How to make a video to promote your business

Video is a useful and powerful tool to use for your marketing communications. A video can help potential customers understand more about your business and what you are offering. However, shooting video is easier said than done. If you’re a small business with a small budget, you may have some questions: Where do I start? Which equipment should I get? And how should I promote my products or services using video?

Do not worry! In this post, I am going to walk you through the basic steps. By following these steps, you’ll be able to create your first promotional video in no time. I guarantee it will be a great addition to your product page and social media platform.

Step 1: Writing a Script

People think the key components to a successful video are production quality and use of impressive, bright shots. Spoiler: It’s not. The most important element of almost any video is a good script. Visitors can tolerate substandard imagery, as long as the audio is clear and the message resonates with them. Similarly, the most beautiful shot in the world, a high-end piece won’t do much if the script doesn’t make sense.

Also, a well-written script will help your confidence when it comes to shooting videos. You’ll know what to say and do, which increases your chances of doing well.

The Three Main Elements of a Great Script

In a basic promotional video, you need to include a few things: the customer problem, your credibility to solve that problem, and the value proposition for your product or service. In abstract terms, these are Pathos, Athos and Logos (not to be confused with the three Musketeers: Aramis, Athos and Porthos).

• Courage There is an emotional resonance. You want to connect your business to the feelings of your potential customer. This could be their pain point or it could be the reason they are looking for your product in the first place.

• Nature Your business has credibility and authority. It can be your experience, your vision or your past success. Whatever it is, it should persuade your customers to trust you with their time and money.

• Peoples The hard fact is: what your product or service actually is and does. You should phrase it as a value proposition that serves a customer’s need.

Example

For example, you might have a B2B company that sells plugins for international payments. Your essential message might be: “You’re leaving money on the table because you’re not serving international customers (pathos). We’ve built a product that lets you pay (logos) to anyone from anywhere in the world.” We have 3000 happy customers and offer the lowest transaction fees on the market.

Let’s look at a B2C example. Imagine your company sells jeans: “It’s hard to find great jeans to fit (Pathos). We’ve worked with thousands of people around the world to develop cuts that fit perfectly any shape (logo). ,

write it down

Try mapping out these elements for your business. See if you can get it as concise as possible – ideally in just a few sentences. This is the core of your script, which you can expand with more information about your product or service. You can also showcase your product if appropriate.

short video short script

A good and simple promotional video is usually around 1-2 minutes. In the context of a script, this means somewhere between 100 and 200 words. It’s hard to copy everything you want to say in such a small amount, but it’s worth it. Short videos do really well. In addition, there is less chance that your customers will lose interest. May you be successful!

Step 2: Shooting Your A-Roll

A-roll is a term used to describe the primary shot of any video. In most cases, this is a simple ‘talking head’. Talking Heads is a better method for your first video than animation. Why? Because it adds credibility when people can actually see the faces behind a business.

So, pick someone who will read the script, then prepare to shoot your video.

find a good place to shoot

Ideally, you want a quiet room with good natural light. A plain white wall can work, but adding plants or interesting furniture will make your video more interesting to watch. If you want to shoot in front of a white wall, make sure you can’t see the shadow of the person standing in front of you.

Decide whether or not you would like to sit for your video. If you are sitting, find a stool or chair that forces you to sit up straight. It will look better on camera.

find natural light

Always film in a room with lots of light! Keep your speaker facing the window, while the window is behind the camera. It produces the best natural light. Filming otherwise won’t work, as your speaker will be in the dark. It will sound mysterious, but it ultimately isn’t the vibe you’re going for.

Smartphone cameras are better than you think

These days, smartphone cameras are more than enough for shooting a good ‘talking head’ video. However, if you have a DSLR or a high-end camera that you know how to operate, that’s even better.

Line up your shot at a good “medium” height. Meaning: The head and torso are clearly visible, and your speaker is close enough that facial expressions are easy to read.

