Did you know Facebook lets you upload profile videos instead of static photos? Those profile videos stand out and let you show a bit more of yourself to your friends or customers. Luckily, it’s very easy to create and share your own profile video in Animoto. Here’s how to do it:
Step 1: Make your profile video in Animoto
First things first, you’ll need to create your profile video in Animoto. Heads up! Currently the ability to upload profile videos to Facebook is only available on mobile, so either download your video from the Animoto mobile app, or grab it from a cloud app, like Dropbox or iCloud.
- Login to Animoto: If you don’t have an account, you can sign up for a free account here.
- Start your project: Select a pre-built storyboard template or start a video from scratch.
- Adjust your aspect ratio: You can find this tool on the left-hand toolbar under “Ratio” If you’re starting with a landscape video, change over to a square one to help your video look its best on Facebook.
- Upload your images: Note that Facebook has a 7 second maximum length for profile videos. To fit within this time limit, I used 5 photos and reduced my pacing to 1 second per photo.
- Finish your video: Once you’re happy with your video, produce and download it. Remember, it’ll need to be saved to your mobile device in order to upload it to Facebook.
To give you some idea of what your profile video might look like, check out the one I created for myself in Animoto:
Step 2: Add your video to your Facebook profile
Once your video is saved on your device, you’re ready to upload it to Facebook.
- Open up the Facebook app on your iPhone or Android device.
- Go to your profile and tap Edit on your current profile picture or video. Then, tap Select Profile Picture from the menu that pops up.
- Select the video you created and tap Done.
- Tap Edit to enter a preview screen to see the options listed below for adjusting your video:
- Trim: To trim, select the portion of your video that you want to use by dragging the blue handles back and forth.
- Crop: If you have a landscape video, you can crop your video here to fit into a square profile.
- Sound: Don’t want sound? Mute your video clip here.
- Cover: This is the image that will appear next to your name in the News Feed, where profile videos don’t play. Tap Cover, then drag the square that appears back and forth along the video clip to find a cover image you like.
- When you’re finished, click Done, then Use to set your video as your profile.
That’s all there is to it! Have you used Animoto to create a profile video for Facebook? We’d love to see it! Share a link with us in the comments or reach out on Facebook or Twitter.
