Monday, September 25, 2023

Instagram Analytics Explained (Definitions, Tips, and Tools)

Instagram analytics are the foundation of any strong Instagram strategy.

All good marketing decisions stem from good data — and there’s plenty of data available to tell you what’s working on Instagram (and what’s not) and inspire some ideas for new strategies you might want to try.

Instagram has 1.39 billion users who spend an average of 11.7 hours using the app per month. Nearly two-thirds (62.3%) of them use the app to follow or research brands and products. But there’s an awful lot of content competing for their attention during that time.

So, where do you find the Instagram analytics data you need to refine your strategy? And what does it all mean? We break it all down in this post.

Bonus: Get a free social media analytics report template that shows you the most important metrics to track for each network.

What are Instagram analytics?

Instagram analytics are the tools that allow you to track the key metrics related to your Instagram performance.

This data can range from the very basic (like how many people saw or liked an individual post) to the very specific (like what time your account’s followers are most likely to be online).

Watch this video to find out how to access your Instagram Insights, and what they mean:

Tracking your Instagram analytics is the only way to build an effective Instagram strategy. If you’re not tracking data, you’re just guessing about what works.

You might luck out and have some success just based on your intuition — but without the numbers to back your work, you’ll never be able to test, refine or grow. Without data, you can also never show the value of your work to your boss, team, client, or other stakeholders.

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15 key Instagram analytics metrics

Instagram analytics can provide a ton of data. So, where do you start? Here are our picks for the 15 most important metrics to track with Instagram analytics tools in 2023.

Instagram account metrics

  1. Engagement rate: Number of engagements as a percentage of followers or reach. This is a baseline for evaluating how well your content is resonating with your audience and inspiring action.
  2. Follower growth rate: How quickly you’re gaining or losing followers. No other Instagram metric has a bigger impact on organic reach. For reference, the average monthly follower growth rate is 0.98%.
  3. Website referral traffic: How many visitors Instagram drives to your website. This is key if you want to increase your Instagram ROI and tie your Instagram efforts to off-platform goals.
  4. Most effective times to post: Which posting times gain the most response?
  5. Audience demographics: This isn’t a metric exactly but a group of important data points that can help you understand what types of content are likely to be most effective.

Instagram post metrics

  1. Post engagement rate: Number of engagements as a percentage of followers or reach. You can calculate this manually, but good Instagram analytics tools will do the ath for you.
  2. Post comment rate: Number of comments as a percentage of followers or reach. If your goals involve building loyalty, or nurturing relationships, count comments separately from overall engagements and work to lift that number specifically.
  3. Impressions: Total number of times your post was served to users.This can indicate how well you’re promoting your account and content.
  4. Reach: How many people saw your post. The more engaging your content is, the more people will see it – thanks to the Instagram algorithm.

Instagram Stories metrics

  1. Story engagement rate: Number of engagements as a percentage of followers or reach.
  2. Completion rate: How many people watch your Story all the way through. People watching your complete Story indicates your content is connecting with your fans.

Instagram Reels metrics

  1. Reel shares: How many users shared your Reel.
  2. Reel interactions: Total likes, comments, shares, and saves.
  3. Drop-off rate: How many people stop watching before the end.
  4. Views vs. TikTok: How many people watch a reel compared to an equivalent TikTok?

For more details on all the Instagram metrics, you should track depending on your goals for the platform – as well as how to track and calculate them – check out our full blog post specifically on Instagram metrics.`

How to access Instagram analytics

Now that you know what to track, here’s how to see Instagram analytics data on your phone or on your computer.

On mobile (using Instagram Insights)

If you’re looking for quick info on the go, Instagram Insights offers basic Instagram analytics free within the Instagram app. There’s no way to export the data into a report, but it gives you a good basic overview of your Instagram results.

Instagram Insights with Overview and Content You Shared

  1. Open the Instagram app, go to your profile, and tap Professional dashboard.
  2. Next to Account insights, tap See all.
  3. View your content overview, including accounts reached, engagements, total followers and content shared. In the top menu, you can choose a timeframe to view.
  4. To dive deeper into any of these metrics, tap the right arrow next to the relevant category.

On desktop

Navigating through analytics on your phone is great for quick, on-the-go tracking of your Instagram metrics, but it’s not the greatest when you’re trying to analyze your data and growth over time, compare results to your work on other social platforms, or create a social media report. Here’s how to access your Instagram analytics on desktop.

Using Instagram

The main Instagram Insights tool isn’t available on desktop, but you can get some basic individual post analytics on the web directly from your Instagram feed.

Click View insights under a post in your feed to bring up a pop-up screen showing the total likes, comments, saves, direct message shares, profile visits, and reach.

