Using Short Videos to Grow Your Business

[Andy Black]

Local Businesses... Should Be Using Short Videos?

"The Needle In a Haystack"
​

Recently, I've been speaking with wellness centers and health entrepreneurs like chiropractors and physical therapists in my state (New Jersey).

Almost every single one of the doctor entrepreneurs I've spoken with and seen on social media have one thing in common..

They all are excruciatingly bad at social media.

I don't say that to be rude, but rather I say it because I spotted an opportunity.

A couple days ago I was on a call with my mom, who is also a chiropractor in the New Jersey area.

She is kind of in that mode where she is posting on social media (mostly because of me..lol), but it's not a professional thing that is taken very serious.

She proceeded to tell me that 4 of the customers she's gotten in the past month that came into her office came from Instagram Reels.

Meaning her video popped up on people's pages that were located in her exact location.

I was honestly in shock.. Because the reels she posts aren't that great.. and she doesn't necessarily post them that often, maybe once every other day.

And then I had an epiphany about local businesses using social media..!

Immediately, I made a pretty bold projection.

I told my mom that the first chiropractor to be ahead of the curve and start taking social media seriously on the BIG 4: TikTok, Instagram reels, YouTube shorts, and Facebook Reels..

Will become the GO-TO doctor within a large radius of her area.. Just because everybody else sucks so bad!

I mean it's not surprising, right? The people running the practices are the same ones who decided to open up a local chiropractic practice... inside of a sea of local chiropractic practices.

So most of them just don't know marketing or even care that much to learn it.

But for local businesses, I'm not even just suggesting that you post videos and hope that they reach people..

I'm saying that you post engaging videos (that will reach people if you post enough.. and distribute enough) and then instead of doing it to just get inbound viewers..

Use this awesome-looking social media page with super educational content (which none of your competitors are doing because they don't know how) as a credibility statement, and then do hand-to-hand combat to get people in your area to click on your page..

My philosophy is that if you post content like how a good YouTuber posts content for their audience, the people who click on your page will have never seen anyone like you in their local area posting on social media and helping people the way you do.

Naturally, this will make people trust your business more than any single business out there.

You may be wondering what I mean by hand-to-hand combat?

All it means is, after you have a portfolio of awesome educational content posted..

1. simply go to any social media platform that you're posting on..
2. type in the exact location of your local business in the search bar
3. leave thoughtful comments on people's posts in your area

This will cause people to click your page and see something they don't usually see.

The moral of the story is, I told my mom "If you're getting 4 customers in a month from barely doing anything, imagine what could happen if you started doing (what I just said above) and started taking social media more seriously?"

Hope this was valuable

Mike

We specialise in local lead gen with Google Ads and are starting to make videos for some of them because Performance Max campaigns use videos on YouTube. Being able to create short videos that work organically means you can also put ad spend behind them. It's hard enough for local businesses to run standard text Google Ads campaigns, never mind create videos as well. Video is a great barrier to entry once you're on the other side.

 

[Andy Black]

I posted this in my YouTube/TikTok progress thread:


Friends have asked how to create short talking head videos. I've braindumped below.

Let me know if you have any questions, or if you want me to create a video going into more detail.

---

WHY DAILY SHORTS:

Creating shorter videos makes it easier to put the reps in.

Don't batch it up initially because you'll be rapidly learning and adjusting.

Consider creating, editing, and publishing once a day.

Find a daily rhythm where you review yesterday's video and create, edit, and publish today's video.

YouTube Shorts are vertical videos under 60s - they've a lot more reach at the moment than normal YouTube videos.

MY CURRENT PROCESS:

Help one person and keep them in mind when you speak.

The best camera is the one in your pocket. Use your phone, it's better than your webcam.

Improve audio by using your headphones. If it's wired then tuck it into your top instead of dangling it from your ear.

Consider a cheap lapel mic. I'm using a Movo PM10.

Consider keeping your initial videos under 15s. Most viewers on TikTok and YouTube Shorts won't know you. Viewers on Facebook and LinkedIn will likely already know you, but still try to keep it short. Asking people to watch even just 60s of you talking is an ASK. Tutorials can be longer.

