According to statistics from Global WebIndex for February 2025, 63.9% of the
world’s population uses social media, with an average daily usage of 2 hours and 21
minutes. That’s a lot of focusing time – and it would be incomprehensible for
business owners not to take advantage of this focus and try to turn it their way. So
what’s the secret behind attention-grabbing, attention-keeping videos which linger in
the memory long after they’ve been swiped?
At Flagship Films, we’ve been perfecting this formula over the years and we think
we’ve got it sussed. One thing we do know is that without captivating videos, your
social media presence just won’t keep up with the commercial competition.
Keen to get started? Here are our six top tips for generating social media videos
which will entice and inspire in equal measure – read on!
- Begin with your strategy
Before you even think about what should be going in your video, you’ll need to have
done some research and planning. Who is your current social media audience and
who are you hoping to reach? Set clear goals for what you want to achieve with your
video – additional followers, a raised profile, more traffic to your website, increased
sales, awareness of a new product or service? You’ll also need to work out your
budget and a schedule for how the project will be carried out. - Know your audience
What sort of video will instantly grab the attention of the specific audience you want
to reach? One good way of working this out is to have a look at videos on your
competitors’ social media platforms – see what they’re doing right and, more
importantly, what they’re doing wrong! Make sure you choose the best platform for
your audience. Are the people your video is trying to hook more likely to catch it on
LinkedIn, TikTok, Instagram or YouTube? - Work out your story
If you’ve started to read our blogs regularly, you’ll already know what we think about
effective storytelling – your content must be relevant, entertaining and imaginative.
You’re trying to create a personal connection, so getting your story right is the single
most important thing you can do to make your video a rip-roaring success. You can
have great music and stunning visuals but without a central story there’s no heart to
it. Having said that . . . - Bring in great music and visuals
You really need them! The right music for your specific message and top quality
visuals which will draw people in are essential.
- Create a hook within three seconds
With the sheer volume of content available, attention spans are minimal. Ideally, you
need to create a thumb-stopping hook within the first three seconds, or your potential
catch will have already moved on to something more interesting. The best social
media videos are short and sweet – we recommend they should be no more than 15
seconds long, with an absolute maximum of 25 seconds. That doesn’t give you much
time to achieve your goal. - Get creative with the editing
You can sit in the editing suite with a load of stunning footage but it’s how you put it
together which will lift your video above the rest. For example, getting the right
dimensions is crucial – nearly all social media videos are watched on a phone so
need to be in portrait or square format. Is it the optimum length and size for your
particular social media platform? They’re not all the same. Have you thought about
subtitles? Are the colours vibrant and vivid? Is your voiceover compelling or will it
send viewers to sleep, annoy or irritate them? Lastly, you need to finish with a call to
action. If you’ve gone to all this trouble to get people’s attention, you need to make
sure that attention is channelled into a move which will benefit your business.
That all sounds like a lot to get right . . .
It is – which is why using a video production company will really reap benefits and
help you reach your goals. The value that a slick, high-impact, professionally shot
social media video gives can’t be underestimated.
Why not contact us and find out the difference we can make to your social media
videos?