Since the dawn of video capability on social media platforms, audiences have been consuming record amounts of video content from creators everywhere. Regardless of your intentions for creating videos, encouraging engagement is the most important part of your process. From the start of your creative process to the end of your marketing goals, you should keep engagement in mind.
While the concept of engagement is simple enough, implementing it can be tricky. Let’s define engagement and what you can do to encourage it.
What is Engagement?
Engagement can come in the form of the number of views, likes, comments, and shares. You can also measure engagement with how long your audience spends time watching your video. It’s important to keep in mind that not every viewer will take outward steps that show engagement, but if they do, it can help your video get promoted by the platform on which you’ve published.
Best Ways to Ensure High Engagement
Once you know which analytics help you understand your engagement, you’ll want to start implementing strategies to improve those numbers. There are several tactics I use almost every time I create a video for my clients. In general, they all ensure that the entire video is consistently interesting and speaks to the right audience directly.
Ditch the Logo Intro
Too many times, I see videos beginning with a 10-second logo screen. That 10-second logo screen is a waste of 10 seconds, and I promise you will lose your audience’s attention immediately. If your audience found the video on your website or profile, they already know your brand. Even if they see the video elsewhere, capturing attention and communicating your message is more important at the beginning than telling viewers the name of your company.
Avoid Bad Distractions
There are too many videos I’ve seen with elements that distract viewers from understanding the message and ultimately turn them away. To keep engagement high, you’ll need to plan from beginning to end of your process to avoid all distractions. In production, make sure your video has excellent audio and video. Avoid low-quality audio at all costs – it is one of the biggest flaws a video can have. An unwise choice of music, camera, microphone, or transitions can be enough to stop a viewer from finishing the video. You’ll also want to proofread all text, as typos are unforgivable.
Be An Authentic Source of Value
A huge part of viewership is entertainment value, but your video should educate as well. Your audience should walk away from your video with more than they brought to the table.
Most importantly, your value should be your solutions to your audience’s problems. Every viewer has a problem, whether they know it or not, and it’s your job to help them realize it and take action to solve it. If you haven’t identified your target audience yet, take time to figure out their pain points.
Of course, remember to be authentic. You don’t need to write an aggressive sales pitch – show your audience that you understand the emotions they feel regarding their problems. Your emotional connection with them will showcase the human side of your business and make you more approachable.
Creatively Incorporate Visual Interest
Make sure your video is not just a talking head. To capture and maintain your audience’s interest, you should make the most of b-roll, motion graphics, animation, captions, and more. Of course, don’t overdo it. An overly busy video can confuse your narrative, so use effects wisely. Captions especially are becoming more popular because people enjoy watching videos on the go, and often cannot hear the video or cannot turn on the volume.
Finish Strong With a Clear Call to Action
Most of all, your video will not win conversions without a perfect call-to-action phrase. You must identify which action you want your viewers to take, then tell them directly. Make sure you are clear and that it is easy for them to follow through.
If you are interested in learning more about engagement for your videos, contact Monzo Media Productions.
