Without music, social media videos would be awkward. 

Both Curastory and APM Music couldn’t agree more with this statement, as having the fitting soundtrack gives a whole different vibe to social media video content — especially for creators.

However…

There’s a huge problem with the music — and that’s copyright infringement. 

Take the Copyright Law (which is a Federal Law by the way) as an example. It’s there to protect your valuable creation from copyright infringement… But also to punish you if you go extra-smart on taking things borrowed from other creators. Music involved.

This could cause all your video content creation efforts to go to the trash bin. And we’re up to changing that.

We’ll tackle the most significant reasons why your video content could get removed from video platforms and how to avoid this from happening altogether. Powered by APM Music, here’s all you need to know as a creator to avoid having your videos taken down.

The importance of having music in your video content. 

Music gives meaning, context, and purpose to everything in life. And when it comes to video content… It also gives personality to this intent.

According to Lojo Marketing, “Music can make a huge difference in your video; the right [song] can make it more exciting and dynamic, while the wrong [one] can stick [out] like a sore thumb. The general recommendation is to use a sound effect that reflects the video content’s overall message. Your video content can deliver the desired customer experience with the right music, which plays a critical role in your brand awareness.”

Which, in essence, is accurate.

Your audience could probably ignore somehow poor video quality — but they’ll never forget poor audio quality or distorted music. It’s annoying, and it makes your brand look unprofessional.

But exactly why is having music in your video content so important?

Both APM Music and Curastory’s experts agree that there are 3 top reasons why:

1. 81% of marketers say music enhances video engagement.

Yes — music tells a story, and it should be the perfect complement to your brand’s message. If you’re telling an emotional story, you probably won’t want Pantera’s “Cowboys from Hell” playing in the background (no offense to Pantera fans). It might share a weird message on your puppy video.

2. 78% of people watch online videos every week, and 55% view online videos every day.

Video rules, and numbers show that. If you want better engagement and a higher reach, video is the way to go. And music is just the perfect way to enhance video experience.

3. More than 1 billion hours of video are uploaded every day to YouTube.

Numbers can’t lie. Video supports creators and audiences to get a higher-quality experience, as video content has established itself as the go-to source for entertainment for most groups, regardless of age, ethnicity, gender, or nationality.

How to add music to your social media videos

Finding the right track for your uploaded videos doesn’t have to feel like heavy lifting, especially through APM Music.

With the largest music catalog in North America and over 15,000 new songs added almost every month, APM Music is the go-to place for brands looking for legal, near radio-quality music for their videos — all of which is available through creator- and brand-focused platforms, like Curastory.

Go check them out — besides, APM takes care of the heavy lifting. From music replacement, custom scores, and a staff of Music Directors that will search for music for you, they have everything a brand needs to avoid copyright strikes, takedowns, and lawsuits.

How do Curastory and APM Music help you create video content with music while avoiding copyright issues? 

With our newest partnership with APM Music, we’re taking the bull by the horns, providing our brand partners and content creators with an easily accessible solution for their content creation efforts.

As you know, Curastory (via APM) offers an extensive library of licensed music everyone can use for sprucing up their videos — all while editing your videos seamlessly.

APM Music has over 1,000,000 tracks in its library and has worked with top sports teams, leagues, and broadcasters such as MLB, NFL, ESPN, Turner Sports, and a league-wide deal with the NHL. They are constantly adding new music, empowering Curastory creator users to find the soundtrack of their lives with just a few clicks.

And, how does that solve the copyright issue, you might ask?

Simple: APM offers the best indemnity and legal protection among all music production companies out there, so you won’t have to worry about getting copyright violations while finding the right tunes for your video campaigns.

The cons about getting your video taken down 

Copyright infringement (social media) jail sucks. No doubts about that.

However, there are even worse consequences than just having to re-upload your video… And they are something to be cautious about.

For instance, did you know that having your video taken down by a copyright infringement automatically flags your video for monetization purposes?

It makes sense — you can’t profit from something that’s not yours even though it feels like it.

You need to be very careful about how you use music in your videos if you want to continue monetizing your content, whether a revenue share from the platform or your own sponsorships. 

Just like the NFL got in trouble a couple years ago, as did some heavy hitters in the college athletics landscape, and even Olympic figure skaters (yeah, even the big players get flagged every now and then). All the while, this is something that could have been easily avoided by using licensed music through APM.

Here’s what you’re facing if you choose to play with the fire that is copyright infringement: the first strike will work as a warning – if you’re lucky. A second strike will surely affect your ability to monetize your content. And, just like in baseball, a third strike and you’re out: account taken down, fines to be paid for struck videos, all of your videos removed, no questions asked, you’re just out. On the other hand, there remains a chance that you won’t receive any strikes at all, but rather a legal notice right off the bat and a potential six-figure settlement amount or more.

Getting strikes also affects your ability to live stream your content. If you get hit with a copyright strike, it could prevent you from live streaming content for seven days. Or worse, some platforms, like Facebook, might permanently ban your account, which means you might lose your followers, your content, your posts, and your messages forever.

I don’t know about you, but that sounds like way too much to handle from something you could easily avoid with the help of APM Music and Curastory.

Got questions on how this works exactly? Just reach out.

We would love to share more details about music licensing with our newest partner’s help.

With love from,

– The APM Music and Curastory Team