Video Marketing Made Easy was inspired by video company extraordinaire Blare Media of Fresno, California. Blare Media’s Blake Barnett, Justin McAleece and I had some discussions regarding a potential project involving a lakefront real estate listing showcase video. Those conversations inspired me to do this article. What follows is a discussion of video marketing drawn from this inspiration.
Youtube Rocks! (and Vimeo Too)
Yes, it does. Youtube is all the rage nowadays for a reason. Why? Because video works. Video speaks. Video entertains. And with Youtube, video is free, easy, and everywhere.
Video Works?
What does video works mean? Well, video is the next best thing to being there, in the room, actually having a conversation with your audience. For this reason video manages to communicate better than the written word in an ADHD world. Nothing will ever replace the written word, but video takes it to the next level.
Video Is ‘Real’
Because video can communicate better, video is alive, video is “real”. Video is highly visual and auditory, and as such manages to create a more authentic experience, and the emotional responses that go with the real world.
Effective communication is always the goal. As an extremely effective communication medium when done correctly, Video will be a very effective arrow in your quiver of marketing tools.
Better Shoot Straight (Pardon the Pun)
But how do you do it right?
Camcorders are cheap right? Smartphones shoot decent video right? Youtube editing tools are awesome. So just shoot some video, edit and go, right? Well, yes and no.
The answer is, and this is the most common answer in the human experience for sure, that it depends. It depends on what you intend to achieve with your video. In a word, hire a pro for video.
Hire a Pro for Video
You know you want video. How you shoot and create your video all depends on the response you want to evoke in the viewer. Your intent dictates your approach.
If you intend to put forward a polished, high-end look and feel, you absolutely must go pro. Save yourself the grief and just do it right.
But Fireside Chats Are Cool Too
On the other hand, if you just want to sit down and talk with your viewer you can shoot your own. You can edit in Youtube. You can put together a video that will appear to be what exactly what it is, a video you put together. And that just might evoke the response you desire in some cases.
But I’m gonna go out on a limb here and guess that isn’t really what you are after. And nine times out of ten you won’t have the time for post production anyway. And seriously, same as with web sites, your nephew’s uncle’s neighbor’s brother’s lawn guy who “does video” isn’t gonna cut it either.
Time is Money
And therein lies why I do what I do, and why you do what you do. Stick to doing what you do best and hire the pros for videos, just like you do with your web and internet marketing.
For the same reason you don’t want to mess with writing copy, optimizing web sites, working social media, managing paid search, email marketing and all the rest, you also don’t want to get into the video production business. Hire a pro.
Onward to what you want in a great video, and how to choose the right video production company!
How To Evoke the Right Response with Video
How you go about evoking the desired response with your video will again bring up “it depends”, but in the end, it’s all about marketing. That means telling what you are offering, why the viewer should choose you and how to take the next step to do that.
So your topic, arena, or product, will establish the framework within which your video will be created. So let’s use the example that inspired this article, lakefront real estate.
Just Say No to Photos
Before we jump in, a quick note about photos in video. If you want to do a slideshow, then do a slideshow. Video is not the recommended medium for photos, and a slideshow converted to video isn’t really a video.
Yes they are all over Youtube, especially in real estate, but they sure aren’t video. I don’t know about you, but I find them irritating.
In this article we’re talking about live action video that will establish the three dimensions of reality and put you in the space much more effectively than photos ever could.
What’s So Special About a Lakefront?
So for a lakefront property showcase, first you’d need to clearly show what the property is, a lakefront. That’s easy right? The property is a lakefront so you make that very clear by shooting the lake, the dock and the home’s relationship to them. Then shoot the home itself, the layout, the rooms and so on.
Showcasing real estate will rely heavily on wide angles that can establish these relationships and emphasize scope. What used to be called the “fish eye” effect is a very powerful tool in covering a lot of ground, literally. In fact, the old school 50 mm lenses of lore are now referred to as “telephoto”. But that’s another story.
For a lakefront, extremely wide angle lenses can make all the difference in establishing spatial relationships. You know what those are right? And you own several extremely wide angle lenses right? Oh, wait, you don’t need to. You hired a pro and they’ve got you covered.
So once you’ve established what you are offering, visually, with depth, accuracy and appeal you then move on to explaining why anyone would want the offer.
Why This Lakefront?
So what makes this lakefront different? Not just the same old benefits, but what the buyer is going to get from this particular property that they won’t necessarily get from another lakefront. They all have a dock, a lake, front the lake and so on, but what makes this one different?
Video really excels in this arena. Again, it’s the next best thing to being there. With video, you have the opportunity to really put your prospect into the space, to see the item up close and personal, to feel the joy, to just plain get it. Show the thing or things that makes the property or offer different.
So make your “differentiation” impossible to miss. In some cases that’s going to be you and your personality. Get in front of the camera and just be you. Let your passion and emotion show.
