If you’re thinking about making a company video, you’ll have questions such as: who will front the video; where will filming take place; should it be scripted or spontaneous: how long should it last?
And most pressing of all: will it be any good?
As a Video Producer with hundreds of corporate videos to my name, I’d like to share with you a few insider tips to ensure your video is a success. These rules apply for all company videos - both amateur and professionally produced.
1. Be 100% clear about the PURPOSE of your video
In other words, what’s the single, most important message your viewer is left with, having watched your video? It’s all-too-easy to overload your video with too many messages. “We’re great at Customer Success! We’re great at providing value! We’re great at innovation!”.
Information overload confuses the viewer.
It dilutes the impact of your content.
And, in the end, becomes a boring video with few views.
Instead, be clear on what your main message is - then stick to it.
If your main message is “You’re awesome at Customer Success”, then drive this home using snappy real-life examples - genuine customer vox pops are great for this. Emphasize your message with graphics and captions. Reiterate your key points in the closing sequence. And always include a strong call to action, giving your viewer the opportunity to take the ideal next step. There are many ways to underline your main point. Talking of which …
2. Be Quick - Get to the Point
Attention spans are short. Viewers will decide in less than 5 seconds whether to stay or go. Latest research says company video length should be between 15 seconds to two minutes, depending on your objective.
So … forget the fancy, lengthy animated version of your logo at the start.
Forget the super slow-motion shots of the office stapler in action.
Forget the achingly slow, wide pan shot of your building.
And lose those over animated, zany transitions between shots.
Instead, go for lively, quick-bite images that will help tell your story. Get plenty of ‘cut-away’ shots that can be used in quick fire succession - and great gap-fillers to be used in the editing process. These shots can be used to convey a heap of information in seconds, and keep the visual interest alive.
Use one-line power statements - either spoken or as on-screen graphics - to underline your message.
3. Be Video-Interesting
Even the most mundane of topics deserve to be interesting and entertaining. You only have to Google “Funny Health & Safety Videos” to get an idea.
There are some simple techniques to liven up even the most boring of messages … and presenters!
Instead of having a talking head looking straight to camera telling staff or customers what’s new, create a story that provides an emotional connection.
Studies show that customers rely on emotions rather than information to make a purchasing decision (although I will caveat that to say this is less true in an B2B or enterprise environment, where there are multiple stakeholders involved in the buying process).
So when planning your video, which of the trigger emotions - happy, sad, surprised or angry - could you apply?
One of my clients, a major training apprenticeship provider, ensures their videos trigger the happy emotion. They’ve created a series of short videos got its "Got a Trade? Got it Made!" campaign. Each video features a newly qualified trade graduate that now has a super bright future. The tag line? “Everything starts with a dream”.
Potent stuff. See below.
If you're looking for further inspiration, read these 7 Tips for Creating a Great Corporate Video.
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