Vertical short-form video is becoming increasingly popular, largely due to the growing consumption of content on mobile devices.
Experts like Zoetica Media founder Kami Huyse are championing this format. Kami has long recommended PR and marketing professionals use short-form video for their clients and their own brand-building. See her blog post Unlock the Secrets to Creating Standout Short-Form Videos, for example.
In a recent livestream, she shared why vertical video in particular is a tool everyone should adopt. “Vertical video right now is really important for us all to master as social media and marketing professionals,” she says. Vertical video is optimized for mobile devices and how most users consume content these days.
LinkedIn’s Push Towards Vertical Video
Kami is no stranger to video. She’s been successfully using it for over a decade to build and nurture her community, as well as promote Zoetica Media. It’s why she paid extra attention to the notifications she received from LinkedIn “about how vertical video was going to be huge, huge, huge huge for LinkedIn and how it already is.”
She admits “it's something that I need to master better too. I like… long form, I like talking to you [in horizontal format], I like having my live streams. So this is my challenge to myself, this month and ongoing, is to put vertical video in the center of our strategies, and so I want to bring you along for the ride.”
Video is the fastest growing format on LinkedIn, with uploads up 34% year-over-year, the company recently shared. In fact, there is 1.4 times more engagement with video compared to other formats on the platform. Kami sees this as an enormous opportunity, noting that “there's kind of an open market for you right now.” She recommends focusing on creating “very valuable content that people can use to increase their business.”
The social media platform offers an entire vertical feed on mobile, enabling people to share their thoughts and expertise in a more engaging format. “I want you to definitely start looking at that, and playing around with it, and just getting familiar with it,” she says.
She explains how to find LinkedIn videos on your mobile device:
• Open the LinkedIn app
• Look for the “Video” button on the bottom of your screen
• Click on the “Video” button
• See the video on the main screen
• See additional recommended “Videos for you”
Kami suggests that “if you're really interested in [learning] what are other people doing…I'd spend some time on your app on your phone…what you like, what you don't like, taking notes, taking ideas.”
Some tips for vertical video success include creating shorter videos to hold viewers’ attention, enabling captions so viewers watching without sound can follow along, and making sure the video has a professional feel appropriate for LinkedIn.
Kami’s January Vertical Video Challenge for Consultants and Coaches
To jumpstart your vertical video journey, Kami is hosting a special event from January 21-23 that you won’t want to miss: the Vertical Video Challenge for Consultants and Coaches.
Whether you’re showcasing your expertise or creating next-level content for clients, it’s time to own the spotlight. You’ll gain confidence, polish your style, and create videos that engage and inspire–even if being on camera feels outside your usual comfort zone.
Best of all, this challenge will help you put together an entire month’s worth of vertical video in mere hours!
On Day 1, participants will nail their brand voice and plan their vertical video content. On Day 2 they will script out at five or more videos, create a concrete plan to shoot the content, and write the video scripts. On Day 3 they will shoot the videos and then plan the video editing phase. A Bonus Day 4, held on January 28, will allow participants to share a sampling of their videos and learn from each other’s successes.
Join Kami’s Vertical Video Challenge for Consultants and Coaches from January 21-23. Register now to secure your spot: https://pxl.to/verticalvideo25.