I wish I could say businesses could ignore video and just do pictures and statuses on Facebook like the good ol’ days, but things are evolving and they’re changing quickly. In fact, even the changes are changing quickly as the platforms try to copy each other!
Recently, I wrote about how Instagram announced it’s no longer going to be a photo-sharing platform, and as the platforms move even further toward video, it’s becoming clear that it’s time to be on video as a business if you’re trying to reach audiences for your organic social media. It’s time to come out of the shadows.
Yes I know it’s uncomfortable but don’t worry, as a person who usually produces behind the scenes, I’m doing it too.
I’m doing a 30 day video series on TikTok and Reels on how to get your face on those platforms successfully, so it’s a great time to hop on if you’re not! It’s also great even if you’re on it because I’m going to be sharing my tools and tricks that I use to produce content on those platforms. You can follow me on TikTok here and on Instagram here.
Before we get started on how to get started, I want to share why you should consider being on these platforms:
- I got one of my clients on Reels for the first time this spring and one of the reels I created went viral, getting nearly 5 million views. That’s great, right?! But what’s greater? Doubling their sales and quadrupling their web traffic. So when people say you can’t make money off organic social media and that organic social media is dead, I can tell you for a fact that it is not!
- Because Instagram is pushing Reels so hard, Reels is the best way to grow your Instagram account right now.
- Because Reels is similar to TikTok, you can be on both without that much extra effort. However, if you want to pick one platform and do it well, PICK ONE. That’s fine too! To me, it’s more about becoming comfortable on video as a business, how to produce the videos simply and meaningfully, and how to leverage these platforms to make more money.
So let’s not even talk about how to do it well yet, we’ll get there over the next 30 days. Let’s talk about how to feel comfortable there in the first place.
Here are the things you need to do to get started:
- Obviously, first you want to get on the platforms, which means downloading the apps and signing up and creating an account. You may already be on there as a consumer. Bonus! A “Creator” account on Instagram give more access to more of the trending sounds and music. A business account with the sub-category “entrepreneur” also gets the same features. Business accounts have limited music & sound access. On TikTok, a regular account gives access to all sounds/music.
- Try to have your business name the same across all platforms.
- Scroll scroll scroll. Before you get started creating content, get to know the platforms. Press all the buttons! On Instagram, find the Reels tab and start scrolling through and taking note of what creators are doing, short videos, music, talking, what they’ve done to make you watch, what sounds and music keeps popping up over and over again, what’s popular. Save sounds that you like and open up notepad (or whereever you jot down your ideas) and start saving links to Reels you like so you can use them as inspiration later. On TikTok, do the same thing. I like to look through the Discover page to see the hashtags, sounds, and trends that are on there, and I look through the For You Page, which is content that will eventually be curated to show you the stuff you like (algorithms!) Once you start following people, there’s a “following” page where you can see the content only from the people you’re following.
- Go look to see if businesses you consider competitors are on there. Look at what they’re doing! See if it’s getting views or likes. See if you can do better! But don’t get caught up in the comparison game. Use it only as a data point! Otherwise, you’ll get overwhelmed and paralyzed and not create content. I’ve been there, don’t do that! Creating is the only way to grow.
- If your competitors are on there, that’s your sign to get on there! If they’re not on there, that’s your sign to get on before they do!
- Once you feel comfortable, start creating. IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE PERFECT. DO IT ANYWAY. If you don’t want to do it yourself, hire someone – outsource it so you can focus on your business. By now, since you’ve been scrolling, you’ll know you can have a successful 7 second video! It doesn’t take much!
- Build in “research” time every day. I say build it in because if you don’t cut yourself off, you’ll find yourself caught in the vortex and scrolling till 4 a.m. Don’t do that! You have a business to run. (ha)
Yes, a lot of this information is super basic, but we are starting at the very beginning and you’d be surprised how many businesses ask me where to get started. So if you’re further ahead, stay tuned, there’s more for you too! I still VERY MUCH do steps 3-7 on a daily basis.
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