What happens during a video discovery session?

When you decide to make a video to promote yourself or your business, it’s necessary to have a video discovery session.

Director of Storycast Vicki Hansen, explains how it works.

What can I expect during a video discovery session?

During the session we’ll be looking at what kind of branding or image you want to portray in your video. This is essential is it determines the overall look and feel of your video. What kind of message do you want to send to the world, what is the story that you want to tell?

We’ll also be delving deeply into who you are and what is unique about you or your business. Sometimes a story told by you, the owner of your business, is the most powerful as you are the one with the passion and drive that makes your business run.

We’ll talk about the best locations – either in your work-place, outdoors, green screen, etc, which would work best for you.

Your clothing, how you look, is also important- to show you at your best and ideally should be something you feel comfortable and confident in.

Then we’ll decide on the length of the video.

Typically a video ad will run for anywhere from 15 seconds to 1 and a half minutes – around 1 minute is ideal as it doesn’t draw too much on peoples’ attention and will also work on Instagram.

We like to make our video planning sessions relaxed and easy, sharing a tea or coffee in an informal setting so that the ideas can flow.

By the end of the session, which usually lasts a couple of hours, we’ll both have a clearer idea of where you want to go with your video and how you want it to look and feel.

Posted in Video Production By Vicki HansenPosted on 17/02/202030/04/2020Tagged business video, video marketing, videographyNo Comments

How important is it to have a professional video for your website?

In today’s digital world, businesses, both big and small, need a website.

The web has a much wider reach than other forms of advertising – so marketing your business online is essential these days.

Here are some statistics you may find interesting:

75% of executives watch work-related videos on business websites at least once a week [Source: Forbes]
59% of executives would watch a video rather than read text if both options are available [Source: Forbes]
65% of executives visit a vendor’s website after watching a video [Source: Forbes]
Internet users spend 88% more time on your website if there is video present [Source: Mist Media]

Video marketing is a very effective way of advertising online.

Even when potential clients are not watching the video, a video on your website that is well-produced and looks slick implies authenticity and legitimacy. It shows a lot of willingness to invest in yourself and your business and helps to build trust in your brand.

Secondly, by integrating the use of multimedia – and in particular videos – you are communicating your message on multiple levels, using spoken word, visual imagery, music and text. Videos engage potential clients; enhance your website’s look and increase interest in you and your product or service.

Another important factor is that professional videos for any website will improve search results.

A professional video is over fifty times more likely to rank well than a plain text-site in the search engine.
Businesses that have videos on their websites have 41% more (Aberdeen group) web traffic from searches than sites that don’t use video at all.
Video also drives organic traffic up by 157%. (Brightcover) You can capitalise on this by having a video or videos on the landing pages of your website.
Embedding videos on landing pages can increase conversions by 80%. (Eyeview digital)

Most of us do not like reading long articles – preferring to watch a video. It is also said that visual information is far better retained than textual information. Studies show that viewers retain 95% of a video’s message compared to 10% when reading text. (Insivia)

Posted in Video Production By Vicki HansenPosted on 19/01/202030/04/2020Tagged video marketingNo Comments

How can video promotion on social media make a difference to your business?

Did you know that there are nearly 3 billion social media users worldwide?

Here are some interesting facts about social media:

Facebook is the most popular social media platform.
90.4% of Millennials, 77.5% of Generation X, and 48.2% of Baby Boomers are active social media users.
Users spend an average of 2 hours and 22 minutes per day on social networks and messaging.
45% of people watch more than an hour of Facebook or YouTube videos a week.
87% of online marketers use video content.

You have a captive audience waiting to watch your videos on social media!

People are increasingly watching video as a way of gathering information, learning about new products and services and also just as pure entertainment.

As a business wanting to promote your services, you’ll be looking at ways to harness the potential that video holds.

As we know, there is a lot of visual ‘traffic’ on social media, so a video really needs to stand out from the crowd.

A video will need to ‘grab’ attention – with something that is strong visually (as videos are ‘on hold’ until you play them), or a storyline or text that really makes people want to stop their scrolling and engage with your video.

When it comes to social media, it’s important to know your audience

This will help in the creation of your video story which will be specifically targeted towards your chosen audience. The more targeted and ‘niche’ your promotion is, the better chance it will resonate with and engage your target market. So it’s very important to be clear to know exactly who it is you are marketing to when you create your video and also set up your promotion on social media.

Posted in Video Production By Vicki HansenPosted on 02/01/202030/04/2020Tagged video marketingNo Comments

Seven things to think about when making a professional business video

So you’ve tried making a video for your business in the past and it’s come out pretty rough?

The audio is ‘inaudible’ – the wind was blowing through the mic, someone started a lawnmower in the background or, without a decent mic, it sounds like you’re speaking from the other end of a hollow tunnel?

Or maybe you cut half your head off, your eyes were darting all over the place looking for the camera, you had a big stain on your shirt, your hair was a mess, your presentation was stiff and awkward…

So many things to be aware of when you start making videos without all the necessary gear, adequate thought and decent preparation!

Here are some tips and tricks when it comes to making a video that will present you and your business in the most professional light.

Have your intention, your story, clear. What do you want the video to do? What do you want to say to the world about who you are and what you do?
Where would be the best place or location to present yourself that best represents you and your business in the most professional light.
What should you wear? Something that says what your business is about, but also something that you feel comfortable in, that best expresses who you are.
Your script is key. Make sure your words are clear and concise, to the point and follow the recommended video marketing script to ensure maximum engagement (a video marketing professional can help with that!)
Have the right gear! Audiences will forgive (to a point) a slight roughness in the visual quality of your videos, but the audio must be crystal clear, otherwise, people will give up! A good lapel mic will do the trick.
Make sure your video isn’t unnecessarily long. Try to say what you need to say in as short a time as possible.
If you feel it’s too much, get help! It can be hard, managing both the behind and in front of iPhones/cameras by yourself! Make sure it’s someone who is supportive and who helps you to feel relaxed and comfortable.

Posted in Video Production By Vicki HansenPosted on 19/11/201930/04/2020Tagged business video, video marketingNo Comments