For more Instagram analytics on the web, you’ll need to switch to other tools.

view insights on Instagram post of Jasper mountains

Using Hootsuite

1. Go to your Hootsuite dashboard and click the Analytics icon in the sidebar.

2. Select your Instagram Overview (if you haven’t already, follow these steps to connect your account). On this screen, you’ll see a full picture of all your Instagram analytics, from engagement rate (with no calculation required) to audience demographics to the sentiment of your inbound messages.

3. Use the buttons in the top navigation bar to share data with your colleagues or export the metrics and charts into a custom report in PDF, PowerPoint, Excel, or .csv.

Instagram analytics dashboard in Hootsuite analytics

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4 best Instagram analytics tools for 2023

Analytics for Instagram go well beyond the data provided within the native Instagram analytics app. Here are our top picks for more robust Instagram analytics tools that provide the details and flexibility required for professional Instagram analysis.

1. Hootsuite

Key benefits: Performance data from Instagram and all other major social networks in one place with easy-to-understand reports

Paid or free? Paid tool

Skill level: Beginner to intermediate

Best for: Business owners who run their own social media, solo social media managers at small-to-medium sized businesses, marketing teams at larger organizations

Hootsuite analytics: 3 screens showcasing different performance metrics across social networks in the Hootsuite dashboard

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Hootsuite Analytics offers a complete picture of all your social media efforts, so you don’t have to check each platform and account individually — and it tracks all of the most important social media metrics.

Social media post metrics:

  • Clicks
  • Comments
  • Reach
  • Engagement rate
  • Impressions
  • Shares
  • Saves
  • Video views
  • Video reach
  • And more

Profile metrics:

  • Follower growth over time
  • Negative feedback rate
  • Profile visits
  • Reactions
  • Overall engagement rate
  • And more

With this wide array of available metrics, you’ll be able to see how your Instagram posts, Stories, Reels — and even ads — are performing at a glance.

Best time to post recommendations

Ever spend a bunch of time writing and designing a social post only to have it fall completely flat? There could be a lot of reasons for that. But one of the most common reasons this happens is posting at the wrong time. A.k.a., posting when your target audiences are not online or not interested in engaging with you.

This is why our Best Time to Publish tool is one of the most popular features of Hootsuite Analytics. It looks at your unique historical social media data and recommends the most optimal times to post based on three different goals:

  1. Engagement
  2. Impressions
  3. Link clicks

Best Time to Publish - Facebook Heatmap

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Most social media analytics tools will only recommend posting times based on engagement. Or they’ll use data from universal benchmarks, instead of your unique performance history.

Other cool things you can do with Hootsuite Analytics:

  • Customize report templates for only the metrics you care about
  • Monitor your competitors’s performance and measure it against your own
  • Compare your results to industry benchmarks
  • Track the productivity of your social team (response times, and resolution time for assigned posts, mentions, and comments)
  • Monitor mentions, comments, and tags related to your business to avoid PR disasters before they happen

On top of all of that, Hootsuite won the 2022 MarTech Breakthrough Award for Best Overall Social Media Management Platform!

And, according to reviews at least, the social media analytics tools were a big part of that win:

“Makes social media so much easier!

The ease of scheduling posts is amazing. The analytics for reporting are incredible. You can create you own personalized reports.”

– Melissa R. Social Media Manager

2. Later

Key benefits: Simple and user-friendly solutions for basic performance tracking

Paid or free? Paid tool

Skill level: Beginner to intermediate

Best for: Business owners who run their own social media, solo social media managers at small-to-medium-sized businesses

Later is a social media management platform similar to Hootsuite (you can compare Later and Hootsuite here). It comes with a variety of features, from analytics to scheduling tools, but it really shines through as a platform for smaller brands and creators who like to visualize and preview social media content before they post.

Later social media tool

Source: Later

While Later can also help you measure the performance of your Instagram content and optimize posting times, the platform lacks some more advanced analytics features like competitive analysis and industry benchmarking.

3. Buffer

Key benefits: Simple solutions for basic performance tracking, free plan

Paid or free? Free and paid plans available

Skill level: Beginner to intermediate

Best for: Business owners who run their own social media, solo social media managers at small-to-medium-sized businesses, agencies

Buffer is another social media scheduler that comes with tools to help you build your presence on social media. It allows you to schedule posts to Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Mastodon.

buffer is a social media scheduling tool with analytics that display the best day to post, the best type of post, and the best post frequency for your account

Source: Buffer

But when it comes to analytics, Buffer is relatively light on features. It doesn’t offer analytics for all platforms and doesn’t come with social listening features, paid content tracking, or competitive benchmarking. However, Buffer’s user-friendly dashboard is simple and straightforward, making it great for social media managers who just want to get in, schedule, and get out.

Be sure to read our guide to Hootsuite vs. Buffer for more on how these platforms compare.

