Content marketing

13 Tips for Compelling B2B Video Content on LinkedIn

Woman standing in front of a laptop with a camera and ring light.

Video is a huge part of the LinkedIn content experience. 

Videos are proven to capture audiences’ attention in their feeds, and that audience is 20x more likely to share them than any other type of post. It’s also an important strategy for engaging C-suite decision-makers and senior influencers, and LinkedIn is fast becoming one of this group’s most trusted sources of video content.

Video on LinkedIn isn’t just increasingly important to B2B content marketing strategies. It’s also an increasingly versatile content format. Our video-sharing feature makes it easy to share videos in the LinkedIn feed directly from your phone. You’re also able to edit videos on desktops, laptops or tablets and upload them from those devices. You can even link to the video stories, interviews, and other content that you’re sharing on YouTube in order to have those videos play automatically in your LinkedIn feed.

We continue to expand our video offerings with features like live-streaming, interactive virtual events and more. 

However, you’re capturing and sharing video on LinkedIn, planning a video content strategy that fits the audience and the environment you’re aiming at will help you maximize the engagement you generate. Here are 13 of our expert’s top tips for utilizing the full potential of LinkedIn video:

1. Think outside the box when it comes to adding value with video

With more flexibility when it comes to how you capture B2B video for LinkedIn, it pays to think laterally about the ways it can add value for your audiences. B2B video content should never just mean another talking-head interview. 

How about sharing the sights and sounds of conference events you’re attending? Filming a short video guide to a hack that could save your audience time? Recording your views on the current issues in an off-the-cuff style? Or demonstrating a new piece of technology? Remember, you can easily try different video content styles and optimize your strategy around those that drive the most engagement. Experiment!

2. Be timely

The ability to upload video straight from your phone invites you to be more flexible and creative about the role it plays in your content strategy. It also enables you to turn around video content quickly to help set the agenda around news and events.

3. Plan for mobile viewing

LinkedIn research shows that 91% of our members watch videos on mobile devices, at least part of the time. In fact, 57% of all engagement with LinkedIn content takes place on mobile. That means your chances of engagement increase significantly when your video is designed to deliver a good viewing experience on a phone. 

If a video you’re shooting doesn’t require a full landscape format, consider capturing it as vertical video instead – it will save your audience from having to twist their phones in order to watch it.

4. Record horizontally or vertically – but not both at once

Whether you’re recording your video vertically or horizontally, don’t change your mind halfway through. Be consistent in how you frame your shot to avoid irritating viewers.

5. Keep things steady with a tripod

If you’re creating video content by filming yourself, consider investing in a simple tripod to keep the camera (or phone) steady. You’ll get a more professional result.

6. Use microphones to cut out background noise

When you’re recording video, be aware of the noise environment around you. Too much background sound feels unprofessional – and it makes for a frustrating viewing experience. It’s also relatively easy to reduce, using either a headset or an external microphone. 

You can find our guidance on creating professional video content from home, including tips for audio, lighting, production, and more. 

7. Learn some simple video editing techniques

Invest some time in learning how to use simple video editing software such as iMovie or Camtasia. Taking the time to edit videos before uploading them helps you control the pace and the length of your film, ensure you keep your audience’s attention and take a more creative approach to your content.

8. Add subtitles if you can

Our research shows that only around a third of people watching video on mobile always have the sound on. Only around half of those watching on desktop do. This makes subtitles a valuable addition to any video that you share in the feed.

9. Be creative, be different, be funny

An most interesting finding from a FT study about how executives consume content was the value that C-suite audiences place on humor and creativity in video content. It’s worth bearing in mind that senior executives often engage with the LinkedIn feed outside of traditional office hours. In that context, they’re far more likely to respond to something that intrigues them or makes them laugh. Don’t be afraid to aim for the funny bone.

10. Don’t demand too much of your audience’s time

The maximum length for native video in the LinkedIn feed is 10 minutes. However, the optimum length is usually much shorter. 

For all the engagement that it generates and the entertainment it can provide, watching video is not the most time-efficient way of accessing information. Senior audiences in particular don’t want to watch more than three minutes in order to find out what you have to say – and they are likely to check the length of the video when they first start viewing it. Keep things short to ensure decision-makers make the decision to stick with you.

11. Make the first six seconds count

It’s not just the overall length of the video that matters. The growing consensus in the marketing blogosphere is that you most likely have only the first six seconds to prove that your video is worth watching. Make those seconds count by getting straight to the point. 

Work in a hook designed to capture people’s attention if you can, or use subtitles to signpost why what they are watching matters. Traditional intro boards or bumpers (where you display introductory copy on screen before the video begins) are likely to cut into your six-second window. They are worth dispensing with if you can.

12. Break your video into chapters for sequenced Sponsored Content

One way to control the length of video content is to edit your video into shorter, focused chapters that can be shared in sequence on LinkedIn. This is a great approach for Sponsored Content campaigns, especially when you promote more than one video simultaneously and allow LinkedIn algorithms to optimize your campaign around the best-performing content.

13. Get text and video working in partnership

Don’t rely on video to do all of the work for you. Use the text of your updates to introduce, tease and frame the content that you’re sharing. Also bear in mind that video isn’t always the best format for communicating detailed information in depth. Play to its strengths around engaging, compelling and entertaining content, and it will deliver even better results for you.

Looking to take your B2B video strategy on LinkedIn to the next level? Learn about Video Ads and what they can do for your marketing.