The Exhaustive List of Social Media Videos You Need

Have you seen an incredible video on YouTube and rushed to follow the channel, but after watching maybe ten or so videos realized you were getting bored of what felt like the same content being delivered in the exact same ways? 

This goes for all social platforms. Viewers automatically want to see new, interesting content that doesn’t feel like it’s being produced by following a formula (even if it is). And if they see a video pop up, the lasting thing you want them to think is “oh, that looks like, but I’ve seen it before.”

You also want to be using social media video to its fullest potential, sharing a wide variety of content with your followers and anyone who happens to stumble onto your Pages, groups, and profiles. 

Having a diverse array of social media videos is the way to go, and if you aren’t sure where to get started, don’t worry: In this post, we’re going to go through the exhaustive list of every type of social media videos that you should add to your calendar.

1. Brand Story Videos 

Brand storytelling is a powerful force, so make sure that branded videos are an important part of your content strategy. They can tell the story of how your business was founded, why your mission matters to you, or even how your business is giving back to the local community. These videos are meant to drive brand awareness and understanding, not necessarily immediate sales.

These videos make excellent cover videos and pinned posts, and are exceptionally valuable for top-of-the-funnel campaigns for cold or cool audiences.

2. Product Feature Videos 

Product videos absolutely have a place on social media, both in organic and PPC marketing. 

Product feature videos are specifically focusing on the different features that come with specific products you’re selling, almost like a not-terrible infomercial. You want to explain why users should want this in their lives, and how it can offer benefits that nothing else does. This style of video can be used to explain how services you offer work, too: 

This is a great example:

3. Products-In-Use Tutorials 

Showing off products that are in use can be a powerful motivator for selling. People can see how the product works, and can picture themselves using it in some way, whether it’s an article of clothing or SaaS scheduling software or a car jack to change tires.

Ideally, these videos can point out some features, too, but they’ll show users how to get the most out of the products. They’re bordering between educational and promotional content, with helpful tips for how to use and care for the goods you’re selling.

4. Industry Educational Content 

You’re an industry expert. Take the time to show it off by offering educational content that your audience would love.

If I was a real estate agent, for example, I might create educational content like the following:

• Having a short two minute video explaining different qualities to look for in a real estate agent. 
• Going live so that potential clients can ask questions about the process.
• Walking users through a house that’s up for sale and pointing out different things to flag or what to look for.

You can keep these videos interesting and dynamic, so get creative!

5. How-To Content 

DIY, how-to content can be useful even when it doesn’t have anything to do with a product that you’re necessarily selling.

This content can also help solidify your thought leadership and offers value to your audience. Think a mechanic showing people how to change their oil, or a dog trainer walking people through the steps of training a dog how to follow the “drop it” command.

How-to content should include step-by-step instructions, and is most effective when it includes textual cues like “Step 1: Get Your Supplies Ready” to break up the video into manageable steps.

6. Live Video Broadcasts 

All brands should be using live video; they get 6x more engagement than regular native videos, and can see up to 40% more reach. 

Live videos can be as short as long as you need, and they can be information-based, tutorial-based, or interview-oriented. Whatever subject you’re choosing, make sure that you’re scheduling the content in advance, are well-prepared to go live, and that you’re actively engaging with viewers who are watching and commenting.

7. Q&A Sessions 

Q&A sessions are another great way to offer value, and can be done live or have questions submitted in advance. Ask users to share any questions they may have about a product, your brand, a new announcement, or even for a founder or influencer that you’re talking to.

The idea here will be to concisely address as many questions as possible. You can do this all in one video, or answer each question in its own short micro-video.

8. Interviews With Influencers & Experts 

Interviews can resemble Q&As, but instead of asking questions from your audience, the focus is on one person interviewing another directly for a short period of time.

This can be someone on your team interviewing another team member, or one of the founders of the business. You can also interview customers, or other well-known influencers or experts in the field. Make sure you always tag any influencers who can help give you clout and reach.

9. Customer Testimonials 

Customer testimonials are exceptionally powerful. You can have your own team film these yourselves to ensure high quality, but including short UGC videos into a longer video of your own creation can work too (as long as you’re giving credit where it’s due).

Remember that what your customers say about you is at least 10x more influential than any claims that you could make, so take advantage of this. 

10. Event Coverage  

Have an event coming up, going on now, or that just passed? Feature it through videos on social media. Show the preparation, the excitement when the event is going down, and create carefully-curated clips of people expressing the value they took away from it afterwards.

This can be short, but use this video to create a little FOMO, get attendance to increase, and remind people of why they’ll have to make the next one, even if they missed it this time around.

11. Behind The Scenes Glimpses 

Behind-the-scenes videos can create a feeling of authenticity and allow your followers to feel like they’re getting to really know your brand. People love this sort of content on social, no matter what platform you’re on.

These videos can be short, but you should always explain what people are viewing. Considering adding in “how it’s made” content, or showing your staff on a company retreat or at the Christmas party. 

12. Brand Announcements  

Are you opening a new store? Releasing a new product or starting a beta test? Have sale coming up, or an event, or an exciting giveaway?

Video is one of the best ways to spread your news fast on social media. Keep it short, and make sure you start with the big announcement right away and how it impacts users to keep their attention. When possible, you can always add a link that users can click on to learn more; if this isn’t possible, direct them to where they can find the information.

Conclusion

This list details twelve different types of social videos that all brands should be using fairly regularly, but each one can be interpreted in any number of different ways and needs to be adapted to different platforms. 

Facebook, for example, allows for longer videos than Twitter or Instagram, so you may need to take a single video on Facebook and break it down into three to share on the other platforms. 

You’ll also need videos in different formats, too. Stories only allow for 15-second long videos, and require the full screen format, and videos for carousel ads need to be short and square instead of portrait or landscape.

Shakr can help with all of this, giving you the flexibility and agility to quickly create massive amounts of social videos in any format that you need. All you need to do is plug in images and/or video clips and customize the text, and you can have gorgeous, high-performing videos in a matter of minutes. 

Interested in learning more about how Shakr can help you create 1000 videos in the first year alone? Get in touch with us here.

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