80 percent of all online content is expected to be video by 2019. Source: Shutterstock.com

How LinkedIn’s native video feature can help your business grow

LINKEDIN is the latest platform competing for social media video attention following its introduction of a native video upload feature.

Last year, a review by Newswhip revealed that half of the top 10 most shared links on LinkedIn were YouTube videos. So it is clear video content is what LinkedIn users are after.

What makes LinkedIn videos different?

It is no secret LinkedIn are a bit late to the party when it comes to native video content, so by no means will they be reinventing the wheel.

Like other social media platforms offering video sharing, LinkedIn will make stats available to its users in the form of views, likes, and shares.

What makes LinkedIn’s analytics unique is the ability to view your viewers’ place of work and job titles. This professional insight is what makes LinkedIn especially appealing for business looking to work on their social media marketing.

Unlike other social networks, LinkedIn is the go-to platform for professionals who want to learn, engage, network and find solutions to their business problems. This is the perfect opportunity for you to create engaging professional video content with an audience that is ready and waiting for it.

What can this mean for your business?

With entrepreneurs expecting 80 percent of all online content to be video by 2019, video content is not something your company should disregard.

Video marketing is becoming an expectation for companies. So now is a better time than ever to start creating video content for your company’s LinkedIn profile.

Many companies post a lot of weighty content on LinkedIn, such as lengthy reports and company blog posts. In many cases, this information is interesting and relevant to the company’s followers. But often the message is lost, as LinkedIn users are also social media browsers with a tendency to skim through their feed.

Social video can be an excellent alternative medium to educate your followers. By distilling your content into engaging video clips (LinkedIn recommends between 30 seconds and five minutes in its Best Practices Guide), your company can entice viewers to click through for full information.

Tips to make the most of LinkedIn’s video uploading feature

1)      Make it part of your company’s culture.

It is important to get the entire team involved in the ideas and creation process when making video content. Source: Shutterstock.com

In order to make video content a part of your company’s culture, it is important to get the entire team involved in the ideas and creation process. Involving everyone can have many benefits. When an employee is part of a company video, they feel a sense of ownership over the brand; an important aspect for future on-screen representatives of the company.

2)      Get your equipment together

Each company has a different budget but this should not be seen as an impediment to social media success. Source: Shutterstock.com

Although each company has differing budgets, this should not be seen as an impediment to social media success. Many companies have been very successful with their video marketing while simply using an iPhone camera. However, by upgrading to even the most basic camera and lighting equipment, you can be on your way to producing truly professional video content.

3)      Learn how to film like a pro

It is important to find someone with the necessary production skills to edit the videos you are creating. Source: Shutterstock.com

Whether you hire a professional videographer or assign the job to an existing employee, it is important to find someone who has the production skills to edit the videos you are creating. You do not have to be a professionally-trained videographer to create successful content. You can find many introductory tutorials on YouTube focusing on guides to basic camera, lighting and audio skills.

4)      Plan your content

Your team can start by brainstorming things such as ‘the most asked questions’ your company receives. Source: Shutterstock.com

The previous steps are all very important, but if you fail to create and curate the right content this may hinder your video marketing success.

You and the team can start by brainstorming things such as ‘the most asked questions’ your company receives. These questions can be turned into videos which will save your team a lot of time while also presenting your information in a more engaging way.

Make sure the content you are producing is relevant and created with your target audience in mind. Furthermore, keep an eye on which of your past content is performing well and use this as a guide to understanding what content your audience is looking for. A good idea is also to look at which of your competitors’ content is getting the most views within your professional community.

5)      Lights, camera, action!

You may feel apprehensive at first, but the best way to be successful with video marketing is simply to get stuck in. Source: Shutterstock.com

You may feel apprehensive at first, but the best way to be successful with video marketing is simply to get stuck in. With 51 percent of marketing professionals reporting video as the content which produces the best ROI, it is time for your company to start connecting with others through video content.