With 50% of time spent on Facebook spent on video and more than 2 billion people watching videos on Facebook each month (Meta), it’s time to get filmmaking. While you don’t have to create a masterpiece, it’s important to understand the ins and outs of creating video specifically for Facebook. Luckily for you, this guide is the latest in the OCOCO Video Academy series and it’s here to help you every step of the way.
WHY FACEBOOK?
With around 2.9 billion monthly active users (Statista), Facebook is the most popular social media network worldwide. If you’re looking for your video to be seen by a wide audience, Facebook is your best bet. There are also substantial advertising options on Facebook if you’re looking to take the next step with your advertising. With video posts, reels, and live broadcasts all now options on Meta’s biggest platform, you can diversify your video strategy to meet your needs. Generally, Facebook recommends that the length of a Facebook video be 15 seconds or shorter. Abiding by this will help your video to gain higher levels of visibility and engagement in the algorithm.
videos vs reels
Inspired by it's success on Instagram, Meta introduced the new 'Reels' feature to Facebook in 2023. Reels is a short-form video format that has revolutionised the way viewers consume media. On Facebook, Reels can be up to 90 seconds long and you can also add music and effects.
POST A FACEBOOK VIDEO
To post a video:
Tap What's on your mind? at the top of your Feed or timeline.
Tap the Photo/video icon.
Choose the video you want to share and tap Done, or tap the Camera icon to record a new video and tap Next.
Tap post.
Facebook will then process your video and let you know when it's ready to see. You can only share videos on your device if you've given Facebook access to your device's camera roll.
Meta recommends to build your video for vertical format on Facebook. Most people are watching Facebook videos on their phone so it's important to optimise for this format. All aspect ratios from 9:16 to 16:9 are accepted, however 4:5 is best practice for Facebook.
POST A FACEBOOK REEL
To post a reel:
From your feed, tap the + icon.
Then tap the Reel icon.
You can start your Reel by recording clips or by adding videos or photos from your camera roll.
To record video clips, tap the camera icon.
You can change your camera by tapping the icon in the bottom right corner.
Tap an option on the right hand side to add it to your clip.
Tap record to begin recording your first clip. Tap it again to stop.
Once you've recorded all clips, tap Next to go to the edit screen.
a. To add videos and photos, tap that item from your camera roll.
b. You can add multiple videos or photos by tapping Select multiple.
c. Once you've added videos and photos you'll be taken to the edit screen.
To edit a reel:
Tap edit.
Tap the clip you'd like to change.
To change the order of your clips, long press on the one that you want to move, then drag it to where you'd like it to play.
If you want to trim the clip, tap and drag to set what part of the clip should be shown.
If you want to change the clip, tap Reshoot or Replace.
Tap Mirror to flip the clip horizontally.
To change the speed of a video or recorded clip, tap Speed.
To remove a clip, tap Discard, then tap Discard again.
Tap the arrow to finish editing the clip.
When you're finished editing, tap Done to go back to the edit screen.
Sharing a reel:
Tap Describe your reel to add a description or any hashtags that you want to it. Hashtags help other people find your reel when searching. Adding a description is optional.
To select the audience for your reel, tap on your currently selected audience.
Toggle on Share your reel to Instagram if you also want to post it on Instagram.
Tap Share now.
facebook stories
To share a story:
Tap Create story at the top of your feed.
Tap a story type (e.g. Text, Selfie, Boomerang, Music) or select a photo or video from your camera roll. You can also tap the camera icon to take a new photo or video.
Tap Aa to add text. You can also add Stickers and Effects.
Click Sound to add audio to your story. You can use your own audio but be aware of copyright infringements. Facebook supplies copyright free music that you can use.
Tap Privacy in the bottom left to change your story audience.
Tap Share.
The recommended aspect ratio for videos on Facebook stories is 9:16 and 4:5 to 1.91:1 with a minimum of 500px.
Facebook live
To go live:
Tap What's on your mind? then tap Live video.
You can tap the More icon in the bottom right to add features and customisation or tap the button in the bottom left to add an effect. You can also add an effect once you've started your broadcast.
Tap Go Live.
Tap Finish when you want to end your broadcast.
To block viewers during a live broadcast, tap and hold the profile picture next to a viewer's comment, then tap Block.
For live broadcastings it's important to make sure that your video is clear, high resolution and as stable as possible.
Remember - All broadcasts need to follow Facebook policies. Learn more here.
paid ads
If you have budget to spend on your marketing, video is a great place to allocate it. You can apply budget to your pre-existing video posts or create a new ad with a video in ads manager. You can choose for your video to be seen as an in-stream ad or a stand-alone ad.
In-stream video ads. These are video ads that you will see before another piece of video content. Facebook recommends to keep in-stream videos between 5 and 15 seconds.
Stand-alone video ads. These are video ads you see in the News Feed. Facebook recommends to keep these videos 15 seconds or shorter.
5 Tips for Creating Video on Facebook
Include captions for accessibility. Accessibility is a key component to getting viewers to still around as long as possible. Approximately 92% of users view mobile video with the sound turned off. Without captions, you could be missing out on an enormous percentage of your potential audience.
Prioritise visuals and audio. While you don’t need to spend loads of money on high spec devices for your videos, it’s vital to ensure that you’re visuals and audio are on point. Prepare for filming by checking the quality and regularly check the takes while recording in case you need to adjust any settings.
Focus on mobile-first video. Nearly 60% of internet traffic worldwide is attributed to mobile use. Keep this in mind when recording your videos. Reels and Stories are always best as vertical videos. This will help you to take up more space on mobile social media feeds and help to increase visibility.
Aim for 15 seconds. With the exception of live videos, Meta really follows the idea that less is more. Keep your videos under 1 minute and aim for 15 seconds where possible. This will help to keep your audience engaged and even help you to deliver a clear, concise message.
Watch out for copyright. Don’t ruin a great idea by getting caught outby the copyright laws. From ideas to visuals and sounds, your content needs to belong to you or be appropriately licensed for commercial use. To help with this Facebook provides a library of free music you can use in the Creator Studio.
Click here to catch up on all of the latest advice from our Social Media Video Academy series.
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