4. Sprout Social

Key benefits: In-depth reporting across social networks

Paid or free? Paid tool

Skill level: Beginner to intermediate

Best for: Marketing teams at larger organizations

Sprout Social is another top contender in the battle of social media management tools, and it may be worth your consideration. Offering scheduling and analytics for all the major social media platforms, Sprout can help you plan and execute your Instagram — and wider social media — strategy.

scheduling a social media post using sprout social

Source: Sprout Social

Like Hootsuite, Sprout offers a full-featured analytics dashboard, which provides details on both your paid and organic posts and helps you decide when to publish content for the best results. You can also easily white-label and download reports from the Sprout dashboard.

Sprout is quite a bit more expensive than Hootsuite, but Hootsuite offers more features and integrations. Compare Hootsuite and Sprout to see which one works best for you.

Free Instagram analytics report template

Instagram analytics data is most useful when it’s compiled into a report that allows you to compare results and spot trends. We’ve created a free Instagram analytics report template you can use to fill in your data and share your findings.

If you’d rather get your Instagram analytics reports automatically, check out the Instagram analytics built into Hootsuite. There are three Instagram analytics report templates built into Hootsuite’s analytics that allow you to automatically report on engagement, your audience, or post performance.

Bonus: Get a free social media analytics report template that shows you the most important metrics to track for each network.

Save time managing your Instagram presence with Hootsuite: Schedule posts, Reels, and Stories ahead of time, and monitor your efforts using our comprehensive suite of social media analytics tools. Try it free today.

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Easily track Instagram analytics and generate reports with Hootsuite. Save time and get results.

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The post Instagram Analytics Explained (Definitions, Tips, and Tools) appeared first on Social Media Marketing & Management Dashboard.



* This article was originally published here

Thursday, September 21, 2023

How To Save Tons of Time With Instagram Auto Reply

Responding to messages quickly is a huge part of social media customer service—and it’s no different whether you’re dealing with messages on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or Instagram. Luckily, Instagram has an easy-to-use option that can cut down on your team’s time responding to questions.

With Instagram auto reply, you can easily set auto-responses to common questions and messages. This feature cuts down on the time your social media support team needs to spend monitoring and replying to customers.

In this article, we’ll talk more about the Instagram auto reply feature, how it can be used, and a few message examples for inspiration.

Bonus: Get a free, easy-to-use Customer Service Report Template that helps you track and calculate your monthly customer service efforts all in one place.

What is Instagram auto reply?

Instagram auto reply is a feature available in your Instagram message settings that allows you to send automatic responses to frequently asked questions.

For example, if you regularly get a question like, “Do you offer free shipping?” your team can set up an auto reply that will answer the question instantly rather than forcing the customer to wait for a real person to respond.

There are a few different ways you can do this:

  • Instagram tools: Set automatic responses for frequently asked questions or craft canned messages that your team can easily send out via Instagram DM.
  • Meta Business Suite: Set up messaging automations for both Instagram and Facebook.
  • Third-party inboxes: Use tools like Hootsuite Inbox to easily monitor and manage your Instagram direct messages and comments.

Learn more about how a social inbox like Hootsuite’s can help streamline your social media communication in this video:

What can you use Instagram auto replies for?

There are several ways to take advantage of Instagram’s auto reply feature. Here are just a few types of automated responses you might consider setting up:

  • Welcome messages
  • Away messages
  • Frequently asked questions
  • Share contact information
  • Share business hours of operation
  • Provide shipment and payment details
  • Offer discounts
  • Explain wholesale pricing information
  • Tell customers how to handle issues with their orders
  • Share links to additional resources

Pros and cons of using Instagram auto reply

So why use Instagram auto reply? Is it the best option for creating automated responses and freeing up your team’s time? As always, it depends on your needs.

Let’s cover some basic pros and cons to help you decide.

Pros

  • Make a good impression. Instagram shows your followers how quick your team is to respond. A faster response time is a better look for your business.
  • Answer questions before they’re asked. Create an auto-responder that gives your customers a clear idea of when they can expect to hear from a real person—unless your auto replies can give their answer immediately.
  • Save your team time. Stop writing the same reply over and over again. Automated messages give your team more time for escalated messages and other customer support issues.
  • Never miss a message. You don’t have to worry about time zones when you enlist auto reply. Even when your team isn’t working, customers can get answers as soon as they send a message.

Cons

  • Only for Instagram and Facebook. Instagram/Meta’s built-in features only work for these two platforms. You’ll have to enlist the help of external tools for other social media platforms—don’t worry, we’ve got more on that below.
  • You have to connect your Facebook and Instagram pages. In order to access some of the more advanced tools, you must use Meta Business Suite, so you’ll have to connect your Facebook and Instagram pages.
Reduce response time (and your workload)

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15 Instagram auto reply message examples

Not sure what types of auto replies to set for your Instagram messages? Here are 15 examples to help inspire you.

Welcome message

Send one of these options to all new incoming Instagram DMs whenever your team is unavailable for a quick response:

  • Thank you for getting in touch! Our team is available from 10am-3pm CT. We’ll get back to you within those hours!
  • Hey there—thanks for reaching out! Your message is important to us. Someone on our team will get back to you within the next 12 hours.
  • Sorry we missed you! Our team is currently unavailable, but we’ll be back around 8am GMT.

