3 Easy Tips to Make Your Video Content Better

by Startacus Admin

Filming videos using your mobile phone is easier than it seems. Here are 3 tips from Niamh MacAuley, Video Marketing Manager at Purple Dot Media, to make your video content better...

Every day the world watches 1 billion hours of YouTube social video and this is set to grow, making 2019 the year that your business strategy must include video, or you risk becoming invisible online.

There’s no doubt that video is daunting if you have never used it before but bear in mind that ‘perfection = procrastination’.

Your videos don’t have to be perfect, but they have to be present, and the capabilities of modern mobile technology mean that filming videos using your mobile phone is easier than it seems. Here are some tips to get your started:

Tips to Make Your Video Content Better:

Equipment

A range of smart phone gadgets will make you a movie maker in no time. Steady footage is essential and low budget gadgets like tripods, monopods and gimbals are great for keeping a light mobile phone steady creating the illusion that you are using a camera. If you want to give video a try before investing in these types of gadgets, my advice is just imagine you are a human tripod. Keep your arms as close to your body as possible, or rest against a wall or other immovable object.

Other smartphone gadgets can range from lapel microphones to ring lights. All of this equipment is important when creating professional lighting, sound and angles.

Length of clip 

Should your video be 30 seconds or 30 minutes?

To answer this question, you need to consider the purpose of the video and the platform it will be used with. Being aware of the length of your footage teaches you to be more efficient with your filming, so you don’t end up with too much material.

If the video is for Facebook, Twitter or Instagram it is best to keep the video to between 30 – 60 seconds. As LinkedIn is an informational platform the videos can be up to 2 minutes long. For a website videos can be between 2 – 3 minutes long as people are going directly to that platform to gain information. At an exhibition or in a waiting room videos are expected to be a lot longer. These videos can be between 15 - 30 minutes depending on how long the person is waiting in that area.

How you hold your phone

How you hold your phone can make a huge difference to how your video appears. Be aware of how you are holding your smartphone before you hit the record button. Firstly, hold your phone horizontally (landscape) most of the time. Otherwise, your clip will be fighting for space with an unsightly black boarder on either side of the screen when you play it back. There are only a few exceptions for filming in portrait and that is for Facebook Live and Snapchat. 

It is important to remember that square videos get 78% more coverage than landscape on social media (not portrait videos but rather landscape video that is cropped to square – many apps will do this for you) . Square videos work effectively across all platforms as it fills the screen. There are many square cropping apps you can download for your phone to edit your content.

Video positioning:

None of these tips are expensive or difficult to follow but they will make a massive difference on your filming quality leading to higher engagement across all platforms. Smartphones are now capable of filming in 4K which means we all have the ability to film professional video content.

97% of marketers say video has helped users gain a better understanding of their product or service so there is no doubt about the power of video. Just always remember ‘perfection = procrastination’ so why not start creating your own video content today?

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• #digital content
• #video content
• #marketing
• #branding
• #video
• #mobile phone

Published on: 8th March 2019