Are you looking to engage your audience through video? Have you made content before? Do you know where to start?
Generating video that not only looks good, but also engages and gives you some return, can be a mind-boggling process.
Here are three things to think about when setting off on your video production journey.
Know your goals
Right from the start, you need to be clear about why you’re looking to use video. Is it for marketing around a new campaign or product? Are you looking to train staff within your company? Is it to help explain a complex subject to an external audience?
Define your goals and measurements, what the content needs to include (your key messages) and how you’re going to make it visually compelling to hold the increasingly short attention span of viewers.
If there’s a voiceover or narration, you will also need to be drafting out a script early in the process. This will help you focus your thoughts and build the storytelling structure of your video.
Who’s going to produce it?
Once you’ve got a clear idea in your head of what you’d like to achieve with your video content, you then need to set your sights on who’s going to produce it.
If it’s a simple, 30-second social media video, you may want to film it on a smartphone. Get someone involved who knows how to frame and light it nicely. You will also want to think about getting a plug-in microphone if you have someone speaking, to optimise the audio quality.
If you’re looking for a higher-spec, more elaborate video, you will want to think about hiring in the services of a video production company – who can support you throughout the process of scripting, filming and editing.
Where will the video go?
Making a video is one thing, but you also need to make sure you can get the best return on your investment. Whether that’s generating leads and sales or just reaching as many people in your desired audience as possible.
This is achieved, in part, through the platform or platforms you use to share your content.
Think about where your audience is, where they are most likely to find the video and engage with it.
This could be on social media, on a website, at a conference or on a company’s intranet system.
