10 Common LinkedIn Video Mistakes

Have you made video a part of your LinkedIn marketing strategy? If not, it’s time to, because LinkedIn users are 20x more likely to re-share a video post. Video has become a crucial part of a comprehensive digital marketing program, but there are certainly best practices that evolve over time, as well as common pitfalls. 

Common LinkedIn Video Mistakes

1. Relying Only on YouTube Hosted Videos

Many marketers only load videos to YouTube and then share them on LinkedIn. However, there are some benefits to uploading the videos that you want to share directly onto LinkedIn. For one thing, YouTube videos don’t autoplay in the LinkedIn feed. Additionally, when someone clicks a YouTube video from within their feed, it takes them away from LinkedIn and onto a completely different site. That can cost you in terms of engagement. 

Hosting videos directly on LinkedIn garners more attention, interaction, and shares. You can leverage the potential of organic, native, in-feed videos by developing a posting schedule and sticking to it. You can also apply tagging and hashtag best practices to maximize attention. Remember: go for quality over quantity when it comes to video. Produce high-quality content that’s created especially for your LinkedIn audience, and they’ll be more likely to interact with your videos and share them with their own connections. 

2. Running LinkedIn Video Ads Without a Clear Goal

Many firms have found success using LinkedIn ads to increase awareness, drive traffic, and generate leads. However, if you don’t know exactly what you want to accomplish, you’re less likely to see results. What is it that you want the viewer to do once they’ve watched your video? Are you hoping that they recognize and remember your firm name, sign up for your newsletter, or register for an upcoming webinar? If you haven’t clearly articulated the next step for viewers, you can’t create a video that organically leads to that step. Before producing your video, decide on a single goal and then shape your content around it. Include the advantages of taking the desired action and a clear CTA. 

Related: Law Firm Guide to LinkedIn Advertising eBook

3. Ignoring Audience Engagement

Engagement is a critical element of LinkedIn strategy, and video is no exception. Getting views, likes, shares, and comments mean your audience is highly engaged and signals to LinkedIn that your video is generating conversation and should appear more in people’s feeds. 

How do you take engagement into account when creating your video? Make sure to use a strong, clear CTA that lets viewers know exactly how they can join the conversation. Make sure to include language about why to watch the video as well as why they might want to keep the conversation going. Then, make sure to include things that can expand your post’s reach like a LinkedIn hashtag and mentions of people or companies. 

Then, don’t take the engagement for granted. If you’re not responding when people interact with you, you’ll lose out on many of the benefits and miss the chance to humanize your firm. Say thank you if people say positive things, and provide any further information someone might ask for. You can also hop into the conversation yourself and elaborate on topics or ask follow-up questions. 

4. Creating Unrelated Video Content

It’s essential to remember that LinkedIn is primarily for doing business. Though technically social media, the platform is different from Facebook, Instagram, etc. LinkedIn offers its own algorithms and preferences. While occasional off-topic videos can add a little personality to your firm’s presence, too many of them will take away from the intended purposes of LinkedIn content. Content should focus on your intended audience, whether that’s your ideal client, warm leads, or even job prospects. Speak to the questions that they’re asking, current events or trends that they care about, etc. Having a thorough understanding of your audience based on LinkedIn demographic data is important here. 

5. Only Creating Long-Form Content

Nowadays, apps like TikTok and Instagram have made short-form videos more popular than ever. Now, consumers often prefer short biteable videos. This doesn’t mean there isn’t a place for longer videos, but consider creating short snackable videos as well.

6. Not Having a Call to Action

Your video should always end with clear next steps. The CTA doesn’t always have to be one geared towards a warm lead, like telling viewers to book a consult. You can have a CTA that leads the watcher to read a blog, download something, or comment below.

7. Missing Opportunities for Video

Think about what kinds of things you already post on LinkedIn. Would you be able to add a video to those posts? For example, if you’re posting on LinkedIn to promote your blog, you may think the job is done after you write your caption and link to the blog. However, consider creating a short promo video that displays the title of the blog, what it covers, and a CTA to accompany this post.

8. Not Optimizing for Mobile

Most users are going to be viewing their LinkedIn feed on their mobile devices. Make sure your videos are optimized for mobile. Text should be legible and clear. Subtitles should be added. The filming should be close up enough that it can be viewed on a small screen.

9. Lack of Keywords

Keywords aren’t just for SEO; they should also be used in your videos, so they can get easily found. Add keywords throughout your video, its title, and its alt text. However, don’t overuse keywords or your video could be perceived as spammy.

10. Thinking You Don’t Have the Resources

You may have been holding off on creating new video content because you don’t think you have the resources to do so. This is something that holds many firms back, especially with the rise of remote work. However, there are many free or cost-efficient tools that can be leveraged. You can create unique and captivating videos using Canva, or you can outsource video creation with a tool like Videoblast. And try using these tools to help with editing.

Takeaway: 

If you’re looking for things not to do, review this list. If you’re looking for tactics that drive compelling and effective LinkedIn video marketing, reach out to our experts. We can help your firm connect with your audience across all social media channels so that you can create awareness and generate leads. Contact us today to get started.

This post has been edited and republished from Dec. 3, 2021.