How We Do Short-Form Videos
Seemingly overnight, our agency has made some drastic changes in the forms of how we operate.
One of the most significant parts of our jobs is now working with creators to create these short-form videos that you see all over social media. I wish I had seen this trend happening two years ago, but it’s all good. Socialike is in a great place to provide superior short-form videos for our clients.
We set up a two-pronged approach to our video creation model. We hired creators in-house and built a network of twenty-thirty creators that act as an extension of our team.
In-house
We wanted to bring a few creators in house for a couple of reasons:
- If you need something turned around quickly, relying on freelancers doesn’t work. This is especially true when creating moments around trending viral videos and pop culture moments.
- Our in-house creators understand our clients better because they are involved in our day to day. They also understand the systems we use to manage our business, making creating content more efficient.
Our network of creators
We have built out a fantastic crew of creators who are an extension of our team. These creators come from all different walks of life, and each has something that they are exceptional at.
- We also rely on these creators to provide the insight we might not have. In a recent project focused on moms, we had our mom creators jump on a brainstorm with our team, adding invaluable insight into their day-to-day, which helped us craft fantastic messaging.
- In our crew of creators, it’s not just moms; we lean on health practitioners, skin enthusiasts, etc…
Process
There are some nuances from client to client in the video creation process, but for the most part:
- We submit video concepts
- The client selects their top choices
- We provide the client with a detailed brief outlining what will be in the video
- The client approves, and we execute
In writing the briefs, a major adjustment for Socialike was that the team wrote them for in-house creators instead of influencers. The writing changes can be subtle, but it makes a big difference. (separate blog to come on this topic)
Keeping our creators in the loop about what is happening in our business is also vital to keeping them engaged and creating great content. Monthly newsletters are sent to them, so they know about the campaigns we are launching and any new clients we have brought on board. It keeps our creators in the loop but allows them to provide us with ideas for future content.
We are a team of ten full-time employees, but with this content creation program, it feels like we have a team of forty.