Basic business information

Use one of these when someone messages you on Instagram to ask about hours of operation or contact information:

  • Our hours of operation are 11am-11pm ET Monday through Saturday.
  • To get in touch with a representative directly, please give us a call at [###-###-####].
  • To learn more or request a demo, email us at sales@company.com.
  • Our offices are located at 1234 Business Street.

Frequently asked questions

Here are a few common questions and answers you might want to incorporate into your Instagram auto replies.

How long does shipping take?

  • You can expect your items to arrive within 3-5 business days of your order.

How can I cancel my plan?

  • To cancel, go to the “Account” section of your dashboard and find the “Cancel plan” button.
  • We’re sad to see you go! To cancel, please call one of our representatives directly at [###-###-####] or send an email to cancellations@company.com

Do you offer any discounts?

  • We love that you asked! Use promo code INSTA for 10% off your purchase.

What services do you offer?

  • We offer accounting services for small businesses.

How much do your services cost?

  • We work on a monthly retainer basis. Packages start at $1,000/month and go up to $15,000+ depending on your needs.

Are you taking new patients?

  • Yes, please head to our website to fill out the form for new patients.
  • Unfortunately, our therapists are fully booked at the moment. Please check back next quarter to see if any spots have opened up.

How to set up auto replies on Instagram

There are two ways to set up auto replies on Instagram. The first is pretty easy—do so right inside the Instagram app. The second involves digging into the Automations option in Meta Business Suite.

We’ll walk you through each process.

How to set up auto replies via the Instagram app

First, open the Instagram app. Tap the messages icon in the top right corner of the home feed. Then, tap on the ellipses in the top right corner of your messages dashboard and select Tools.

Select Tools in the top right corner of your messages dashboard.

Here, you can set either saved replies (canned responses your team can tap on to send manually) or auto replies for frequently asked questions.

The Tools section of Instagram settings include response suggestions, saved replies, frequently asked questions, and message controls

Tap on Frequently asked questions to access the auto reply feature. Instagram will typically include a few starter questions. You can customize these or use them as is—just add answers.

The frequently asked questions menu. This shows sample questions (like "What type of services do you specialize in?")

Add as many questions as you want. You can even show these questions in chat, so customers who want to message you have options to choose from.

How to set up auto replies in Meta Business Suite

If you have your Facebook Business Page set up and optimized and your Instagram business profile connected, you can use Meta Business Suite to create automations like this.

First, head over to your Facebook Business Page, then click on Meta Business Suite in the left-hand sidebar.

The back end of Facebook/Meta Business Suite

You’ll then be taken to the Meta Business Suite dashboard. From here, click on Inbox in the right-hand sidebar.

The left hand sidebar of Meta Business Suite shows Inbox (among other options)

This inbox section will hold all messages and comments from Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. If you’re looking for a single place to manage these, Business Suite is a great place to do so. The biggest downfall is that those are the only platforms you can monitor here (more on that later).

To set up your auto-reply messages, click the atom icon to access Automations.

The automations option is highlighted in the top right of the Inbox screen

Here, you can set up a number of automations relating to your direct messages across all of Meta’s platforms. If you haven’t previously set up Frequently asked questions, it will appear as one of the Suggested for you options. Click on it to get started.

The Inbox Automations menu shows suggested options, including Instant Replies and Away Messages

Select your Instagram account from the list of places you want to turn this automation on. Then, start adding questions. You can preview them in the left-hand sidebar.

The edit automation screen in Meta Business Suite allows you to write your own text for an Instagram auto reply

Once you’re done, click Save changes and toggle this automation into the On position. And voila! You’ve got your frequently asked questions set up.

Other automations you can create are:

  • Away messages
  • Instant replies
  • Follow ups

How to auto-respond to messages and comments on Facebook, Instagram, X, and LinkedIn

We mentioned that Meta Business Suite is great for managing your messages and comments on Facebook and Instagram. But if your brand uses other platforms, like X (formerly known as Twitter) and LinkedIn, you’ll need additional support.

Good news—you’re in luck! With Hootsuite’s Social Inbox, your entire social media and customer support team can monitor, manage, and respond to messages across all social media platforms in one space.

Hootsuite Inbox

You can store information about various customers so you never start a new interaction as strangers, helping customers feel seen and valued. Assign messages and interactions to certain team members so the most-equipped person can handle each specific issue.

Use Hootsuite Inbox as your social media help desk, resolving messages as soon as they’ve been responded to and keeping notes on customer issues.

Hootsuite Inbox

Create auto-responders for every social media platform you manage with Hootsuite.

Book a free Hootsuite demo and try Inbox today

Frequently asked questions about auto replies on Instagram

Why should you use Instagram auto reply?

