To make your business stand out, you have to come up with interesting visuals. One of the best ways is to create a video promo. ?Video promos convey the personality of your business to prospective clients and customers and is a great way to show off your team and culture,? explains Jason Parks, owner of The Media Captain, a digital marketing agency.
Video promos are good for not just new companies but any company looking to refresh its image. When TaNesha Barnes, owner of Barnes Beauty and Solace Spa, decided her business needed a little boost, she created a new video not only to highlight her services but to give a showcase to her personality and the personality of her brand. ?I am a person that is in business because I have a political agenda around freedom. I write many edgy things on social media around race, class, and gender and because of the way social media is structured it is not always easy to see the full spectrum of my personality and warmth from my writing.? I am not willing to kill my political voice to be more successful in commerce so I thought it was important for people to see me, look at my body language and ?feel? me. It has made all the difference in building a brand that stands for something,? she explains.
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And Barnes would recommend the video promo method to other business owners. ?I would encourage everyone to do well thought out, message-driven video promotions. LIVE tools are cool but they can saturate your audience with incoherent blabber, where as a video promo has been organized to ensure you deliver your message with clarity,? says Barnes, who just opened a second SOLACE Anguilla boutique store, participated in Anguilla Fashion Week and had a new clothing line called T. Barnes Global Travel Apparel that also sells organic skincare, vegan foundation and mineral cosmetics.
And if your business is one that is shaking up an industry, videos are the way to go. ?Video promos do a really great job when used in disruptive businesses. When the product or the service is new, or provided in an uncommon way, a video explanation will work better than a text. Crowdfunding platforms always ask for a demo video to help viewers to get a better grasp on the product trying to raise money,? Jean-Christophe Lavocat, founder of Elokenz, a content marketing application that automatically shares and recycles your content on social media, points out.
Here?s how to make a video promo on a tight budget:
Make a plan: ?First and foremost, you need to plan in advance. This will help you save on budget. Know exactly what you are looking for in your promo video in terms of style and location. Be sure to send the video production company you hire a similar video clip so they can get an understanding of exactly what you’re looking for and provide you with an accurate quote. If you are on a shoestring budget, film the video on a smartphone but be sure to get a tripod for your phone so it is a steady shot. This will help reduce budget,? offers Jason Parks, owner of The Media Captain, a digital marketing agency.
Make use of all resources: ?There are so many tools that allow you to shoot at commercial quality direct from your phone. You can add a little music and some sub-titles and you are on your way. Most videographers for a couple of hundred dollars will shoot your 2-3 minute promo. You can have higher end editing, lighting and graphics and it is worth the investment. If you will be shooting often, then it is worth it to buy an inexpensive lighting kit and camera and recruit your friends and family to help you,? suggests Barnes. Adds Lavocat, ?You will find dozens of solutions to do videos for cheap (online applications, freelancers) or you can use professional software (Adobe After Effects). The important point is to have the sound correct, so I usually use a service like Fiverr to get a professional voice-over.?
Keep it short and sweet: ?The first important piece of advice to remember is that online videos should be short. Viewers don’t have much time for you. The average attention span on the Internet is 8 seconds, so it’s recommended that online videos last for a maximum of 1 minute and 30 seconds,? notes Lavocat.
