Video on Facebook is growing at an alarmingly rapid pace. Last year alone video views on the world’s leading social network grew by 94% in the US, and 75% worldwide. The amount of videos published last year increased by 360% compared to the year before, which led to an average of more than 1 billion video views every day.
Half of all people who visit Facebook in the US will watch at least one video, while 76% of Facebook users in the US say Facebook is their primary source for discovering new videos. It’s also worth noting that as of October 2014, Facebook surpassed YouTube for most desktop video views per month.
In light of these statistics, Facebook took to their company blog yesterday to explain what this growth means for content creators.
The company reminds us that videos shared need to fit in with other content that tends to get shared in the news feed in order for it to get watched and passed on to others:
“The most important thing to remember when creating video for Facebook is that it will be a part of News Feed. As a creator, you should be conscious that people will discover your video in News Feed… Your video needs to fit in, and it needs to be something that your audience will want to watch and share.”
The introduction of auto-play for Facebook videos represents a new challenge for content creators, as the company emphasizes the importance of creating videos that grab attention from the very first frame:
“Shorter, timely video content tends to do well in News Feed. Keep in mind that auto-play videos play silently in News Feed until someone taps to hear sound, so videos that catch people’s attention even without sound often find success.”
To gain a better understanding of what kinds of videos resonate most with your audience, look into your video insights to learn what’s getting watched the most and what isn’t going over so well.
Considering the incredible rise of video content on Facebook, it’s a wonder why the company hasn’t yet introduced a way for people to create their own videos. You can take your own photos with the Facebook mobile app, so why not videos as well? A tap-and-hold video creator similar to Instagram and Vine would be a great addition to the Facebook app this year.
