoughtful about the quality of your video. Put your phone on a tripod and make sure the lighting is good. A full-out studio is no longer necessary for a quality video.
Next, think through your call to action. A CTA should not exist in every video, but be cognizant of the opportunities you have on each platform and when it’s appropriate to include a call to action in order to develop a deeper relationship with your audience.
Recent trends
TikTok is here to stay as is the vertical video. Instagram is now expanding reels to 60 seconds, which is identical to vertical video. And YouTube has integrated YouTube ‘shorts,’ 60-second or less vertical video.
We’ve moved from Facebook Live to Instagram stories, and now to reels in short form. So it’s important to think about this: How do we capture people’s attention in 60 seconds or less using video? That’s the pathway to maximum engagement right now.
All in all, don’t try to conquer the world in a day. Ask your team this question: What is one thing we can do to improve the quality of our videos, the platforms we’re using, and the content we’re sharing?
Technology continues to shift and evolve at an incredible rate, and people want to be a part of something meaningful.
But we can’t just tell them about it. We have to show them.
For more insight into how you can best share your message through effective marketing, check out the Cause+Effect Podcast episode, Trends That Are Shaping 2022.
+ More Insights from Dunham+Company: “If God Will Provide, Why Do We Have to Ask for Money?“