Wear something without large writing or patterns so the captions are easier to read. I'm wearing a black hoodie as I can throw it over whatever I'm wearing,

Stop "clearing your throat" saying things like "Hey guys" or "In this video you're going to learn ...".

Start as close to the end as possible, and learn about hooks.

Hook in 3s if you can.

Try to look at the lens or near the lens so it looks like your looking directly at the viewer.

A teleprompter will help, although takes a bit of getting used to. I use the Speechway teleprompter app - it's free and allows me to resize and move the text below my lens.

Try to say max 7 words at a time as that's where you can make cuts.

E.g. "Whenever I struggle in business or creating short videos I remember a line by Mother Theresa" could be delivered as:

"Whenever I struggle in business"
"or creating short videos"
"I remember a line by Mother Theresa"

Do a take the whole way through from one location, redoing sentences if you're not happy with them. Then move or turn and repeat. Do multiple takes end to end with different backdrops. You'll get smoother and more natural, you'll have options to choose from when editing, and you can use different backgrounds for different phrases to keep people engaged.

Upload the file(s) to a Google Drive folder created specifically for that video.

Download from Google Drive to your PC. (You now have a backup of your raw files on Google Drive.)

Import your video clips into Descript and transcribe. Descript allows you to edit the transcription to edit the video.

Add fancy captions. Everyone seems to be using "The Big Font". Google it and download then install.

An advantage of The Big Font is it's in uppercase. You don't have to worry about capitalisation in your captions, which means you can move faster.

I remove the commas and periods/full-stops in the captions too.

Export and publish.

Time of day matters and could be different per platform, although I like the advice that the best time of day to publish is when you've finished exporting.

 

[Taktik]

Wow, what an interesting topic. Thank you so much for bringing this to my attention. I have never looked into this until now.

I have a question: I see the potential of this approach for personal brands.
But what about other brands?
What if talking head videos are just not an option (for whatever reason)?

Would it still be possible to produce lots of engaging short videos that are still limited in terms of effort? (After all, that's a big advantage with talking head videos).

If so, what might that look like?

Thanks.

 

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[mikecarlooch]

Wow, what an interesting topic. Thank you so much for bringing this to my attention. I have never looked into this until now.

I have a question: I see the potential of this approach for personal brands.
But what about other brands?
What if talking head videos are just not an option (for whatever reason)?

Would it still be possible to produce lots of engaging short videos that are still limited in terms of effort? (After all, that's a big advantage with talking head videos).

If so, what might that look like?

Thanks.

Yes absolutely you can

Remember, all you really need to do with short videos is show someone things that interest them for a long enough period of time that causes them to watch the entire video.

Sometimes, just subtitles on a screen may be enough to achieve this if the topic is interesting enough.

But what you'd typically want to do is add relevant B-Roll content + subtitles, and what I've seen work is whenever someone says something of interest, switch the B-Roll to something related to that particular subject.

 

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[Andy Black]

I think a lot of people get too caught up in tactics

I see many people in my industry (the video industry) SWEAR that all of these tactics they're using in the videos help them get views, but the truth is no one has a damn clue that a little red arrow pointing to something in a video helps them get more people to watch.

I used to be into all that but the more I look at what's actually happening, all of that stuff is BS.

That's not to say that structuring a video doesn't work. It should always be structured, but it should be structured and presented in a way where the audience cannot tell that it's structured to get their attention.

Some of the most viewed short videos I've ever seen on social media just have the following:

1. a hook
2. a charismatic personality
3. a story
4. a fast pace without any boring moments
5. wait till the end to give the full answer
6. a polarizing viewpoint
7. subtitles

I'm over the hooks already. Same as the fecking frantic pace of the captions.

It's ok though... swiping up is easy.

Three of my favourite TikTok "talking head" accounts are below.

What they have in common:

• A calm delivery.
• Charismatic.
• Authentic and unique.
• They talk direct to the camera/you.
• Each video is created FOR short video. They're not repurposed from longer videos.
• Not necessarily polarising, but they stand for something.
• They've something to say (the most important part surely?).

