Since taking on the video work for The New Chitlin Circuit podcast, my perspective on the must-haves for a social media promotional video have changed slightly. These new lessons are additions to the ones I shared in the first version of this post.
Music!
If the TikTok kids have taught me anything, it’s the importance of music in a video, either as a background noise or as part of the narrative itself.
Above: an older, music-free version of my videos. Social media video to promote The New Chitlin Circuit’s review of “Back to the Goode Life”
Right: New version of video with music. Social media video to promote The New Chitlin Circuit’s review of “School Dance”
Forget the Spoken Audio
As stated in the prior post, the lengthiest part of the editing process is finding the right podcast clip. So why not just skip that step all together?
The new goal of the promo videos is not to promote the podcast, but primarily to promote the film being reviewed on the podcast.
Left: New video format, without podcast audio. Social media video to promote The New Chitlin Circuit review of “Farewell Amor”
Add a Progress Bar
For videos longer than 15-20sec, a progress bar helps retain the viewer. Let the viewer know how much of their time you’re asking for.
Left: Example of progress bar use. Social media video to promote The New Chitlin Circuit review of “The Light Between Us”
Splurge on the Graphics
The biggest improvement in my video work has been in the motion graphics and transitions. Along with getting stronger at keyframing out my own graphics, I’ve really learned the value of purchasing motion graphic packs. It gives the video a much more polished look.
The old, endcard graphic simply displayed The New Chitlin Circuit logo. While the new one provides more actionable information for the viewer stream the podcast and watch the movie.
Left: Example of an original graphic endcard, designed by me. Social media video to promote The New Chitlin Circuit review of “Cold, Hard Truth”
And the best part of all the lessons I’ve learned so far is…that I’m still learning! Always will be.
multimediaLex 