The way we consume content on the internet has changed. Mobile internet has made it easily convenient to consume content while on the go and video content is getting more popular by the day. According to data released by Zenith, an average person is predicted to spend 100 minutes per day watching online videos. In fact, Facebook averages 100 million hours of video use per day. But while the potential for video content seems extremely promising, not every video is successful. 

One of the main reasons for this is that the way videos are consumed on social media platforms is different from other traditional video channels. With so much content available, customers on the go are in a rush and tend to skip to the next video if the initial one doesn’t capture their interest in the first three seconds. So, for marketers looking at creating video content, the three second rule needs to be kept in mind in order to maximise the return on investment. 

Let’s learn more about this three second rule and how B2B marketers can use it to create engaging and effective videos:

Just Three Seconds

The three second rule is crucial for those wanting to maximise the organic reach of their social media video content and increase the engagement with their customer. According to the rule, the first three seconds of your video needs to have the hook to keep your audience interested. Research shows that it takes only three seconds for your viewers to decide if they’ll continue to watch or scroll past your video in their social channel’s feed. So you need to make the first three seconds count, or else you risk losing the interest of your target audience. 

According to data released by Facebook on video content, 65 per cent of people who make it past the first three-second mark tend to make it to the ten-second mark and 45 per cent of those will watch for thirty seconds. This fact alone highlights how important creating a hook in the first three seconds is for the success of your video content. 

Moreover, having a hook in the first three seconds has other benefits. The more people watch the first three seconds of your video, the better your video content will perform. When the social media algorithms see that people are interested in your content, they will push your video out to more people who are interested in a similar niche. 

Now that you know about the rule, let’s look at tips to improve the performance of your videos on social media. 

Tips for Creating Effective Video Content for Social Media

Here are some hacks that can help you create better video content for your socials and maximise your return on investment:

Striking Visual Cues:

The more visually appealing your video looks, the higher the chance of success. This can be done by using bold colours, arresting images and using recognised spokespersons in your video content. Visual cues are important because more often than not, people view videos on mute and these visual cues could be the hook that keeps your audience engaged. 

Text or Captions:

As mentioned above, a significant part of your audience is probably watching your video content on mute. Hence you need to make it as easy as possible for them to grasp your message without sound. Text, captions and subtitles will provide your audience with the information they need to establish a connection between your content and your brand. Facebook’s new auto-caption tool helps to make the generation of captions extremely easy and convenient. 

High Quality Video:

High quality video is absolutely essential to grab the interest of your audience. It is what will make your audience stay on and even want to follow you for more quality content. Low light and grainy video footage is definitely not acceptable in today’s world.