Instagram auto reply is a great way to minimize wait time for frequently asked questions. If you know common questions your audience has, and there’s a set answer you can provide, set it as an auto-response.

This saves your team time and ensures your Instagram followers don’t have to wait for a response.

How do you turn Instagram auto reply off?

There’s no quick on-off toggle for Instagram auto reply. Instead, you’ll have to go into your Instagram messaging tools and remove any frequently asked question responses you’ve input.

What is a saved reply on Instagram?

A saved reply is a similar tool to auto replies. Instead of sending instantaneously, though, saved replies are simply stored in your Instagram messaging settings for your team to manually send out. This works if the question someone asks has different answers depending on the time of year. You can save replies for a quick response, but you don’t want to have the response be automatic.

Keep your customers happy with faster message responses, thanks to Hootsuite. Respond to questions and complaints, create tickets from social conversations, and work with chatbots all from one dashboard. See it in action.

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Save time on social messaging with automated responses, smarter workflows, and friendly chatbots — all in the Hootsuite Inbox.

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The post How To Save Tons of Time With Instagram Auto Reply appeared first on Social Media Marketing & Management Dashboard.



* This article was originally published here

Thursday, September 14, 2023

The Complete Guide to Social Media Video Specs in 2023

Struggling to keep on top of all the different social media video specs? We were, too.

Social platforms change like the tides, with algorithms and best practices updating constantly. That’s why we’ve made it our mission to be the go-to resource for all things social media, including up-to-date social media video specs.

Read on to find the most recent video specifications for each of the most popular social platforms.

Bonus: Want to know how a viral social video creator makes millions of dollars in sales? Download the free guide now.

Facebook video specs

Optimizing video content for Facebook is tricky, mainly because of the many different ways it delivers video to its users.

When you buy a video ad on Facebook today, it could appear in dozens of different formats (in someone’s mobile news feed, in the sidebar on the desktop version of Facebook, or even in someone’s inbox on Facebook Messenger). And you also have to know what Facebook’s upload limit is for videos, among other things.

It pays to become familiar with the varieties of Facebook videos and to find a delivery format that matches your campaign goals. Find the Facebook video resolution and specs you need below, or check out the help page.

Regular Facebook feed video

Recommended resolution: 1080p or less. Upload the highest-resolution video available that meets file size and ratio limits.

Landscape and Portrait dimensions: 1280 x 720

Minimum width: 1200 pixels

Supported aspect ratios: 16:9 (Landscape) to 9:16 (Portrait), and 16:9 (Portrait video with a link)

Mobile aspect ratio: Renders all video to 2:3

Recommended characters: 90, with link

Headline max: 25, with link

Link description: 30, with link

Length: Videos can be up to 240 minutes long

Size: Up to 10 GB large

Frame rate: Maximum frame rate of 30fps.

Tips: For best results, Facebook recommends uploading videos in .MP4 and .MOV format (see a full list of supported file formats here).

Resource: How to Use Facebook Live Video: A Guide for Marketers

Facebook Reels

Recommended resolution: At least 500 x 888 pixels

Recommended aspect ratio: 9:16

Recommended video format: .MP4, .MOV

Video captions are recommended for those who watch with the sound off

Meta Quest album name Facebook Reel

Image via this Facebook Reel

Facebook 360 video

Maximum Facebook video dimension: 5120 by 2560 pixels (monoscopic) or 5120 by 5120 pixels (stereoscopic)

Supported aspect ratios: 1:1 (stereoscopic) or 2:1 (monoscopic)

Recommended format: .MP4 or .MOV format

Size: up to 10GB

Length: up to 30 min

Recommended frame rate: 30fps

Tips: If the camera you recorded your video on automatically includes 360 video metadata with the video file, you can upload the video like you would any other video. If it doesn’t, click on the ‘Advanced’ tab when uploading to bring up Facebook’s ‘360 controls’ tab, which will let you convert unformatted footage into a 360 video.

With many social media video sizes and longer durations (Facebook included), you may experience longer processing times.

Facebook 360 social video

Image via Facebook — click through to check out the 360 video!

Facebook in-stream video ads

Recommended resolution: 1080 x 1080

Recommended size: 16:9 ratio recommended (landscape) or 1:1 (square). Upload the highest-resolution video that meets file size and ratio limits.

Video format: Recommended .MP4 or .MOV format

Maximum file size: 4GB

Maximum length: 240 minutes

Maximum frame rate: 30fps

Recommended characters: 125

Recommended headline: 27

Link description: 27

Tips: For in-stream ads, Facebook recommends uploading the “highest resolution source video available without letter or pillar boxing.” Facebook provides an exhaustive list of aspect ratios and features available for each ad type.

