How NHS Trusts are using video on social platforms
Our latest research: How NHS Trusts are using video on social
NHS Trusts are yet to adopt video routinely as part of their social media output, according to research by Senate Media.
Trusts across the UK are only publishing on average 1.16 videos per month across social media platforms.
And they are typically talking heads style videos, with this format accounting for nearly two thirds of those published.
Video is the most impactful form of content on social media, attracting more attention from users than text or images. Tweets with video receive 10x the number of retweets as those without.
We reviewed the social media output of 46 NHS Trusts spread across the UK during May and June 2019 across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
Trusts published 107 video posts during this period, 64% of which were talking heads videos, which are relatively cheap and simple to produce.
Fifteen per cent were short films, with higher production values and more variety than talking heads videos, while only 12% were animations.
We would expect to see greater use of animation by Trusts in the coming years because of its potential for explaining complex procedures in a simple and friendly manner. Its relative cost compared to iPhone-shot talking heads video, and pressurised NHS budgets, probably help to explain its limited adoption to date.
Twitter was the best social platform for video views, with video posts there averaging 2,271 views compared to 1,400 on Facebook, 456 on Instagram and only 126 on YouTube.
Facebook just edged Twitter for engagements (such as likes and shares), with 39.8 versus 37.1 on average. Instagram and YouTube lag behind with 2 and 1.6 engagements on average.
Four of the top five most viewed videos in the sample we reviewed were published by the South Western Ambulance Service, and covered topics ranging from sun cream to volunteering.