1. Use your social media channels

Share your video on social media. This is a great way to let people know what your organisation is doing and how it is helping the community. Tweak captions per platform because, as well as word count restrictions, each might have different audiences. For example, your Twitter followers might be organisations, while Facebook, your service users. And, whichever platform local people are on, encourage them to engage or comment.

2. “Hook” your video onto a current topic

Question: Is there is a current topic or issue you can “hook” your video onto before sharing? If your video relates to a topic that is dominating the headlines, or something high on the national, local, or government’s agenda, then you’ve got a “hook”. Use the hashtags relating to that “hook” in your captions. This will help your video appear in searches on those topics. If there is no hook, don’t worry because..

3. Use hashtags

Your video showcases your social impact. Where there is social impact, there are hashtags! Use these in your captions. Also, check trending topics. Do any – or can you make any – relate to your video?

Plus, save hashtags that you will regularly use, like those relating to your work, project, cause, or local area. When posting, keep hashtags specific otherwise your posts might appear spammy.

4. Tag others in your videos

Tagging your video will help more people to see it. Tag the people who feature in it. They might share it with their friends and followers. It might also automatically be visible to their friends. Tag your project’s funder. Some like to see the positive impact their money is having. They might even share your video. Tag the location the video was filmed in. Some platforms use this to show your content to people nearby.

5. Use your video as a visual response

Consider posting the link to your video as a response to a post about a related topic. For example, if a journalist posts a #journorequest for case studies about the issue you’ve filmed, respond to their post with your video and a message saying this is how you’re addressing that issue in your area. Be sure to keep an eye on your social media and inbox in case they contact you for an interview!

6. Repost your video

You don’t have to post your video just once. You can post it again but with a different caption. Think of your video as an asset. Learn to see different angles and stories within it. Then you can easily shift the video’s focus from one aspect to another – for example, from the person or people featured to the neighbourhood, or from one social issue to another.