Facebook Messenger video ads

Recommended resolution: 1280 by 628 pixels

Supported aspect ratios: 9:16 to 16:9

Recommended time length: 15 seconds

Resource: Facebook Messenger Ads: How the Pros Get Results

Facebook carousel video ads

Recommended size: 1080 by 1080 pixels (1:1 aspect ratio)

Recommended video format: .MP4 or .MOV

Maximum length: 240 minutes

Maximum frame rate: 30fps

Maximum file size: 4GB

Recommended characters: 125

Recommended headline: 27

Resource: Carousel Ads: How and Why They Work (+ Examples)

Tips: Carousels let you showcase up to 10 images or videos in one ad without having the user navigate to a new page. For best results, use a pixel square (1:1) video.

Facebook Collection cover video

Recommended resolution: 1080 by 1080 pixels

Supported aspect ratios: 1:1

Recommended video format: .MP4 or .MOV

Maximum file size: 4GB

Maximum frame rate: 30fps

Maximum length: 240 minutes

Recommended characters: 90

Headline max: 25

Link description: 30

Tips: Collections make it easier for users to browse and purchase products directly in the Facebook feed. Instant Experience is required to execute Collection ads, which provide a “full-screen landing page that drives engagement and nurtures interest and intent.”

Facebook Instant Experience (IX) video

Recommended resolution: 720p

Aspect ratio: 9:16 Portrait or Pillarboxed

Recommended video format: .MP4 or .MOV

Maximum file size: 4GB

Maximum length: 120 seconds (all videos combined)

Maximum frame rate: 30fps

Tips: Clicking on an IX ad immediately triggers a full-screen experience for your audience. You can use IX ads to create an instant online storefront, ads for customer acquisition, brand storytelling, or an instant lookbook, or you can build one from scratch, optimized to your goals.

A Facebook Instant Experience (IX) social media video ad

Source: Facebook

Facebook slideshow ads

Aspect ratio: 16:9 (landscape) , 4:5 (vertical), 1:1 (square)

Maximum size: 4 GB

Recommended video format: .MP4 or .MOV

Maximum length: 15 seconds for the entire slideshow

Tips: Slideshow ads, designed for audiences with slower internet access, let you transform a series of 3-10 images and a sound file (supported formats: WAV, MP3, M4A, FLAC, and OGG) into a video ad.

For best results, Facebook suggests using the highest quality images possible, all the same resolution (ideally an image ratio of 16:9, 1:1, or 2:3). If you use different sizes, the slideshow will be cropped to be square.

Source: Facebook

Facebook Story ads

Recommended resolution: 1080 by 1080

Aspect ratio: 1.91 to 9:16

Recommended characters: 125

Maximum file size: 4 GB

Recommended video format: .MP4 or .MOV

Recommended length: 15 seconds, but you can split a longer video into 2 or 3 separate Stories cards so your audience can get the full story

Resources: How to Use Facebook Stories for Business: The Complete Guide

Tips: Since Stories only last for a couple of seconds, spend time developing the first few seconds of your ad to really grab your audience’s attention.

A Facebook Story ad that uses social video to grab attention

Source: @lamoda on Instagram

Instagram video specs

Instagram supports three kinds of video: square (1:1), vertical (9:16 or 4:5) and landscape (16:9).

Pro tip: Square videos are best for both desktop and mobile users. They take up more room in user’s feeds than horizontal videos, but don’t crowd the entire screen like vertical videos do.

Instagram has 1.4 billion daily active users, so let’s get your video uploading on point! Oh, and get your Instagram video creation on point, too.

Instagram in-feed video and ads

In-feed landscape video:

  • Recommended resolution: 1080 by 1080
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9
  • Maximum file size: 4GB
  • Recommended video format: .MP4 or .MOV
  • Maximum video length: 120 seconds
  • Frame rate: 23-60 fps

In-feed square video:

  • Recommended resolution: 1080 by 1080
  • Aspect ratio: 1:1
  • Maximum file size: 4GB
  • Recommended video format: .MP4 or .MOV
  • Maximum video length: 120 seconds
  • Frame rate: 23-60 fps

In-feed vertical video:

  • Recommended resolution: 1080 by 1080
  • Aspect ratio: 4:5
  • Maximum file size: 4GB
  • Recommended video format: .MP4 or .MOV
  • Maximum video length: 120 seconds
  • Frame rate: 23-60 fps

Recommended characters: 125

An Instagram feed ad that uses social video

Source: Instagram @Halara_official

Instagram Stories

Recommended resolution: 1080 by 1920

Aspect ratio: 9:16

Maximum file size: 4GB

Recommended video format: MP4 or .MOV

Maximum video length: 15 seconds

Frame rate: 23-60 fps.

Psst, it’s time for a shameless plug: Did you know you can schedule your Instagram Stories directly from the Hootsuite platform?

