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Thanks for the tips!
Extraordinarily helpful
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How to do your online video
More businesses are realizing the importance of having a video presence online, but often lack the knowledge on how to do it right. We'll give you points on how to create the most effective video for your business.
Written May 26, 2009, read 3756 times since then.
More and more businesses are realizing the importance of having a video presence online, but often lack the knowledge on how to do it right. We will give you points and advice on how to create the most effective video – doesn’t matter if you do it yourself or pay someone to do it for you.
First, don’t film your own talking head, show your prospect in pain:
- Talking head is a leftover from broadcast TV where the viewer was passive. In contrast, computer users create their own experiences, thus being active.
- In an eye-tracing study, viewers of a talking head video spent most of their attention outside the video (on road sign in the background, player controls, etc.); in videos of moving objects and in animations the focus stays sharply on the subject.
- Historically in movie making, by showing the main character in pain you create empathy and anticipation in the audience; by beginning with an explanation of who you are, you bore your audience to tears – they don’t care for you.
Second, don’t tell what you do, show what you do:
- This is a classic for all stories, from 1 minute videos to 2 hour movies. “Telling” means you gave dry information and haven’t involved the viewer emotionally; “showing” means you used specific details to describe the action, letting the viewer experience it - and that makes the viewer believe in your story.
- Compare the following script examples for effectiveness: “We are experts at automating enterprise contract management” VS “A sleek vacuum-like machine (bearing company logo) rolls onto a landfill full of old paper, sucks it all up, spits out neat numbered stacks on the now clean ground.”
Third, leave the last frame on a call to action for a few seconds:
- Don’t leave it on black background, do leave your website on the bottom, a phone number to call, and an e-mail to contact you at.
- Don’t leave just an 800 number with an answering machine on it, rather choose something where people can interact with you right away, like a twitter account name, a Facebook page or an e-mail.
Fourth, do these little technical details correctly:
- Put a play button on the player, so people know this is a video and not just an image (you’d be surprised how many people don't do this - as simple as it sounds).
- Put the length of the video into the player or next to it, so people know if it is 1 minute, 20 minutes, or 1 hour, and can make a decision.
- Do NOT put the video on autoplay, allow people to play and pause the video as they want.
- Have a volume control button, people hate it when they can’t control the sound.
- Best, put video on YouTube and embed the code into your web site page instead of putting it up on your own site – this will let people share it easily. And, YouTube player already has all the controls built in - volume, play button, length of the video - so this will make the job easier for you.
Learn more about the author, Ksenia Oustiougova.
Comment on this article
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Posted by Joe Townsend, Redmond, Washington |May 27, 2009 Putting you experience and expertise to good use here! Thanks for bringing it all together.
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Posted by Gary Powell, Portland, Oregon |May 27, 2009 I've seen your company's site. You guys have a great, fun approach that should prove to be popular, as well as profitable. Great article and tips!
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Posted by Brad Nelson, Seattle, Washington |May 27, 2009 Thank you for spreading the online video message
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Posted by Sue Oliver, Tacoma, Washington |May 28, 2009 Great article; I'm leading a group of new entrepreneurs in creating their videos this week. I'll be sure to share some of your tips (giving you credit of course!!). Thanks Ksenia.
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Posted by Sara Eizen, Seattle, Washington |May 28, 2009 Super helpful, thanks for sharing your knowledge.
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Posted by John James, Redmond, Washington |May 28, 2009 Just redoing our website. Thanks for the timely tips.
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Posted by Mark Selmi, Beverly Hills, California |May 28, 2009 Great tips. Consumer expectations have changed on the Internet within the last 2 years. With the popularity of social networking sites, online customers are increasingly seeking a personal, interactive experience on the web.
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Posted by Dave Schappell, Seattle, Washington |May 28, 2009 Loved the tips, Ksenia (in fact, I shared the Biznik e-mail with the TeachStreet Community Developers!) I look forward to seeing you at the Small & Special event.
