by John Eberhard
This article is an excerpt from our free ebook The Business Owner’s Guide to Getting Your Video Produced.
Here are some tips to keep in mind when producing various types of videos.
Explainer or Product Video: You can start with writing a script, then get a voiceover recorded, then add in video clips or still images that show what the voiceover is talking about. The video can include stock video clips or stock photos, or still photos or video shot in the company or showing products. You can intersperse “talking head” content featuring company owners or executives.
Testimonial: You put the camera on the client or customer giving the testimonial, and have someone off camera ask them questions to prompt them to speak about the product or service they got. You’ll usually edit out the questions from the person off camera. It’s best to have a lapel microphone on the client, and record that into a hand-held recorder or laptop. You can also use a second camera set up at a different angle.
Company Culture Videos: You put the camera on the company executive, and have someone off camera ask them questions to prompt them to speak about the business. You’ll usually edit out the questions from the person off camera. You can also show the interviewer side by side with the company executive, like a talk show. It is usually much easier to get a good product this way than just expecting the executive to talk into the camera by himself.
It’s best to have a lapel microphone on the exec, and record that into a hand-held recorder or laptop, though you can record directly into the camera if it has that capability. You can take still photos or video footage of the company operations and splice that in over the executive talking. That’s called B-roll. You can also use a second camera at a different angle, and go back and forth between the two cameras in editing.
Live Streaming: This will usually be done with one camera in one room, live.
Event Recap: This is usually where you are shooting video of an entire event, and you edit together short snippets for a recap.
Educational Videos: The format for these varies widely according to your capabilities and what you’re trying to do.
Short Form Social Media Clips: These tend to be more sophisticated in production values, although they can also be very simple, again depending on your capabilities.
If you want help with producing a video for your company, we can help with all aspects of the production, or with whatever part of it that you need help with. Contact us at 661-441-2429 or fill out a form here.
