Videos play an essential role in social media marketing. If you want to nail your strategy, it is essential to focus on video editing.

The reason for this is simple:

Professional-looking content has the power to captivate the audience. Of course, the best option is to hire a professional video editor to do that for you. But not all small businesses may be able to afford one.

The other alternative is to don the video editor’s hat yourself. Even if you don’t have much prior experience, it is possible to learn video editing on your own. With a few tricks, you can make sure that the edited videos are high-quality.

Disclosure: This content may contain a few affiliate links, which means if you click on them, I will get a commission (without any extra cost to you).

Video Editing for Beginners: A Quick Guide

In this article, we’ll discuss some video editing tips that will help you create better promotional videos for your brand. If you’ve just begun your video editing journey, here are some tips you should keep in mind:

1. Choose the Right Video Editing Software Solution

The first step for video editing is to pick the right software program.

While there are multiple programs out there, finding one with the best editing functions can be a tedious task. To simplify the process, we’ve listed the best ones for beginners:

Movavi Video Editor Plus

This video editor has an intuitive interface and offers a wide functionality of editing tools.

Using this editor, you can edit your video clips and place them on the timeline in the order you need. Additionally, you can crop them, resize them, work with Chroma Key, remove the audio track or edit it separately.

You can also add animated stickers, filters, and titles to your videos. What’s more, Movavi Video Editor Plus comes with a huge library of effects (backgrounds, transitions, stickers, titles), video samples, and music that you can use in your projects.

movavi
Image via Movavi 

Camtasia

This is a program that includes the functionality of a video editor and a screen recorder. While it has additional features, the interface might be a bit complicated for a newbie.

This editor can help you to cut and crop your videos and change their speed. It also enables you to separate the audios and videos so that you can edit them independently. However, it doesn't allow you changes related to color grading, color correction, or Chroma Key.

To make your videos more appealing, you can use their free music, stickers, backgrounds, and transitions from the library.

camtasia
Image via Camtasia

 Magisto

Magisto is intended mainly to create slideshows. If you want to merge several clips into one movie, it can work well. The main advantage of this program is that you don’t need to download it. You can easily edit your videos online.

To make a slideshow, you need to upload your media files and select the format, style, and music. After that, you can take a look at the preview of your slideshow and download your video.

For quick video editing, you can use their special template mode.

magisto
Image via Magisto

2. Think About the Story

Do you know the secret to creating memorable videos? It’s good storytelling.

When you edit your videos, make sure you make changes in such a way that it helps

you tell your story in the best way possible.

It’s also a good idea to have a rough storyboard chalked out before you begin editing. That way, you will have a better idea of your story and get some direction on how to proceed with the editing process.

3. Think About Angles and Sequences

You may need wide shots at the beginning of your video to give your viewers some context of the location. For shots involving actors, you may want to keep close-up shots when you want to capture their emotions.

After all, facial expressions play an essential role in communication. These are nuances that you need to keep in mind while editing videos.

4. Focus on Pace and Cuts

Pace is all about your editing speed and how smoothly you transition from one frame to the other. It can influence the quality of your video and your audience’s perception of the video.

While editing, your goal is to find an optimal pace and maintain it consistently throughout the video.

To create a smooth, professional-looking video, you should try to make the transitions seamless. Experiment with different effects to see which one turns out the best. While smooth transitions are common, you may also need sharp cuts for certain scenes.

One of the most common mistakes that amateur video editors make is to add parallel edits. For the uninitiated, a parallel edit is a synchronous cut between shots and audio tracks. They may look like discontinuities in your video.

5. Think About the Viewers' Reaction

When you include a funny or scary scene in your project, you may expect your audience to react in a certain manner. While editing, make sure that you give some time for that reaction. If the transition to the next scene is too quick, they might miss it.

6. Polish Your Audio

For any video, the audio track is as important as the overall visual component. If you use the voice-over, make sure that there are no distracting background noises. If you have any, you can use special software programs to remove them. If you use the music, choose tracks that can help you make your scenes more powerful.

7. Edit Your Video in Two Sessions

The first phase of editing is a rough cut. You do not need to care about details. It is necessary to cut out inappropriate shots and make a contour for your story. For the first step, it is enough for you to focus on structuring your material and removing the shots that you don’t use.

The second time you sit to edit your video should be about getting it right. In this step, you should work on frames and filters, editing audio, and other important aspects.

If you divide the entire editing process into two parts, you can also stay focused and look at your editing with a fresh perspective.

You also take a break in between to make the video editing process smoother.

When you spend a lot of time working on one project, you can lose the sharpness of vision. In such a case, it is better to change your focus for a bit.

After a couple of days, you can return to the project and continue editing with a fresh eye. It can help you choose the most impressive shots and make better decisions.

8. Keep Your Files Organized

To make the video editing process more organized, it is recommended that you arrange all your files in an orderly manner. You can create several subsections for video footage, images, audio tracks, etc. This way, you will always be aware of where each file is located and how you can access it.

For this purpose, you can use the hard disc drive of your computer or external storage. If you use external storage, you need to check if it is connected to your computer each time before starting editing.

FAQs

Q1. Is it difficult to edit videos?

A. Video editing isn’t very difficult once you get a hang of it. The best part is that there are many video editing software programs available that make the task easier.

Q2. How can I make video editing easier?

A. Find a good video editing software program that has all the features you need and is within your budget. Some programs also provide templates that make the editing process super quick and easy.

Q3. How long does it take to learn video editing?

A. You can learn the basics of video editing in a couple of days easily. But to learn more advanced editing techniques, you may require more time. As the pace of learning is different for everyone, there is no definitive answer to this question.

Q4. Which is the best video editing software program?

A. The best video editing software program will depend on your requirements and budget. Some of the programs that you should check out include Movavi Video Editor Plus, Camtasia, and others.

Q5. Is video editing hard to learn?

A.  Though most video editing programs are not difficult to use, the learning curve can be long, especially if you want to learn advanced techniques. However, you can learn the basic techniques in a couple of days.

Q6. How long does it take to edit a video?

A. It depends on how much editing you want to do. You can finish your video editing in an hour or it could take days depending on the kind of editing you do.

Q7. What are the main steps of the video editing process?

A. The following are all the steps involved in the video editing process:

  • Organize all of the clips in order.
  • Arrange for the audio clips and experiment with sound effects.
  • Make a rough cut.
  • Edit again.
  • Recheck and make changes to the final edit.

Q8. Do I have to be a professional videographer to edit videos?

A. No, anyone can learn video editing with the help of online tutorials and resources. To learn some great video editing tips, read this entire post.

Q9. What equipment is needed to shoot a video?

A. It would be best if you can use a Full HD camera, a microphone, and studio lights to shoot your videos. Otherwise, modern smartphones also work perfectly well for shooting videos.

Q10. How do I cut and merge videos?

A. To cut and merge a video, you can use video editing software programs.

Are You Ready to Get Started With Video Editing?

Videos are an essential tool of social media marketing, you can use them for business purposes. The best part is that creating and editing videos doesn’t require a big budget.

You can learn the video editing process yourself in a couple of days or weeks, depending on your learning pace. It’s easy to pick a good video making tool and start experimenting on your own.

Now that you know some effective editing tips and tricks for video editors, are you ready to edit videos for your promotional content?

Ready? Set? Go!

Do you have any questions on any video editing tips mentioned in this post? Please feel free to mention them in the comments section. I'll be happy to answer them for you.

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