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Posted by Bill Vick, Plano, Texas |May 28, 2009 What a perfect overview, tips and ideas on doing video. Just excellent Ksenia. I've tweeted this to my friends.
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Posted by Ann Bingley Gallops, Brooklyn, New York |May 28, 2009 Wow, I'm just getting ready to tackle this for the first time -- thanks so much for the tips!
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Posted by Eero Johnson, Bellingham, Washington |May 28, 2009 Great - I couldn't agree more.
Perhaps there is a line between a "talking head" and a passionate, interesting host cut in with interesting footage . . . maybe your next article??
Thanks for the tips
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Posted by Annie Jacobsen, Seattle, Washington |May 28, 2009 This is great info! Some of it is pretty obvious once you say it ~ but I never would have thought of it on my own. Many thanks!
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Posted by Maureen Fries, Deerfield Beach, Florida |May 28, 2009 I think these are great tips. And I'd add one: don't be afraid to enlist the help of professionals who may be able to help you add production quality to your video. This may help add shelf life to your piece, provide another perspective from their vast expertise and experience. And give you a heads up over the competition.
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Posted by Brad Miller, Chicago, Illinois |May 28, 2009 I almost don't want anyone else to know how important (and easy) an online video can be. We shot ours with a digital camera, edited it in iMovie, and posted it to YouTube. It's no masterpiece, but we got a big bounce on Google searches.
Your tips were right on.
Also, don't rely on the camera's built-on mic.
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Posted by Jim Carney, Bellingham, Washington |May 28, 2009 Going to practice these great tips today! We will let people know when it is up and running. Today we shoot and then edit.
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Posted by Gus Zadra, Seattle, Washington |May 28, 2009 This a well thought out post. Great insight.
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Posted by Maximus Kang, Issaquah, Washington |May 28, 2009 Great article indeed! Such great timing as I've been brainstorming videos for quite some time now.
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Posted by Ksenia Oustiougova, Seattle, Washington |May 28, 2009 Wow, thanks everyone for such great feedback! Let me know what else you would like to learn more of - I am thinking about writing what to do with your video once you have it, on the importance of branding your video to your company's brand, etc. Any ideas on future topics? ksenia@lilipip.com
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Posted by Eddie Bishop, Sammamish, Washington |May 28, 2009 Good advice, Ksenia. As an aspiring video producer in Sammamish, I can help people with this, especially around the eastside... I bring great cameras, microphones, and lighting, not to mention experience, artistry and attitude. Please let me know how I may be of assistance to you or any members of the group.
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Posted by Derek Cole, Kirkland, Washington |May 28, 2009 I'm putting a site together now and will implement these tips. Great!
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Posted by Steve Crow, Palo Alto, California |May 28, 2009 Great to find another online video producer here on Biznik who clearly knows her stuff.
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Posted by Dawn Wilkinson, Mercer Island, Washington |May 28, 2009 Very useful info, can't wait to use some of your tips. Thank you so much!
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Posted by Eric Putkonen, Mound, Minnesota |May 28, 2009 Great article. I would like to expand upon it with this "obvious" technical points:
Use a tripod. I don't know how many videos I have seen by DIY that hand hold the camera and have a constant shake. It is annoying and harder to see.
Use an external microphone. So many use the built in microphone of the camcorder...it sounds like they are talking from down a hallway.
Get more light into the room. Digital cameras are not as sensitive as the human eye...what looks like a lit room to you may be a dark room to the camera. Get some extra lamps in there. (of course, if you mix lights...manually set white balance).
There are some things I have been finding as I have been looking at and blogging about marketing and recruiting videos I find online.
Check out my blog at http://blog.peekproductionsvideo.com
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Posted by Gil Pauley, Bellevue, Washington |May 29, 2009 Ksenia,
Great article. I enjoyed it and it was very informative. A good follow up to the session at your office.
Gil
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Posted by Jeff Hope, Orting, Washington |
May 29, 2009 Thanks for the great info!!! Very timely as we are currently working on just this aspect of our web sites.
