When companies prepare to create videos, their first impulse is often to gather all the top executives, sit them down in a conference room and capture them talking about the company’s work.
Is that the best way to share their message to potential clients or customers? Is that something you’d want to watch?
Here are ways to make a video memorable to viewers.
Consider The Audience
Is the video geared toward employees who know the industry lingo or is it an explanatory video for new customers? The interviewee needs to know who the audience is, so the intended viewers understand the language.
If you’re trying to use video to explain how your product works or how your service works, you’ve got to do it not only in an interesting or creative way, but also you’ve got to explain it in simple terms and find someone who knows how to translate the material into everyday language.
Introduce The Characters
Although the tendency might be to include a long line of top executives in the video, it’s important to find a frontline worker to tell the company’s story. Find one or two strong personalities that passionately reflect the key messages the company wants to share. Sometimes companies need to realize that the person at the top isn’t necessarily the person who should be in front of the camera. We’re big believers in remaining authentic. You can remain authentic and strategically choose the people you put on camera.
The best way to get a message across is to find a good character at your company who is passionate and who has a really good story to share that reinforces the overall message.
Keep It Simple
The more people you cram into a video, the less people remember what it’s all about because the messaging gets diluted. I’ve seen videos that are extremely well-shot and edited, and although I appreciate that, I don’t remember the key message because so many different people spoke on camera in so many different locations.
Get Them Where The Action Is
Conference rooms and offices are typically not interesting settings for on-camera interviews. Ideally, you should interview somebody in an active environment that shows where people are working, such as in a shop or factory.
Entice The Viewer
Organizations should consider the video as a way to gain the attention of potential customers or clients, similar to how a headline captures the attention of a reader and entices readers to read the story. The video should highlight a primary message and then direct viewers to places that provide additional information, such as a website or blog post.
Plan Ahead
Although we typically don’t use a script because we want to make it authentic as possible, we do recommend companies put together a strategic plan. This can include whom to interview and what type of setting they will be in.
You don’t have to map it like a Hollywood film, but you should have a strategic plan in place ahead of time so you’re working as efficiently and effectively as possible toward a final product that meets your goal.
Sometimes companies will get whoever just happens to be available for an interview on the spot. That’s not the way to do it. You should be able to think about this ahead of time and plan it out like an important meeting. Waiting until the last second to pick anyone who happens to be available is not making the most of the opportunity.
Include Testimonials
One of the best ways for a company to highlight a product or service in a video is including a client or customer who is using the product or service. Companies are often unprepared to find a customer, so I recommend that long before you consider creating a video for these type of purposes, jot down names and contact information of those customers and clients who you could envision going to bat for you one day. Have a conversation with them about doing a video testimonial or a website or social media testimonial. That way, you’re creating a list of people ahead of time so you’re not scrambling at the last second.
Be Prepared
You want to prepare people on camera for the questions. An interview for these purposes shouldn’t be a 30-minute marathon where you’re looking for any good sound bite. It should be a concise interview with questions that the person is familiar with. I’ve seen situations where the interview seems to go on for an eternity and some of these questions are not even under the skill set of the person we’re talking to and now we’re just wasting time and money.
A video interview should be a well-planned scenario where the person on-camera knows the questions and the interviewer knows what this person can address and what they shouldn’t address.
Remember The Main Goal
Although companies may feel obligated to squeeze as many people as possible into a video, whether it’s for political reasons, sensitivity to someone who might feel left out, or the feeling that they need to include everyone because of the investment being made, remember the main goal: to convey a message.
The more people you stuff into a video, the less people remember what it’s all about because the messaging gets diluted. If there are too many different voices, none will stand out and may leave the viewer with nothing memorable to walk away with.