1. Adam Cam
2. Grey Beard Actual
3. Lara McCulloch

 

[mikecarlooch]

Ha. While I was reviewing the stats I thought I may as well tweet about it...

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1575050779521523712

View: https://twitter.com/AndyBlackJnr/status/1575050779521523712

Do you notice organic reach using Twitter?

I've never tried, but I heard people are getting some great attention using twitter threads

 

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[Andy Black]

Do you notice organic reach using Twitter?

I've never tried, but I heard people are getting some great attention using twitter threads

I found Twitter poor for reach. You've got to build followers and be super active. You've also got to create good content of course.

I was looking at the data anyway so posted the update to Twitter, LinkedIn, and my Facebook page. I document as I go along.

As well as posting progress updates there, I'm using Twitter as a store of thoughts that I'll turn into video.

 

[Andy Black]

I got this via Linkedin PM today.
It's not like my videos are going viral or anything.

 

[James007Hill]

Had someone on a course I ran at the weekend who said they found me on YouTube via a short I'd done. These short videos work!

I'm really enjoying the process of producing short videos. It will definitely make my long videos better, as I've been amazed at how much stuff I might say in a video, even when I've already done a first edit, that really isn't needed and is just padding.

 

[Andy Black]

Had someone on a course I ran at the weekend who said they found me on YouTube via a short I'd done. These short videos work!

That's great! Proof they can bring business.

I'm really enjoying the process of producing short videos. It will definitely make my long videos better, as I've been amazed at how much stuff I might say in a video, even when I've already done a first edit, that really isn't needed and is just padding.

I found the same writing in this forum, creating Google Ads, and even writing on Twitter. Constraints are our friends.

 

[mikecarlooch]

Had someone on a course I ran at the weekend who said they found me on YouTube via a short I'd done. These short videos work!

I'm really enjoying the process of producing short videos. It will definitely make my long videos better, as I've been amazed at how much stuff I might say in a video, even when I've already done a first edit, that really isn't needed and is just padding.

Awesome!

 

[Andy Black]

Hold on...

I was scrolling through TikTok on my computer.

I'm obviously watching fitness stuff for this to pop up in my feed, but that's not what's interesting.

1) It's landscape.
2) It's 3 minutes.

TikTok - Make Your Day

 

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[StrikingViper69]

This thread has convinced me to give shorts/TT a try. Editing my last music video into 2-3 shorts and seeing how it works out.

Edit: 45 minutes of trying to make things that should be simple work, I remembered why I hate social media

 

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[MitchC]

TikTok shows my videos in the UK and Ireland. YouTube shows them in the US.

I wonder why TikTok does that, and how I'd get my videos to show in the US. Would they get a lot more volume over there compared to the UK and Ireland?

There are agencies that do this, maybe someone on upwork could do it for you

I’ve also seen dropshippers using multiple phones, multiple sims and multiple accounts because some will just randomly hit the algorithm way better.

It makes sense too since you aren’t really building a following on the platform, why not just have 5 different accounts on 5 different phones and post the same video, that’s 5 more chances of it hitting the algorithm

Almost like a DIY Andrew Tate

Also I notice you seem to be ignoring Instagram reels, they are crazy right now for free reach across Instagram and Facebook, you may as well be posting there too if you already have the videos made. I follow a lot of business service companies that I’ve found from Instagram reels and I’ve hired one too.

Here’s an example of one that keeps popping up on my explore. I think she teaches reels actually.

Becky | Social Media Manager and Coach (@thegoldsocial) • Instagram photos and videos

46K Followers, 372 Following, 558 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from Becky | Social Media Manager and Coach (@thegoldsocial)

instagram.com

No affiliation to her at all I don’t even follow her but I see her reels all the time

 

[Andy Black]

There is no doubt that one of the social networking sites with the quickest growth and most users today is YouTube.

Additionally, it supports faster business growth for those who use it.

One of the best strategies to increase traffic to your YouTube videos and expand your channel is to optimize your films for a wider audience.

Keep your audience interested in your material by creating YouTube content that is algorithm-friendly.

