If content is king, video is the crown jewel of the online world. Indeed, one million minutes of video will be shared online every second by 2021, According to Cisco. And by then, 82 percent of all internet traffic will be attributable to video.
Since it introduced video functionality, Twitter has become one of the most popular places people to watch, share, and talk about videos online. Since early 2016, tweets with video have increased by over 50 percent.
Here’s our guide to using Twitter video to grow and promote your brand.
Why use Twitter video?
It’s easy to see why video content is so popular. Video can engage, inform, entertain, and generally move people in a way other mediums struggle to.
From explainer videos to live streaming and brand stories, marketers have taken to video in a big way—and with great success. Wyzowl’s State of Video Marketing 2017 report found 79 percent of consumers now prefer video to text to learn about a product, and 84 percent have been converted into buyers through a brand video.
Our guide to social video and where it fits in your marketing plan provides more general video for business stats and advice. When it comes to Twitter marketing, there is a convincing case for building video into your plan. Here are five of the most compelling Twitter video stats for your next presentation:
- Ninety-three percent of Twitter video views happen on mobile devices. This makes Twitter video an ideal way to reach consumers on their phones in real-time.
- A Promoted Twitter video can take consumer action even further. Twitter users who watch a branded video are 28 percent more likely to buy.
- Twitter videos get six times more retweets than photos, and three times more retweets than GIFs.
- 37 percent of Twitter users would like to see more Twitter videos from their favorite brands.
- 41 percent of Twitter users favor Twitter as a way to discover video content.
Twitter video will continue to take off as the network develops new features for users and marketers.
Types of Twitter video
There are a few different ways to create and share Twitter videos.
Recorded video
Use the Twitter app to record videos through your phone camera, and then edit and share them from within the app.
Imported video
Import videos from your phone camera to the Twitter app.
Uploaded video
Upload videos to twitter.com.
Broadcast a live video to your followers using the mobile Twitter app.
Promoted videos
Twitter offers a range of video advertising options for companies looking to use video to target and engage with their customers on Twitter. Promoted videos show up in targeted users’ feeds and are labelled “Promoted.” With promoted videos, advertisers can choose between a few different format and placement options:
- First View: Grab the most prominent real estate on Twitter—the top of the timeline ad slot—for 24 hours to really make a splash with your Twitter video.
- Conversational video: Add campaign hashtags and call-to-action buttons to promoted videos to drive conversation and encourage sharing.
- Instant Unlock Card: Combine conversational videos with a call-to-action that invites people to Tweet your promotional hashtag and message to unlock exclusive video content.
- Video Website Card: Create a promoted video featuring an auto-playing video, headline, and a URL Twitter users can click to go to your website.
- In-Stream Video Ads: Show a video ad before, after, or during other videos, including live-streamed video, to target people while they’re already viewing related video content.
Twitter video specs and requirements
Each Twitter video type has a its own specs and requirements. Here’s a rundown of must-know Twitter video specs.
- 0.5 to 140 seconds.
- Select advertisers can post promoted videos up to 10 minutes long.
- Mobile: MP4 and MOV video formats.
- Web: MP4 video format, with H264 format with AAC audio.
Twitter video file size
- You can upload videos up to 15 MB (sync) / 512 MB (async) within the length limits.
- Longer promoted videos should ideally be no more than 1GB for optimal performance.
Twitter video file resolution
- Minimum: 32 x 32.
- Maximum: 1280 x 1024.
Twitter video aspect ratio
- Between 1:3 and 3:1.
Twitter video frame rate and bitrate
- Maximum frame rate: 40 fps.
- Maximum bitrate: 25 Mbps.
How to use Twitter video
From recording a quick video within the app to streaming a live event, here’s a quick guide to how to get started the various Twitter video types. You can even use Hootsuite to schedule tweets with video.
How to record and share a Twitter video from the mobile app
- Tap the Tweet icon.
- Tap the photo icon.
- Tap the video icon to access video mode.
- Hold down the record icon to record a video and release to stop recording.
- To add more to your video, press and hold the record icon again.
- Drag up video clips to delete part of your video, and edit their order by dragging and moving your video clips sideways.
- Tap Done when you’re happy with the video.
- Preview your video by tapping the play button, and do any final edits.
- Tap Tweet to share your video with a message.
How to import and share a Twitter video on…
