by: Caroline Eaton

If you’ve been a Facebook or Twitter user for a while now, you’ve probably noticed that people often post videos to go along with their statuses and tweets. This is a great tactic when trying to reach more people through social media; so today we’re going to talk about how to implement it on your ministry’s various social media channels.

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Here is our social media intern, Caroline, prepping to film the video below!

I know what you’re thinking: video equipment is complicated and requires a certain set of skills. Have no fear: we’re going to give you tips to create videos simply on your smartphone. The quality will not be as high as it could be if you used top of the line production equipment, but it will work for the purposes we want it to serve on social media.

How to take videos on your smartphone:

  • Open your video camera on your phone.
  • Film in a quiet place. Smartphone cameras don’t have top-notch audio equipment, so if you are filming in a noisy place, then the background noise could drown out your speaker.
  • Turn the phone horizontally. This is especially important if you are using an iPhone. Vertical videos do not show up well.
  • IMPORTANT: Keep the video as steady as possible. Nothing brings the quality down more than a shaky camera – you don’t want to give your viewers motion sickness!
  • Keep the video short. People scrolling through their newsfeed will typically not stop and watch a video that is longer than two minutes, so use them to make short announcements, send quick greetings to your congregation, etc.
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Note: This video was shot on an iPhone using these simple tips!

Attaching a video to a tweet or Facebook post is the exact same as attaching a photo, which we’ve discussed before. I recommend utilizing videos once a week, or even biweekly. Too much in a short time period will cause people to stop watching, so use them sparingly when you’ve got a great purpose.

How can you start implementing videos into your Facebook and Twitter posts?