Instagram Story ads

Recommended resolution: 1080 by 1920

Aspect ratio: 9:16

Maximum file size: 4GB

Recommended video format: .MP4 or .MOV

Maximum video length: 120 seconds

Resource: How to use Instagram Stories like a Pro

Tips: These videos appear between Instagram user Stories for up to two minutes (or until dismissed) and take up the whole screen.

an Instagram Story ad is an example of a social media video

Source: Instagram @thedoersway

Instagram Reels

Recommended resolution: 1080 by 1920

Aspect ratio: 9:16

Maximum file size: 4GB

Recommended video format: .MP4 or .MOV

Video length: from 3 seconds and up to 15 minutes

Resource: Instagram Reels in 2023: A Simple Guide for Businesses

Instagram carousel video ads

Recommended resolution: 1080 by 1080

Aspect ratio: 1:1

Recommended video format: .MP4 or .MOV

Maximum length: 120 seconds

Maximum size: 4GB

Maximum frame rate: 23-60fps

Tips: Like Facebook carousels, Instagram carousels let you showcase between two and ten images or videos in one side-scrolling ad.

X (formerly Twitter) video specs

X, formerly known as Twitter, is known for its real-time updates on all things interesting.

Whatever industry you’re marketing for, you can be sure to find an audience on Twitter. You can also be sure that your audience wants to see video content, which is why, of course, your Twitter video dimensions need to be accurate.

Since it’s a mobile-first app, videos you shoot on your phone will upload with proper Twitter video resolution. But, if you’re sending out content from your desktop, be sure to double-check the bitrate against Twitter’s detailed guidelines.

X (aka Twitter) videos

Recommended resolution: 1280 by 720 (landscape), 720 by 1280 (portrait), 720 by 720 (square)

Twitter aspect ratio for video: 16:9 (landscape and portrait), 1:1 (square)

Maximum file size: 512 MB

Recommended video format: .Mp4 or .MOV

Maximum video length: 140 seconds

Maximum frames: 30 or 60 fps.

Character max: 280

Resource: Twitter Ads for Beginners: The 2023 Guide

TikTok video specs

TikTok, the short-form video platform that took the world by storm, generated nearly 500 million USD in revenue in the first quarter of 2023. Marketers who know how to work the app can skyrocket their brand popularity and sell more products or services.

TikTok makes it incredibly easy (and kind of addictive) to create and publish video content. You can check out the specs you need to know below and find more on TikTok for business.

TikTok in-feed content (organic)

Dimensions: 1080 by 1920

Recommended aspect ratio: 9:16

Maximum video size: 287 MB

Recommended video formats: .MP4 or .MOV

Maximum length: 10 minutes

Character max: 2,200

Resource: How to Make a TikTok Video: Everything You Need to Know

Tips: Organic content ranks on the For You Page due to its popularity with viewers. Try to increase your likelihood of ranking by performing TikTok SEO (don’t worry, it’s only five easy steps).

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♬ original sound – Hootsuite

TikTok in-feed content (ads)

Dimensions: 540 by 960, 640 by 640 or 960 by 540

Aspect ratio: 9:16, 1:1, or 16:9

Maximum video size: 500 MB

Accepted video formats: .MP4, .MOV, .MPEG, .3GP, .and AVI

Accepted length: 5 – 60 seconds

Character limit for ad description: 12-100

Resource: How to Make Great TikTok Ads: The Complete 2023 Guide

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Snapchat video specs

If you’re trying to reach a younger crowd, try Snapchat. The disappearing-video app is still active with certain generations, and it’s well-optimized for video sharing.

Discover more on video ads from Snapchat’s Business Center.

Snapchat single video

Recommended resolution: 1080 by 1920

Aspect ratio: 9:16

Maximum file size: 32MB

Accepted video formats: .MP4 and .MOV.

Video length: between 3 and 10 seconds

Resource: Snapchat for Business: The Ultimate Marketing Guide

Tips: Snapchat is about sharing moments among friends and having fun. Don’t treat your organic Snapchat strategy too seriously; give your viewers a look at what goes on behind the scenes with your brand.

Snapchat long-form video ad

Recommended resolution: 1080 by 1920

Aspect ratio: 9:16 or 16:9

Maximum file size: 1GB

Accepted video formats: .MP4 and .MOV.

Video length: 3 to 180 seconds

Tips: The Snapchat long-form video ad is what users see between Snap stories.

YouTube video specs

YouTube has long been the video juggernaut of the internet. And that’s exactly why you need to have your YouTube video resolution and YouTube video sizes on point.

See more of the ins and outs of YouTube video specs on the help page, or grab your must-know specs below.

YouTube video player

Recommended resolutions: 426 by 240 (240p), 640 by 360 (360p), 854 by 480 (480p), 1280 by 720 (720p), 1920 by 1080 (1080p), 2560 by 1440 (1440p), and 3840 by 2160 (2160p)

Aspect ratio: 16:9 and 4:3 (YouTube adds pillarboxing if 4:3)

Maximum file size: 128GB (unless it’s more than 12 hours)

Maximum video length: 12 hours

Accepted video formats: .MOV, .MPEG4, MP4, .AVI, .WMV, .MPEGPS, .FLV, 3GPP, and WebM

Tips: YouTube encourages its users to upload videos that are “as close to the original, high-quality source format as possible.” Videos should be uploaded in their native aspect ratios and should never include letterboxing or pillarboxing bars since YouTube “automatically frames videos to ensure that they are displayed correctly, without cropping or stretching, regardless of the size of the video or player.”

