Understanding Facebook Video Guidelines

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Posted on by Jason Cook
Categories: JTT - Social, Just The Tip Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

During this quarantine, we’ve talked about the importance of original video content to your dealership. We’ve covered the different types of video content you should be creating. We’ve even given you a breakdown of affordable and easy-to-use equipment that can improve the quality of your content. But, for best results, you also need to understand the video specifications set by each social media platform. So – if you don’t want to minimize the impact of your video content – we have ‘Just the Tip’ for you.

When it comes to original content, social media apps like Snapchat and TikTok have made it simple to create fully edited videos. To some extent, we could say the same about Instagram. It’s part of what’s made these platforms so popular, as they offer the convenience of basic editing tools, as well as the means of stylizing your clips and integrating audio elements.But as awesome as those platforms are (and yes, you should be using them) Facebook still reigns supreme as the social media platform most likely to increase your dealership’s local visibility, and to generate new leads. Facebook may not offer some of those convenient editing tools, but that’s okay. You need to think of Facebook as an entirely different tool box, necessary to get an entirely different job done. But whether you’re handling your editing in-house, or creating content with the help of a production partner – it’s important to know HOW you intend to put that content to use.

Facebook’s guidelines for standard video Posts & Stories differ from those set for the various styles of Video Ads. So, knowing which of these you’re creating content for on the front-end, can help you to eliminate any unnecessary headaches down the road.

Standard Video Posts
If you’re creating standard video posts, Facebook will accept .mpv and .mov files up to 120 minutes in length, or 4GB in size. Those file types stay consistent across all Facebook use, but – fair warning – the allowed running time and file size may be reduced by certain social media management tools. Regardless, you still have plenty of options for both short and long-form content. For Landscape-style videos – which we recommend – the aspect ratio is 16:9. This aspect reverses for Portrait-style videos, making it 9:16 and minimizing the overall size of your video within the allotted viewing space (which is roughly 1280 pixels x 720 pixels). Since our content is considered short-form, we like to create HD content at 1920 pixels x 1080 pixels. When uploaded, Facebook will shrink the video down to fit the allotted viewing space, which further enhances the overall clarity of the video. And yes, Facebook will also accept square-shaped video content, at a 1:1 aspect ratio, and a minimum width of 600 pixels. But – if we’re being completely honest – we like to save that 1:1 square format for the popular styles of ad content that we’re about to cover.

Carousel Video Ads
As most of you know, carousel ads allow you to showcase multiple videos or images, which can then be scrolled through by the user. When utilizing video (or multiple videos) within Carousel ads, stick with a 1:1 aspect ratio – and create content at 1080 x 1080. The max video length allowed is 30 seconds, but continuous looping of that video is allowed for up to 90 seconds. The max file size will be 2.3GB.

Collection Ads
Many of the same specs carry over to Collection Ads, which allow you to present a single video alongside multiple images. Picture this as a single video about your dealership, presented alongside image of available models that you want to draw attention to. Size your 1:1 content to 600 x 600 pixels, and upload videos up to 120 minutes in length, and 4GB in file size.

Canvas Ads
Those numbers carry over to Facebook Canvas Ads, as well. These are immersive ads that allow the user to swipe in various directions to explore related content however, it is recommended that videos for Canvas Ads are less then two minutes in length. Bottom-line, whether you’re creating content for Facebook posts or ads, you should be incorporating video. But understanding the guidelines for each of these intended applications can help you to tailor your content for effectiveness, and maximize the impact.

So, that about wraps things up for today. In a few weeks, we hope to have the whole team back, allowing us to explore a wider scope of Digital Marketing, SEO, Social Media, Content and Reputation Management tips useful to your dealership. Until then, you can count on me (and my ridiculous ‘Quarantine Hair’) to be here for you – next Thursday, and every Thursday – right here on ‘Just the Tip’.