Facebook is now the top platform for video and is sustaining unprecedented engagement rates. Facebook video even outperformed YouTube videos with a reach that is, on average, 86 percent higher.
Facebook video is a tremendous opportunity to get your school in front of a highly-targeted audience. Furthermore, Facebook video drives reach, engagement, and conversions (inquiries) much better than other forms of promotion.
To get us started with today’s blog post, let’s review some impressive Facebook video facts and stats published by Facebook Business:
- 71 percent of people say their online video viewing has increased over the past year
- Millennials are 1.35 times more likely than older generations to say they find it easier to focus when watching videos on mobile
- People are 1.5 times more likely to watch video daily on a smartphone than a computer
- By 2020, over 75 percent of the world’s mobile data traffic will be video
Here are 11 common questions school marketers ask about Facebook video, and answers you can depend on to help propel your video marketing efforts forward.
1. What is the best length for a Facebook video?
Facebook Live Videos
Can range from 5 minutes to 4 hours, depending on the topic and audience interest. However, the ideal time to aim for is 18-22 minutes.
Video on demand / recorded videos
Should be less than 60 seconds if you’re going to show them on Instagram. Otherwise, aim for 1 to 5 minutes.
Video Ads
In-stream video ads are ads that are placed before or during other video content. Facebook recommends a length of 5-15 seconds for these types of video ads, although they allow you up to 31 seconds. There is an increasing trend in mobile advertising for short-form video ads that are 6 seconds in length.
2. What video file format is best?
Facebook recommends using the MP4 or MOV format but will allow a whole host of other formats. Click here for a full list of the video formats that can be uploaded to Facebook.
3. Which layouts work the best for videos?
For video ads and video on demand, try square, vertical or portrait.
For video stories, use 9:16, including mobile.
For mobile viewing, use square, vertical (4:5 or 2:3).
4. How do I add text overlay to my videos?
Adding text to your videos creates a professional touch.
Many video editors allow you to add text to your videos. The first place to start is to see if your favorite video editor includes an “add text overlay” feature. (Camtasia one for you to consider, but there are many video tools available.) If your editor doesn’t have this feature, here is a free Add Text to a Video tool that is simple and free. You can also add your school’s logo as a watermark if you want using this free tool.
5. What are the best resources for video assets?
- Pixabay and Pexels offer free stock video footage and clips, and free stock photography too, if you should need it
- Videovo offers more than 3,600 HD clips, motion graphics
- Pond5 offers royalty-free stock video footage, music, and motion graphics. They offer pay-as-you-go or memberships, or you can try looking for what you need in their public domain video library for free
- Coverr is seemingly built with websites in mind. For this reason, some of the footage is blurred, because text is easier to read on top of blurred video. If you want to embed the video on your site, Coverr offers HTML, CSS, and Javascript that you can easily copy and paste.
6. How do I make Story videos?
Story videos must be in 9:16 format and include 1-15 videos. Use Story videos on Facebook and/or Instagram as part of your content marketing plan.
7. How do I add captions to my videos?
Adding captions to your videos increases the reach of your videos. Not only are they more accessible to people who are hearing-impaired, but since 85 percent of Facebook videos are viewed with the sound off, adding text helps you get your message across.
Facebook itself offers a captions generator tool (that has dramatically improved). Or, for best accuracy, use a transcription service like Rev.com. A super-affordable AI transcription service is Trint.com.
8. Where can I find Facebook video metrics?
To view your Facebook video metrics, go to your Page Insights. Or, from a video on your Page, click the clickable stat to the left of the Boost button. It will give you a metric like: People have watch this video for a total of 2K minutes. Or, Your video is popular in Pennsylvania.
9. How do I create a Video Engagement Custom Audience?
- From within Ads Manager, go to Create New Audience > Custom Audience > Engagement > Video.
- Once you’ve chosen the length of your video views, you can select one or multiple videos to build the audience.
- Use this engaged audience to retarget with different content.
10. How do I show a video in the About section?
A video that shows up on the left sidebar of your Facebook Page’s main timeline is known as a Featured Video. When you set your Featured Video, it is prominently displayed on your main timeline and appears larger than on your Videos page.
To enable this feature, click on the Videos tab, click Add Featured Video and then select the video you want to feature.
11. How do I make my videos stand out?
A great video contains these elements:
- Engages from the first frame
- Authentic
- Entertaining
- Plays on emotions
- Relatable
- Useful
The best videos tell a story. Storytelling will make your school memorable and seem more trustworthy. Use music, colors, and dynamic expressions to capture the emotions of your message.
Facebook is focusing aggressively on a video-first approach, competing in the digital-streaming space with YouTube, Netflix, Amazon, Prime, and Hulu. Savvy school marketers, like you, need to gear up for establishing your Facebook video marketing content and ad strategy. I hope today’s post will help clear up any questions that might have been holding you back from integrating videos into your Facebook marketing efforts.
Click here to read this article on the SchneiderB Media website.