Nobody will click on your video if it appears in the suggestion list when someone is watching a video and has a subpar thumbnail.

A YouTube user sees your thumbnail just after the video's title. Your thumbnail must therefore be noticeable.

Don't forget to include thumbnail titles as well.

Lee Carter...

The way you write raises red flags in communities. If you're genuinely here to engage with other forum members then consider changing you're writing style to something more conversational and authentic.

As it is I can't help thinking you're using AI to post poorly formed articles.

 

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[Andy Black]

My current favourite TikTok account.

No captions.
No mic.
No lighting.

Just great story-telling and personality.

And the guy runs a business about sceptic tanks of all things!

TikTok - Make Your Day

 

[Edgar King]

Thanks for this thread as it's in my mind to start creating content.
a question: is there any way to create content without showing yourself talking
not because I'm shy, but because I have no phone (yes, it exists)

I think there's Tiktok for desktop?

 

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[MitchC]

there's some video that I'm producing using just canvas and video stock about stories related to your niche, I will be trying this week and seethe results

do you know any TikTok accounts that make videos without showing their head?

There’s a heap that read reddit stories over video game footage

Or asmr style content where they are making something and only showing their hands or the machine

And stories told with stock footage

If you are a good story teller it really doesn’t matter what the video is, just add some footage that’s satisfying to watch

 

[Andy Black]

I had a play with Opus Clips by pointing it at one of my 8min videos on YouTube.

It came back with 6 short clips. It was cleverly done and they looked good.

However, when you actually watch them they don't really make sense. It pulled out good clips about the problem I'd discussed, but didn't pull out the solution.

Much like ChatGPT often does, it looks and sounds like it's done a great job, but on closer inspection it's just garbage.

 

[Private Witt]

Share your ideas on social media like you're running for president

More tips coming,

This is a great tip, thanks. Id never want to be president though, this would be a disaster, but I'd be thrilled to have a President DeMarco and Vice President Kak.

 

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[Andy Black]

Posting to reels on Instagram and then ticking the box to have them recommended on Facebook is almost like a cheat code to free views, I have no idea why, maybe there’s more inventory on Facebook and less videos? You won’t be able to boost the post if you do that but who cares. One of mine got 2.5m views recently so it happens.

I posted twice to Instagram last week and someone said they weren't reels. Doh.

2.5m views is amazing! 2.5m people saw your reel. Dayum.

 

[Andy Black]

Love this guy's TikTok account, and his loops are a work of art:

TikTok - Make Your Day

 

[Andy Black]

Wow, what an interesting topic. Thank you so much for bringing this to my attention. I have never looked into this until now.

I have a question: I see the potential of this approach for personal brands.
But what about other brands?
What if talking head videos are just not an option (for whatever reason)?

Would it still be possible to produce lots of engaging short videos that are still limited in terms of effort? (After all, that's a big advantage with talking head videos).

If so, what might that look like?

Thanks.

TikTok - Make Your Day

 

[MitchC]

Wow, what an interesting topic. Thank you so much for bringing this to my attention. I have never looked into this until now.

I have a question: I see the potential of this approach for personal brands.
But what about other brands?
What if talking head videos are just not an option (for whatever reason)?

Would it still be possible to produce lots of engaging short videos that are still limited in terms of effort? (After all, that's a big advantage with talking head videos).

If so, what might that look like?

Thanks.

Login • Instagram

Welcome back to Instagram. Sign in to check out what your friends, family & interests have been capturing & sharing around the world.

www.instagram.com

 

[Andy Black]

Got this email today.

Interesting that it's 10 million views and not some watchtime metric. They want to encourage people to get views, not extend watchtime. (That's 10 million views in the last 90 days btw.)





More info here:

• Big News: Shorts revenue sharing and more ways to earn & grow with YPP in 2023 - YouTube Community

 

[DarkZero]

Got this email today.

Interesting that it's 10 million views and not some watchtime metric. They want to encourage people to get views, not extend watchtime. (That's 10 million views in the last 90 days btw.)



