Here at vzaar we want to unlock the power that online video can have. We are firm believers in the awesome conversion rates it can generate, the personality it gives your brand and the sense of community and relationship it builds with your consumers.
In our quest to make sure our own videos live up to their full potential we managed to grab David Sington, Principal Film Maker at Dox Productions for a chat about just how to do it.
What does video do that text alone can’t?
This was the first thing that David asked us and we readily reeled (pun intended) off all the virtues of video:
- It’s engaging
- It conveys rich information
- It helps develop brand personality
And all of those things are very true. Video DOES add that extra layer of information, with visual cues and implicit communication that text alone could never convey. It DOES add context and deeper meaning to complex concepts. And yes it DOES help us to bring our personality to the forefront and remove the barrier between business and consumer
But, as David pointed out to us, simply knowing that video CAN do all those things doesn’t mean it does do all those things by default.
Now, you may have noticed in last week’s blog we took a slightly different direction with the video, interspersing our classic head shots with some more visually interesting images. This was in an attempt to apply some of David’s advice – what do you think?
1. Show don’t tell
One of the key benefits of video is that we can add visual information to demonstrate our point. We could just TELL you we have a new feature – but by SHOWING it we can explain it much more effectively and that is where the value lies.
Dual encoding is a fairly complex feature with viewers on different speed Internet connections experiencing different effects. We illustrated this by showing two different people with two different viewing issues.
2. Cut the dead air
There are things we can show in a video which convey information simply by being there, without the viewer having to be explicitly told. As David explained, “there’s no need to start a video by saying ‘Hello, I’m here today to talk about…’ All of that information is implicit in the pictures; so get right to the point.”
Leave in all those introductory statements and you run the risk of viewers becoming bored and moving away. Cut them and your video instantly becomes less clunky and more engaging. The sooner you can get to the real story the better.
3. The first shot counts
It’s the reason the viewer makes the choice to continue watching. You may want to introduce an element of mystery. Don’t tell the viewer what’s happening straight away and they’ll be curious enough to keep watching. For instance, try starting with a tight close up that opens out to reveal the full story. Or, present a visually stimulating scene that creates intrigue. Create questions that the video promises to answer and your viewers will keep on watching.
Creating curiosity: Why is the video grainy? What’s going on?
4. Give it a punch line
As much as the first shot counts, the last one does too. Stand out and be remembered. Try a touch of humor (if that ties in with your brand image) or a strong call to action that sticks in the consumer’s mind.
We are looking for Dual Encoding Beta tester so we ended on an image of the switch being turned on: this was the whole point of the video.
5. Remember the audio!
It’s important to make sure the sound is clear. Carefully listen out for any microphone hiss or background noise that could be distracting/annoying to your viewers, and be sure to spare a thought for the background music you use – it can be a powerful way to build emotion.
We’re going to keep building on David’s advice throughout our blogs to refine what works for us as a company. But the main thing is that our videos bring value to you – our consumers. We want to bring you clear information in as engaging a way as possible and the only way we can do that is with feedback so tell us what you thought, we’d love to hear from you.
If you would like to watch the full version of the video head here.
