Videos are a great way to promote your business. Cameras today are very affordable as is editing software. A YouTube channel takes just minutes to set up. Throw in a variety of interesting backgrounds and a little stage presence, and you've got the makings of an impressive, and more importantly, effective message delivery platform.
How can you use video to promote your brand? Share tips about your products or services. Answer most frequently asked questions. Share your business' philosophy. Introduce a new product. Demonstrate how your product works. Show off the results of using your product. There are hundreds of ways to use video to promote your business.
Because creating videos is so easy to accomplish there is, for some, a tendency to be sloppy in the details. The results, unfortunately, can be amateurish which hurt, rather than help, your brand.
Spend some time and effort writing a great script strong enough to draw your viewer all the way through to your call to action at the end of your, hopefully, short video.
Your goal is to be memorable, effectively deliver your message and, ultimately, convince your viewer to respond favorably to your call to action. Producing a polished video will enhance your brand, help you stand out from the crowd and give you a better shot at convincing and converting your viewer.
To accomplish your marketing goals, here are seven simple tips to make dynamite videos.
1. Keep it short.
Keep your video under a minute in length. Most viewers won't even make it to the end of even the shortest video before clicking away. When writing your script, make it punchy and put your most important message in the first few seconds of the video.
2. Set the stage.
Search for a background that is not distracting to the star of the video -- you. Your background should not compete with you. Have nothing and no one moving in the background. Have the background be light if you will appear dark in skin tone or choice of clothing in the video. If you have a pale complexion and light hair, highlight yourself with a darker background. The goal is to create contrast with your background. Experiment videoing yourself with different colors and kinds of backgrounds for the best look.
3. Frame your shot.
Do a brief test video to make sure that while filming you don't appear to have a plant growing out of your head or a post on top of your head. It's also good technique to be off center in the shot rather than dead center. It's makes the viewer more comfortable. Check your hair, your clothes, your make up and your teeth. You want to look your best. You never get a second chance to make good first impression.
4. Create good lighting.
It's a bit frustrating for a viewer to have to strain to make out the facial features of someone in a video where the lighting is poor. And nothing says amateur more quickly than ineffective lighting. Purchase an inexpensive desk lamp or floor lamp that can be angled in various positions. Point the lamp on your face and a little off to the side. Lighting on both sides of you would be even better. Again, do a test video to make sure there is enough lighting and it highlights your face.
5. Shoot a medium close-up.
You know when a talking head is either too far away from the camera so as to appear small and ineffectual or too close to the camera and filling up way too much of the viewing frame. Both are a bit disconcerting and distracting. Watch how TV news anchors and reporters are filmed. Usually their head and shoulders are in the shot. This is a familiar and comfortable distance for the viewer. Your face will not be too large and in-your-face and yet close enough to be intimate with the viewer.
6. Use appropriate props.
One of your goals is to be memorable. Using appropriate props can visually anchor your brand in the viewer's mind. For example, if you are a fitness coach, have some exercise equipment in the background or in your hands and, of course, dress the part. If you sell nutritional supplements, have the whole foods they replicate on the table in front of you as well as the product itself. If you repair car engines, stand in front of an open car hood with tools in hand. Be creative and have fun with your props. And remember, nothing sells better than humor!
7. Brand yourself prominently.
Make sure your logo is in every shot. Create a banner or poster with your logo imprinted large on it and position it in the background. Stand in front of your business premises or sign. Use YouTube's text overlay capabilities to place your company name and website URL in the video.
Videos are the darlings of the search engines. You'll get higher rankings with videos on your site, especially if you add them regularly and frequently. Make your videos punchy and full of polish and panache and you'll create highly effective tools to deliver your marketing messages memorably.
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