In our lakefront example, that’s going to be the huge fountain in the backyard, or the massive patio with outdoor kitchen, the giant home theater, and so on. Give them something to hold on to and share with others.
Onward to what you want the viewer to do next..
How They Get All Those Benefits
The “how” is sometimes considered the “no-brainer” of marketing that unbelievably get’s overlooked time and again. This is the howto of the “call to action”. Old school terminology refers to asking for action as the CTA or “call to action”.
But don’t just ask for the action, explain exactly how to take that action. Call 555-555-5555 now! That simple.
Spell It Out
You’ve shown your offer with a top notch professionally shot and produced video. You’ve differentiated your product or service using all the power of pro gear and production. The viewer is thrilled. They want those benefits! Now, tell them exactly what to do next.
So the how is simply making sure you direct the viewer or prospect as to what their next step is going to be, precisely. What you are offering will guide the call to action steps. In our lakefront showcase video example it’s going to simply be “give me a call, email or text” by the agent. Or maybe a title to the same effect.
What, Why and How
Never forget the simplicity of what, why and how as your guide in video marketing and you can’t go wrong. One of the most powerful aspects of video and Youtube, Vimeo and all the rest is the power of sharing.
Once you’ve produced your tour de force videos, people will want to share them, and will.
How To Choose Your Video Production Company
To achieve all of the above you need a company that not only has all the modern tools of the trade, the technical aspects of video production handled, but the emotional aspect as well.
What? Emotional? Seriously?
Emotion is what moves us all. Drive. Passion. Feeling. Memories. If you successfully evoke emotion, then you will create an immersive and memorable video experience, and that memory will last, and be shared.
Evocative Isn’t Trivial
Making an evocative video isn’t trivial. You need a company that uses a variety of angles and movement techniques critical to evoking the desired emotional response. That’s why you are hiring a pro video production company.
The composition and angle of the shot, movement, visual effects, time lapse and music, all conspire to produce a unique emotional experience. Yeah, that’s right, emotional. So if your video company doesn’t understand the emotional aspect of video production, pass, like right now.
Post Production & Music
Most of the work in music and video is in what’s called “post production”. Post is the part where all the pieces are assembled, edited, polished, combined and packaged into a finished product. This is where creating the sequence and flow of your video, and creating and mixing in the right music takes place.
The Tools of the Trade
None of us outside of the video production arena is going to know what gear is at the thin end of the wedge in video. But you do want to make sure your chosen company has the equipment to do the job.
So ask any prospective video production company about their camera, lenses, equipment, lighting, software and so on. You’ll either get an impassioned response going into fine technical detail of all the great cameras and lenses they have, or you’ll rapidly find out they don’t have the passion, or the gear, to meet your needs.
Emotional Professionals
So what you need is a company that can translate your passion for your product or service into the video medium and evoke the desired emotional response from your viewer.
How they do that is where the gear and know how comes into play.
As I said at the beginning, I was inspired to do this piece by Blare Media of Fresno. They meet and exceed everything I’ve discussed here, and it shows. You might consider them in your quest for Video Marketing Made Easy.
About Blare Media
Blare Media specializes in being the most accomplished video production company in the Central Valley by utilizing many complementary technologies and techniques, to produce the most evocative, effective and memorable videos you will find.
- Blare uses an ultra high definition cinema camera called the Red EPIC. This is the exact same camera used on films like Spiderman, The Hobbit, Prometheus and Pirates of the Caribbean.
- Blare Media has a huge variety of lenses and can get extremely wide angle shots when the subject calls for it. This can help to accentuate the size and scope of virtually anything.
- Blare Media employs a variety of camera movement techniques, including slider and dolly shots that show the depth and reality of any given space.
- Blare Media uses time lapse when applicable, enhancing the goal of the video. They use High Dynamic Range technology that lends polish to imagery that cannot be otherwise achieved.
- Blare Media edits and processes color for your video using the absolute latest in technology. They have tools at their disposal that rival those of the Hollywood studios.
- Blare Media uses an approach that showcases the extraordinary, the finer points, and the most remarkable aspects of the subject matter, so the viewer is left with a memorable experience to hold on to, to recall, and share, over and over.
- The Blare Media goal is to provide a visual representation of all the best that there is to show in a short but meaningful way, so that the viewer can feel like she has been there in person and experienced everything, while at the same time left wanting more.
- Blare Media creates videos that are important to show to other people in the viewer’s lives, the so called “viral” sharing on Youtube and Vimeo. In this way the viewer can share in the process, and get excited about something that is much more immersive than just a few pictures or text.
- Blare Media utilizes emotion through music, editing, and processing in your videos to yield an experience, a way of life, a way of being.
Welcome to multimedia at its best. I hope this article proves to be of some use to you, and that you use video to its fullest extent!
Thanks,
Mark