More info here:

• Big News: Shorts revenue sharing and more ways to earn & grow with YPP in 2023 - YouTube Community

Yeah this is a huge update that will get YT competing heavily against TikTok now. It works best for them to encourage people to get views because the watchtime is so short and variable with Shorts. Also, it has more to do with how they plug in advertisers. Unlike with long-form, they won't plug advertisers inside the videos. The ads appear as people move from video to video. If someone's video is being viewed a ton, then that means YT is putting that Short in front of more and more people, and they can put the ads around that video because it's more likely people will see those ads since that Short is being seen a lot.

Also, for those questioning the usefulness of this short term video. I have a client with a local moving business. They are the only business of their niche in their city posting on social with short-form content. 80% of their inquiries come from people who have seen their content. I made them conduct a survey on this so that we know which ways to double down on video and leverage them. Their issue is not "how do we get business". Their issue now is "how do we operationalize this for scale".

Brand equity is a serious thing with this. You are building a bank. And the more you build up brand equity, the more you can pull from that in the future. I said this 10 years ago to clients. They didn't care. 5 years ago people started getting on board but still many laughed. Today, they still laugh. 5 years from now, they'll still laugh. But the ones who did take action over the past decade are the ones who are glad they did.

Is it necessary to do this type of social content to grow a business? No. Does it help depending on your niche? Yes. I have a few clients where social is not necessary for them. Annual revenues for one client sits at only around $20mm and they work in a close-knit, highly specialized B2B industry (machinery). Not necessary for them, but we still were able to help them leverage other ways. Short-form video is just not necessary for them.

Most people would be better suited to hire a creative director or marketer and have them tell them what videos to produce and get them produced.

Also, 99% of people just need this for video editing and captions: Captions

I used to use capcut and descript. I still use Premiere for specific types of edits.

But this does everything for 99% of people. Dirt cheap. Easy to use. Better than the rest. Thank me later.

 

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[AceVentures]

Curious what you guys think of this:

TikTok - Make Your Day

Makes sense - Gen Z aren't necessarily brain dead, they just got exposed to this form of content before most of us.

I discover content on Twitter and IG, makes sense that Gen Z discover theirs using TikTok.

This approach to marketing is well balanced imo - not focusing entirely on one or the other.

I also find it fascinating how humans get into so much passionate debate when a duality between ideas reveals itself.

 

[James007Hill]

Great thread (and related "figuring out" threads), loving the learnings about short videos.

As a result I'm going to try scripting out some short videos, and also look into doing such videos around answering common questions in my niche. I will also use a teleprompter to keep me on track. I will try to think about hooks and storytelling principles too.

 

[Andy Black]

Great thread (and related "figuring out" threads), loving the learnings about short videos.

As a result I'm going to try scripting out some short videos, and also look into doing such videos around answering common questions in my niche. I will also use a teleprompter to keep me on track. I will try to think about hooks and storytelling principles too.

Thanks! I'm glad some people get value from watching me scrambling around trying to figure stuff out.

Feel free to post scripts in here for feedback. I may do the same.

As for hooks, I feel I'm starting to see them too much, or maybe some people don't use them naturally. I keep wondering what would happen if we go straight to the meat.

Mr Beast says what the video's about in the first sentence. "We put 5 million balls in a swimming pool!"

 

[James007Hill]

Thanks! I'm glad some people get value from watching me scrambling around trying to figure stuff out.

Feel free to post scripts in here for feedback. I may do the same.

As for hooks, I feel I'm starting to see them too much, or maybe some people don't use them naturally. I keep wondering what would happen if we go straight to the meat.

Mr Beast says what the video's about in the first sentence. "We put 5 million balls in a swimming pool!"

Be under no illusion you are providing a lot of value to a lot of people by documenting the process!

I know what you mean about hooks, it probably is people not using them naturally or just "trying too hard" to capture attention at the beginning and making it look a bit ridiculous. Sometimes it pays to keep things simple I think. Ultimately if a video starts by making it clear it's going to help me or entertain me (no matter how it does that), then I'm hooked! And I'll keep watching as long as that promise is delivered upon in a no fluff style.

 

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