YouTube provides a full list of recommended bitrates for YouTube uploads here, and a full list of supported file formats here.

YouTube video ads

There are four main types of YouTube video ads, and besides the length of the video, they all share the same specs as the YouTube video player above.

Skippable video ads: Maximum length of 12 hours, skippable after 5 seconds

Unskippable video ads: Maximum length of 15 or 20 seconds (depending on region)

Bumper video ads: Maximum length of 6 seconds

Mid-roll Video Ad: Played mid-view, this ad only appears in content that is longer than 8 minutes. Mid-rolls can be skipped after 30 seconds.

Resource: The Complete Guide to YouTube Ads for Marketers

YouTube Shorts specs

Recommended resolutions: 240 by 426, 360 by 640, 480 by 854, 720 by 1280, 1080 by 1920, 1440 by 2560, and 2160 by 384

Aspect ratio: 9:16

Maximum video length: 60 seconds

Accepted video formats: .MOV, .MPEG4, MP4, .AVI, .WMV, .MPEGPS, .FLV, 3GPP, and WebM

YouTube music length: If you pull music from the YouTube library, it’s limited to 15 seconds.

Title character limit: 100 characters

Resource: How to Make YouTube Shorts: Everything You Need to Know and How to Make Short-Form Videos that Stand Out

LinkedIn video specs

LinkedIn videos gain an average of three times the engagement of text-based posts. When video content is that effective at engaging an audience, you can be sure the algorithm will reward it.

See LinkedIn’s official video specs here.

LinkedIn shared video

Aspect ratio: 1:2.4 to 2.4:1

Maximum file size: 5GB

Video length: between 3 seconds and 10 minutes

Accepted video formats: .ASF, .AVI, .FLV, .MOV, .MPEG-1, .MPEG-4, .MP4, .MKV, and .WebM

Maximum frames: 10-60fps.

LinkedIn video ads

Landscape video resolution: 640 by 360 or 1920 by 1080

Landscape aspect ratio: 16:9

Square video resolution: 360 by 360 or 1920 by 1920

Square aspect ratio: 1:1

Vertical video resolution: 360 by 640 or 1080 by 1920

Vertical aspect ratio: 9:16

Maximum file size for all resolutions is 200 MB

Recommended video format: .MP4

Video length: 3 seconds to 30 minutes

Maximum frames: less than 30fps

Pinterest video specs

If you have a business account on Pinterest, you can upload advertising videos. Since your pinning audience is largely heading to the platform to discover new products, they’re receptive to advertisements. And product-related videos are proving to be popular with at least a quarter of all internet users.

By the way, if you want to create videos without having a business account, you can create Idea Pins, which feature video clips.

See Pinterest’s full spec sheets here.

Shared organic video and promoted video specs

Aspect ratio: 1:1 (square) or 2:3, 4:5 or 9:16 (vertical)

Maximum width video required aspect ratio: 1:1 (square) or 16.9 (widescreen)

Maximum file size: 2 GB

Video length: from 4 seconds to 15 minutes

Accepted video formats: .MP4 and .MOV.

Character title max: 100

Character description max: 500

Resource: Pinterest Ads: A Simple Guide for 2023

A Pinterest video ad shows one video pin in a sea of static pins

Source: Pinterest

FAQs about social media video specs

What size should videos be for social media?

Video sizes vary depending on the social media platform in question. Be sure to look up the recommended size and resolution of your platform before uploading your video.

What video bitrate should you use for social media?

The most commonly recommended minimum video bitrate is 5,000 kbps, but you should look up your platform-specific recommended bitrate.

What is the best aspect ratio for social media video?

The best aspect ratio for social media video varies based on the platform’s requirements, but they are often 16:9, 4:3, and 1:1.

Should I use 4:5 or 9:16 for Instagram video?

Landscape aspect ratio is 16:9, and vertical aspect ratio is 4:5 for Instagram. Instagram also has a square aspect ratio of 1:1. Which one you use may depend on your content, but many marketers have found success with the square aspect ratio.

What is 9:16 social media size?

A 9:16 social media video size is typically 1080 by 1920 pixels in resolution.

What social media video formats are best?

The most popular video format for social media is either .MOV or .MP4.

How long should a social media video be?

The ideal length depends on the platform and your audience’s attention span, but we dive into the details in the blog How Long Should a Social Media Video Be? Tips for Every Network.

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With files from Nick Zarzycki and Michelle Cyca.

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The post The Complete Guide to Social Media Video Specs in 2023 appeared first on Social Media Marketing & Management Dashboard.



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