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Posted by Lisa Sudo, Portland, Oregon |May 29, 2009 Ditto! Loved the pointers. Tshombe Brown and I are also co-hosting a video creation event. Can't wait, it should be tons of fun.
Lisa Hanna ~ Action Biz Concepts
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Posted by Zirk Botha, Cape Town, WCape South Africa |May 29, 2009 Great stuff, Thanks. I'm going to apply this on my site!
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Posted by Allan Pearlman, New York, New York |May 29, 2009 Thanks. Really useful info. I'm rethinking what I might do to comply with the by-now-not-so-new wisdom which says that websites need to have video.
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Posted by Michael Moses, Greensboro, North Carolina |May 29, 2009 Great information. I'm working on a website and have been thinking about a video so your tips are timely. Thanks
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Posted by Tammy Redmon, Seattle, Washington |Jun 01, 2009 Thanks Ksenia! Wonderful easy to implement tips. Now I am even more eager to get the Shine video clips to start editing with my editor!!
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Posted by Kate Phillips, Carnation, Washington |Jun 02, 2009 Thanks Ksenia. Really great stuff here, and not so obvious to us newbies! I checked out your website and thought the animations were awesome and adorable!
I know when I'm buying a service from an individual (ie, not a company, a product, or a concept, but a coach, musician or realtor, for instance), I want to see who they are. I understand that it's important to others, too, to see who they would be working with.
Are there different rules for different businesses (as to what kind of video works), and ways to make showcasing an individual more compelling than a "talking head" while still showing them and their personality?
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Posted by Kirk McClain, Seattle, Washington |Jun 02, 2009 Good stuff! Very helpful! I just attended a workshop on creating video for my website-in-progress and the info will be very useful.
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Posted by Amy Lang, Seattle, Washington |Jun 05, 2009 Thanks for the tips! I am just waiting for my video to come back from the editor and can't wait to see how I blew it! :)
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Posted by Pat Valentine Ziv, Mountainside, New Jersey |Jun 06, 2009 Thanks - great info - I'm preparing a video for my website1
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Posted by Mario Bonilla, Ferndale, Washington |Jun 08, 2009 Excellent advise. I am shooting tomorrow and I will incorporate your solid direction.
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Posted by Robert Nitschke, Edmonds, Washington |Jun 11, 2009 Thank you, nicely done. What are your thoughts about shooting your own video with web camera or video camera; vs. having it professionally done- a big difference in cost?
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Posted by Agustin Mende, Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires Argentina |Jun 13, 2009 Great article. I´m planning on making a video so, I will take care of your recomendations!
Thanks!
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Posted by Denise Reed, Chattanooga, Tennessee |Oct 05, 2009 This is exactly what I've been looking for! There's lots of technical information about video, but this will be priceless for us planning our business message for video.
I've also thought about what the purpose of our video will be: particular service or product spot light, or overall who we are. If you don't have the end result in mind and who your audience is, you'll not achieve what you desire. From an amateur, this is important to consider. An outline of the message will keep you on task along with some visual ideas. Consider the emotional experience of your viewers of what the hear and see in your video. I've even thought about walking around with my camera to "tunnel my view," looking for interesting visual ideas. Just a brain on overdrive looking for video inspiration.
At your service, Denise Reed www.theconciergelevel.com
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Posted by Robert Nitschke, Edmonds, Washington |
Oct 05, 2009 Ksenia; For us DIY personalities, how about an article of tools to use to create your own video; especially freeware or low cost options for video editing, players; quick uses of each, etc. Just a jump start for those who might what to experiment with the technology.
Great job; Bob
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Posted by Scott Poe, Newport Beach, California |Nov 22, 2009 Great tips, thank you. Off to find a video camera!
Article tags
- video
- online video
- how to do a video
- how to do video
- editing
- promo
- promotion
- marketing
- sales
- story
- storytelling
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