What Makes Someone Want To Watch A Video Over And Over Again?

One word – watchability… it’s a word you might not have heard before and one that’s not thrown around nearly enough in advertising and marketing. And it’s the very reason we really, really enjoy video content.

As more and more social platforms move away from image content to embrace and push video content, now is the time everyone (and we mean everyone) should be utilising video. It’s a part of our daily lives, no matter what industry you’re in or what interests you have and it’s also one of the most captivating and compelling forms of media there is. That’s why we're not surprised that today alone, 1 billion videos will be viewed on TikTok.

Unfortunately, not everyone gets it right. Some do video really well, while others try. Perhaps you too have tried to create shareable video content? If so, it’s likely you have a few questions on how to do it right.

What separates the good from the bad? What makes a video highly watchable? How do you make really, really shareable video content?

If you’re putting in a lot of effort, only to receive low views in return, it’s time to relook your video strategy. Of course, we should all be doing video content, but that doesn’t mean we should be creating just any type of video content. In order to make it highly watchable, it needs to be video content that pulls at the heartstrings, hits a pain point, and makes viewers want to watch it over and over again.

Here are my best pointers.

It’s All About High Quality

First things first, with an enormous amount of video content shared daily, viewers are accustomed to a certain standard of quality, and if it’s not seen in the first few seconds, then chances are, they most likely won't continue on watching. Low-quality phone cameras or bad stability can easily frustrate viewers. Next time, aim for the stars and think of Superbowl and Hollywood-type of high-quality video, with good placement of the camera, different camera angles, motion graphics and crisp audio – all resulting in a very high production value. Remember, the content you are sharing has most likely been shared before, so in order to stand out from the rest, you need to over-deliver.

Think About What You’re Creating

Creating a video just to “create a video” and stay relevant to your audience isn’t the aim of the game here. And “creating a video” is incredibly vague. You need to really think about what you’d like to share, and what your audience would really like to listen to and watch. Your audience needs to get something out of watching your video, and it needs to be something that they can’t find anywhere else.

Map It Out

Now that you know what you’re going to say, you need to know how it fits into the bigger picture of your brand. The best kinds of content fit into a bigger piece of the puzzle – the puzzle being other content ideas. To encourage repeat views on all your videos, and to keep viewers anticipating the next one, you can have themes that branch out into different episodes. Without mapping out your content, viewers might give your video a like or share, and then continue on. The real goal is to keep them coming back for more.

Don’t give away everything you want to say in one go, but rather break it up into bite-size pieces of content that can give you more content to work with. You can map out a schedule of when to share each video and that will also help you stay accountable for sharing and creating these videos within a specific time frame.

Lure Viewers Within The First 3 Seconds

Now we get to the exciting part – actually creating the video. The first step in creating any video is considering the first 3 seconds of the video. The “hook” is arguably the most important part of making a highly watchable and shareable video. Why? You have approximately 3-5 seconds to catch your viewers' attention before they move on to the next piece of content in their news feed.

The 3-second rule might be something you have heard before but how often do you really give it the attention it deserves? Use your best footage first, or share an impactful and powerful headline, but most of all, be intentional within those first 3 seconds.

Pull At The Heartstrings

What do all watchable videos have in common? Empathy. It’s the key thread of any successful video because it makes it relatable to the audience. Viewers want to feel like the video “just gets them” and they can connect so much more with a video that has empathy. Not only that but it will also be responsible for the amount of visibility on the video, as well as shares.

Think about how you can create an emotional feeling and connection. Often, a good place to start is to project a mirror onto your audience.

Track And Think About The Algorithm

Each social media platform has a unique algorithm, so it’s important that you tailor your content towards the platform your audience uses most. For example, TikTok’s algorithm is designed for shareability, Instagram is pushing reels right now but could change its tune at any minute, and LinkedIn’s content lifespan is a lot longer than most other social media channels at the moment. Think about this and apply your length, hook and camera angles accordingly.

Time To Start Creating

So once you’ve got them watching your videos, what’s the ultimate goal? It’s getting someone to share your video or show it to a friend on the weekend.?

Now that you know what to do, you can use your time, resources and energy efficiently, geared towards success! When you over-deliver, hook the viewer in, create an emotive response, and share content that they can’t find anywhere else, it’s a no-brainer for them to watch, share and continue to watch any other videos.

Most importantly when creating videos, always come back to these questions… if you were your ideal audience, would you watch this over and over again? Would you pass it on to a friend? Think about a video you’ve watched over and over again. Now think about why you watch it, with all of the above points in mind. Frame your content with this in mind and you can’t go wrong.

If you need some help creating highly watchable videos, send me a direct message – we can help you tick all of the above off really quickly.