Why are LinkedIn Videos good for marketing?
After just one year of being released, LinkedIn video posts generated more than 300 million impressions on the platform. They also earn an average of three times the engagement of text posts.
LinkedIn native videos are even five times more likely than other content to start a conversation among LinkedIn members. And because LinkedIn is a conversational platform, LinkedIn pushes video posts higher up the algorithm than text-only posts.
So now we know the impressive stats of LinkedIn video, but how does video affect revenue? Well, according to Aberdeen Group, brands that use video marketing grow their revenue 49 percent faster than companies that don't.
So if you're looking for a sign to start posting more video content on LinkedIn, this is it. In this guide, I'll go through everything you need to know about LinkedIn video, from the basics, to technical specifications and the different kinds of videos to consider creating for this platform.
What are different Types of LinkedIn video Available?
Embedded videos
It's still common practice for many brands to upload their videos to a video-hosting platform such as YouTube or Vimeo and then share the link on LinkedIn. This is what we mean by 'embedded videos'.
There isn't any harm in uploading to these video hosting platforms, as you want your videos to be posted in as many places as you can, but LinkedIn native videos tend to be a more effective strategy when sharing on the platform itself.
This could be because LinkedIn doesn't like to navigate users away from the platform, so any externally-linked embedded videos won't get as much algorithm privilege as natively-posted videos (unless the video happens to be hosted on Vimeo, where apparently it's treated differently).
LinkedIn native video
"Native video" is videos that are uploaded directly to LinkedIn or created on the platform itself.
Unlike embedded videos, LinkedIn native videos auto-play in the feed, which is likely going to grab a little more attention.
On desktop and mobile, sharing LinkedIn native video is as simple as posting your regular content. The only difference is mobile allows you to record and post in-app and add text and stickers, whereas desktop requires a pre-recorded video to be uploaded.
LinkedIn video ads
LinkedIn video ads are sponsored videos that appear in the LinkedIn feed. These ads are great for increasing brand awareness and lead generation as they're typically served to a larger, more targeted audience.
And just like any other social platform, you can set up a video ad campaign using LinkedIn's Campaign Manager or sponsor an existing post.
Pro tip: Unlike LinkedIn native video, which can be a maximum of 10 minutes long, LinkedIn video ads can run for up to 30 minutes.
What happened to LinkedIn Stories?
These Snapchat-style video Stories were first launched in February 2020 in internal testing, but just one short year after the feature was introduced, LinkedIn gave up on Stories.
Stories just weren't being used. It looks like their ephemeral nature didn't appeal to LinkedIn's professional users.
What are LinkedIn's video specs?
Some handy video specifications for LinkedIn that we found here:
- LinkedIn video limit - 3 seconds (minimum) to 10 minutes (maximum) long
- Best video size for LinkedIn - 75 KB to 5GB in file size
- Video format for LinkedIn - ASF, AVI, FLV, MPEG-1, MPEG-4, MKV, QuickTime, WebM, H264/AVC, MP4, VP8, VP9, WMV2, and WMV3
- Aspect Ratios - 9:16 (vertical), 1:1 (portrait), and 16:9 (landscape). From these, 1:1 is and 16:9 are considered to be the best aspect ratios
- Frame rate - between 10 to 60 rates per second
- Bit rates - between 192kps to 30MBps
- Resolutions - minimum 256 _ 144 and maximum 4096 x 2304
On mobile, LinkedIn video has three post dimensions: 16:9 (landscape), 1:1 (square), and 9:16 (portrait).
On desktop, LinkedIn video has two post dimensions: 16:9 (landscape) and 1:1 (square).
What videos should I publish on LinkedIn?
1. Explainer videos
Explainer videos do exactly what they say on the tin, they explain what your product does and how it can help your customers. This is perfect for the beginning of your buyer's journey, where they're after more information on how to solve a specific problem they're facing.
2. Spotlight your team members
You could use LinkedIn video to position your company as a thought leader with interviews that share the vision and knowledge of the amazing people that make up your team.
3. Tell Your company story
Storytelling is a powerful and engaging way to get your brand across and build an emotional connection with your viewers. What do you stand for? Where did your business start? Show viewers who you are as a business.
4. Take viewers behind the scenes
In true MTV Cribs fashion, you could use LinkedIn video as an opportunity to impress customers with the environment, culture, skill, craftsmanship, or technology behind your operation.
5. Promotional/ new product launch videos
Promo videos show the world you've arrived! The purpose of this kind of video is to make your ideal customers aware of your software, so you want something eye-catching that leaves an impression.
6. Share company news and updates
You might not think it, but changes to your company, new initiatives, acquisitions, partnerships, and more are all video-worthy!
7. Recruitment videos
Today, high-quality recruitment video content has become a powerful way to inspire potential candidates, encapsulate your culture, and drive job applications for brands.
The best recruitment videos let people peep behind the door and see what your business is really like. And what better place for these videos to live than LinkedIn?
8. Testimonial videos
Case study videos are the perfect way to promote what you do and how it benefits people in the real world.
By showcasing the transformation your product or service enables for a customer, you also demonstrate what a great fit you would be. And best of all, because they're based on real cases, they feel genuine, generating real credibility and trust.
