11 Effective Social Media Video Editing Tips for Beginners 

Undoubtedly, social media has emerged as one of the most potent platforms for sharing content with a mass audience. Amidst the numerous content formats, though, one type steals the show. That is, video content.

Videos are impactful, shareable, engaging, and, most importantly, convey messages like nothing else. However, to optimize videos for social media, one needs to edit them in an effective manner.

Hence, today’s insightful blog will discuss the tips for effective social media video editing. By the end of this engaging read, readers will know the specific tips for creating attention-grabbing and compelling social media videos

So, let’s embark on this exciting journey and leverage the power of effective video editing.

11 tips for effective social media video editing

This segment will explain the most essential video editing tricks for social media to maximize the impact of the content. Follow these tips and get your desired outcome.

Also, if you are a professional social media video editor, these tips can greatly enhance your workflow in an optimal way.

1. Create a hooking intro

   There’s A LOT of content on social media. So, you must hook the audience within the first 3-5 seconds so they stay and watch the whole video. The following are some ways to get them interested:

   • Hint at the topics covered in the video
   • Create a sense of mystery
   • Make a promise or guarantee
   • Announce a reveal at the end
   • Offer a sneak peak
   • Show video highlights

   After the hook, add the clips that contain the main topic of the video and ensure that the content adds value for the viewers.

2. Optimize it for mobile devices

   Make sure the videos are optimized for mobile viewing. However, if you wonder how to make videos for social media optimized for mobile viewing, keep the ideal aspect ratio (as per the social media platform), and use clear, legible texts for better readability.

3. Incorporate closed captions/subtitles

   Closed captions (CC) or subtitles make any video all the more engaging and accessible. So when editing your video, properly synchronize the captions or subtitles with the video to deliver the message to the audience effectively

4. Adhere to the branding style

   Video editors must always maintain brand consistency, namely color theme, brand logo, brand fonts, and the like, within the video. This reinforces brand identity and creates a better brand recall factor.

5. Incorporate CTA buttons

   This is extremely crucial. During editing, make sure you put a call-to-action button at the end of the video. A CTA encourages viewers to take action, like subscribe, become a member, like, share, comment, etc. Hence, the messaging must also be extremely compelling.

6. Experiment with different editing styles and transitions

   Different editing styles, effective transitions, etc., are the key elements to making a video look exciting and engaging. Try using transitions like fade in/fade out, dissolve, L-cut, J-cut, Iris in/Iris out, star wipe, etc. Professional video editing services agencies offer these high-end transitions using advanced editing tools.

7. Keep it concise

   Prune all the extra content from the video for better impact. Social media users prefer to watch clear, concise, and focused video content. So, regardless of the channel the video will be uploaded to, edit it and maintain brevity

8. Add relevant visuals

   Another significant tip is for editing social media videos is to use relevant imagery. Relevant graphics, text overlays, animations, and visual effects not only make a video look good, they also help reinforce the message.

9. Add background music according to the mood

   Adding relevant background music aligning with the video’s tone, theme, and mood is one of the key responsibilities of a professional social media video editor. Find a good background score from the online music libraries and make the video more cinematic.

10. Insert relevant sound effects

    Apart from the background score, you can also insert sound effects at appropriate points in the video. Sound effects can add levity, break the monotony of the video, and keep things fresh. However, use the sound effects sparingly or your video might come and only use those that match the tone of the video and your brand identity.

11. Learn from the pros

    Successful social media content creators are always dropping tips and courses on how they edit their videos to keep things fresh. Learn from them and use the tips to create your own unique editing style. Remember that a video editing style also becomes part of your brand identity if it is unique and recognizable.

There you are! A complete checklist of the best and most practical video editing tips for social media content. Incorporating these ideas into your social media video editing workflow can produce highly impactful, visually and aesthetically pleasing content to share on the social media channel. Furthermore, these tips will help a video post-processor stay technically correct while editing for social media.

Video format requirements on different social media platforms

It is essential for a video editor to be thorough with the specifications each social media channel recommends for videos. Besides being creative, a professional video editing specialist must also know these technicalities. Abiding by these specifications is the best way to maximize the reach and impact of the conten

Check out the recommended specifications of a few leading social media channels.

• Facebook

  • Recommended video length- Regular posts: 240 minutes, Facebook stories: Up to 20 seconds.
  • Preferred file format- MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV. Maximum file size: 4GB.
  • Ideal aspect ratio- 16:9, 1:1, 4:5, 9:16.

• Instagram

  • Recommended video length- Regular feed videos: Up to 60 seconds, IGTV videos: 1 minutes-60 minutes.
  • Preferred file format- MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV. Maximum file size: 4GB for feed videos and 650MB for IGTV stories.
  • Ideal aspect ratio- 16:9, 1:1, 4:5, 9:16.

• X (previously known as Twitter)

  • Recommended video length- Regular tweet videos: Up to 2 minutes and 20 seconds, videos uploaded via Twitter Media Studio: Up to 10 minutes.
  • Preferred file format- MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV. Maximum file size: 1GB for web uploads and 512MB for mobile uploads.
  • Ideal aspect ratio- 16:9, 1:1, 9:16.

• LinkedIn

  • Recommended video length- Regular video posts: Up to 10 minutes, native videos: Up to 10 minutes.
  • Preferred file format- MP4, MOV, ASF. Maximum file size: 5GB for native uploads.
  • Ideal aspect ratio- 16:9, 1:1, 9:16.

• TikTok

  • Recommended video length- Regular videos: Up to 3 minutes, live streams: Up to 60 minutes.
  • Preferred file format- MP4, MOV. Maximum file size: 287.6MB for regular videos and 500MB for live streams.
  • Ideal aspect ratio- 9:16.

What types of content format work best on social media?

There is no one fixed content type that works for all channels. You’ll need to experiment with video lengths to see what resonates better with your viewers. Your choices are between long-form, short-form, and live streams.

1. Long-form videos are more than 10 minutes long and are used for educational or informational content. In long-form videos, you can choose a topic that people are truly interested in, and go in-depth into the subject. When you make more of such videos, you establish yourself as an authority in whatever genre you have chosen and your viewers develop trust in your content. Some examples are podcasts, video essays, explainer videos, how-to videos, and so on.

2. Short-form videos are usually not more than 30 seconds to a few minutes long and are very effective for advertising, promoting, and social media marketing. Compared to long-form videos, they are cheaper and easier to produce and can be posted on any platform that supports short-form content.

3. Livestreams are live broadcasts where content creators connect directly with viewers. You can use livestreams to promote your brand, make an announcement, or even hold Q&A sessions with your followers. Consumers readily click on live video streams because they tend to be unedited.

Level up your social media presence with effective video content

To sum up, aspiring editing professionals can enhance their video quality with these tips above for social media video editing in a hassle-free manner. All social media channels these days are flooded with numerous video content each day. Staying fresh and relevant amidst this ocean of content is a big challenge for all content creators.

Hence, it is best to partner with a professional social media video editing services provider for the best results. They have years of hands-on experience across diverse domains and social media channels. Furthermore, they also have unlimited access to the latest tools and software for high-end video post-processing.

So, hope you are enriched with video editing tips for social media content mentioned above. We will be back with another interesting article soon. Until then, try these tips and keep growing your social media marketing success.