Tip: If you’re using a phone or external camera, hold your laptop behind or right below your camera. You can display your script on screen and use it as a teleprompter!

Use a good video recording app

If you’re shooting on a smartphone, it’s worth downloading a specific video recording app. They can give you more control over exposure (the brightness of your shot) and focus (what’s in focus and what’s not). The default camera app has tools for adjusting these settings, but they may not be as comprehensive as other apps.

Phone:

If you’re shooting from your laptop, there are tons of good free recording apps available to help you.

Desktop:

If you’re using another camera, YouTube is your friend. There are lots of great tutorials online.

shoot as many as you want

Instead of worrying about trying to do everything right at once, take your time to fix it. Shoot as many as you want until you are satisfied. However, it can still be helpful to learn your text by heart before you start recording. You can also use the laptop to display your scripts. Simply place it behind or below the camera.

Don’t forget to look into the camera as you speak. And try to stay animated and engaged! Lots of big smiles and positive energy will make a better impression on your audience.

Step 3: Shooting Your B-Role

B-rolls are extra shots that spice up your video. They add some visual and creative interest.

The type of b-roll you want to shoot depends a lot on the particular product or service you offer. If you sell a physical product, you may want to get some close-up shots of the product itself. Screenshots of dashboards are more appropriate if you sell a software product, for example. And, if you sell a service, you may want to get some generic shots of yourself or your team at work. This will give potential customers an idea of ​​your business approach and style.

product close-up

Display your product in a neutral, well-lit location. Make sure you get lots of different angles and types of shots. Always film more options than you think you need. Use a tripod if you have one. This will keep your footage as stable as possible.

normal office shots

Similarly, for general views of an office or factory, spend some time getting as many different options as you can for the number of cameras you have. Some slow panning shots, ideally using a tripod, will add some movement and visual interest, while some close-ups of people working can add interest as well.

screencast

If you’re promoting a software product, you’ll want to showcase its functionality and UI. To do this, you will need a good screen capture tool. Thankfully, there are plenty of easy to use desktop and cloud apps available. try some! Find the one which is most comfortable for you.

Note: You’ll probably have to zoom in a lot on your interface to make it visible to viewers. Why? Because your video will usually be viewed in a smaller 640px wide frame rather than full-screen. Try to show one thing clearly with each shot, and demonstrate the product in action.

Step 4: Grind Everything Together

In this step, you will get to do some magic. You are going to combine and edit the footage you just shot, and create a beautiful video. There are many great video editing apps available that allow for a simple, quick edit.

Desktop Apps:

Cloud Apps:

Smartphone Apps:

how to start editing

Go through your footage and find the best take from your ‘Talking Head’ A-Roll recording. String these together to form your audio track and main camera angle.

Next, incorporate some of your B-roll on top of other footage to add visual interest. You can also use B-roll shots to hide any awkward jump cuts. They will ensure that your video continues to play smoothly while showcasing your product or service at the same time.

Once you’ve made a basic cut that you’re happy with, you can take things a step further by adding visual effects.

Step 5: Add Additional Animated Elements

There are tons of great tools available that allow you to add simple overlays and animations to your videos, such as logo sequences, lower thirds, and call-outs. Upload your rough cut to one of these online video editing tools. Then add whatever animated elements help tell your story.

Cloud Animation Apps:

Step 6: Add Music

Almost got there! The final step is adding music, as music can strengthen your message even more. This creates a good mood, which in turn can cheer up your visitors! You can incorporate music with most of the online video editing tools mentioned in this post. But you can also buy good stock options from sites like pond5, However, keep the music volume fairly low. You don’t want it to overpower your voice or be too distracting.

Once the audio is in, you are ready to go! Upload your videos to your website, YouTube, and wherever appropriate for your business. just make sure you implement video seo To get your video ranking! The Yoast Video SEO plugin can help you drive traffic to videos on your website: