Why Should You be Optimizing Your Video Content on Social Media? 

Instagram recently announced that they are putting more of a priority on photo content and carousels at the start of this year. Because of that, video content, such as Reels will no longer be pushed through the algorithm. 

With this change, a lot of creators will need to learn how to optimize their Reels to ensure their content is still being seen. In today’s blog, we’re going to go over the best things you can do to optimize your video content. 

Video Format  

There are a few important things to do when formatting your video content. First of all, you’ll want to make sure that the videos you are posting are optimized for mobile viewing. There are very few people who use Instagram and Facebook on their desktop computers. Because of this, you want to make sure that the video is easy to watch on a mobile device. 

But what does this mean? Since both Instagram and Facebook have a vertical feed, your videos will need to match that. This is called the aspect ratio. We suggest recording in a vertical format to ensure that your videos fit the aesthetic of Instagram and Facebook mobile. This will also make sure that your video is viewable. Instagram and Facebook have an aspect ratio of 1:1 in their feeds and Reels can be enlarged to fit a 9:16 aspect ratio. 

The thumbnail is another important component of the format. Instagram will allow you to either select part of the Reel to use as the thumbnail or you can import one from your camera role. While the thumbnail isn’t as important for the Reel itself, the thumbnail is what will show up on your feed. If you are posting content that may be educational, we suggest adding a title on the thumbnail so your followers can easily find what they are looking for. 

Content in the Video  

Now that you know vertical content tends to perform better than horizontal content, it’s time to start filming the content. 

One thing that many creators overlook when filming and editing their content is the use of captions. Did you know that many people scroll through their phones without any sound? In fact, 85% of video views happen without the viewer even listening to the Reel. This is important because if your viewer doesn’t know what you are saying because their sound is off, you’ll miss out on that engagement. 

Thankfully captions are pretty easy to add within the Instagram editing tool or in 3rd party editing apps. 

With that being said, Facebook and Instagram autoplay their video content with the sound muted. If you are putting most of the important information in the first few seconds of your Reel, the viewer may miss this information. 

Even though you may not want to share the most important information in the first few seconds, it’s important to take that time to capture the audience’s attention. With all the online content, making yours stand out will make a tremendous difference in your content’s performance.  

You can grab their attention by presenting problems, using powerful visuals, or providing them with key takeaways. But remember whatever you decide to do, USE CAPTIONS!  

Understanding your Analytics  

The last part of optimizing your video content on your socials is learning to understand how your content is performing. Why would you waste your time and energy on something that your followers don’t want to see? This is why going through your insights within Facebook and Instagram is crucial.  

Final Thoughts  

As soon as we all got used to creating Reels, Instagram is switching things up and chose to make photo content a priority. Will it be hard to navigate this new type of content while trying to make your video content still relevant, yes? But is it impossible? Absolutely not! 

If you take the time to cater to Instagram’s algorithm and what we already know about it, while still making your content something your viewers want to watch, you shouldn’t see a drastic change in your engagement. 

—Marie Dubray, Social Media Specialist, Sesame Communications