The 2018 guide to video on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube

What are the top trends for social videos in 2018? Our latest report examines everything you need to know about creating winning video content on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. 

Video has transformed the way that content creators approach their editorial and marketing efforts.

This shift appears to be speeding up. In 2017, internet video traffic made up 69 percent of all global consumer Internet traffic, and by 2019, internet video traffic will account for 80 percent of all consumer Internet traffic.

Audience consumption behaviors are changing along with the influx of video. Users are a lot more flexible with where they’re viewing videos.

Mary Meeker’s 2018 Internet Trends Report found that mobile audiences are expected to spend at least 30 minutes a day viewing online video. According to another study from Ooyala, approximately 51 percent of video is now watched on mobile devices, growing 233 percent since 2013. Videos must now be understandable and digestible no matter where your audience is.

So what do you need to know about creating your own video content that gets your audience hooked? Check out the report for our data-driven insights, powered by NewsWhip technology. In the guide, we take a look at:

• How video measures up against other content
• The changes in video best practices in 2018
• Platform-specific trends for effective video campaigns
• The video strategies and tactics of top publishers and brands
• How to get a jump on your video strategy

Below are a few of the highlights from the guide. 

Facebook video strategy 

According to the platform, 500 million people watch Facebook videos every day, and the average viewer watches about 12 minutes of video a day.

 
Interestingly, when we looked at the top 20 news-focused videos (excluding one live video), the average duration was 2 minutes, 32 seconds, less than the viral publisher average. In the report, we analyze the top content trends of videos, the top Facebook Pages creating videos, and what to know for your own strategy. 

Twitter video strategy

Twitter is all about the mobile experience, particularly when it comes to video. According to the platform, 80 percent of users access Twitter through mobile, and 93 percent of Twitter video views happen on mobile. Twitter reports that its video views have grown 220x in just 12 months.
So what’s one thing from our report you should know about Twitter? It’s excellent for surfacing original content, and for aspiring influencers, it seems that nearly anyone can make it on the platform.

Anyone can go viral on Twitter with the right content. Sierra (above) only has ~770 followers, but her video was retweeted 240,000 times and favorited 616,000 times. We explore more specific Twitter video trends in the guide, including top videos from publishers, content trends, and topics.

YouTube video strategy 

As publishers and brands diversify their content strategies this year, YouTube already has a thriving user base. As of August 2017, YouTube has surpassed Facebook video and Netflix for time spent per day.
According to Pew Research this year, YouTube is the most used platform for teens (ages 13-17), with 85 percent citing it they use it, and 32 percent saying it’s their top platform. Of all American adults, 73 percent use YouTube, compared to 60 percent on Facebook.


For publishers, the top viewed videos often provided behind-the-scenes looks and more information on news or pop culture topics. The videos tended to be much longer than what we saw on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 

Instagram video strategy

Given the platform’s rapid growth, Instagram video looks set to be increasingly important in the years to come. In 2017, time spent watching video on Instagram was up more than 80 percent year over year. Instagram Stories had 250 million daily users, about 50 percent of the platform’s total daily users.

Instagram video is an interesting format to analyze. Unlike Facebook and YouTube, there are more restrictions on Instagram video. For example, a live video on Instagram can be an hour long, while a video post can be up to 60 seconds long, and an Instagram Stories clip can only be 15 seconds long.

To find the top video creators on Instagram, we looked at which accounts posted the most liked and commented videos in Q1 2018. From our analysis, we saw that viral publishers like 9gag and World Star Hiphop had the most likes and comments on video posts.

Beyond viral publishers, sports-focused accounts, pop culture news accounts, and celebs and influencers also made the ranking. In our report, we look at the top video trends of these publishers, as well as top videos from news publishers and brands.

Want to learn more? Check out the Summer 2018 Guide to Social Video here.