Why Quality of Your Video Content Matters
Does the Quality of Your Video Content Even Matter?
Good question, one answer: yes.
These days it’s very normal for someone to see your brand for the first time in a video. Generally speaking, most good sites these days have an introduction video for people to watch. It’s (still) the quickest and most engaging way to get people aware of, and interested in, your brand. So yes, it’s extremely important that the content is good. And for us, quality goes beyond how it looks on screen.
What Does “Quality Content” Mean?
We know that for most people, video and film isn’t something they think about all day. So you may not know what it took to create something you’re watching. You know, the lights, the cameras, the microphones, the people holding the clipboard, the people with headphones on their heads all day, etc. For us, this is an art…OK that’s a pretty serious thing to say but it’s true. And making something beautiful isn’t as easy as hitting the “record” button on a camera.
We can make something look beautiful on screen (product shots, interviews, b-roll of locations, etc.), but there’s a lot more to “quality” than just the look of the image. To be honest, it’s doesn’t start with the image at all. It starts with a lot of other things.
Your video content needs to speak to your audience, explain things clearly and visually, contain no filler, and tell a good story.
Speak to Your Audience
You can spend months of time and bundles of money on content and if it’s doesn’t speak to your audience it may very well be a waste of resources. You need to know your audience - know what they like, what they want, what their challenges are (a challenge you’re attempting to offer solutions for), and maybe even what their professional level is (CEO, VP, President, Manager, Director).
Here’s an example: We did a big multi-day shoot for CUNY in Brooklyn. It was an introduction to the school, campus, programs, social clubs, transportation options and more. Many large educational institutions might take that opportunity to talk about how long their school has been around, what kind of accolades they’ve earned, and famous people that went to school there. And they might include faculty and the board talking on camera. Our client, while including some of all that, focused mainly on the student experience. And they had students as most of the interviewees. These students had a hand in helping craft the script itself. And for a further example, instead of a member of the board talking about the school’s diversity, we actually included students from a variety of cultures and backgrounds.
Think about who is going to be watching your video content and understand what they need to hear, and in what type of “voice.”
Explain Things Cearly and Visually
That’s it. When someone lands on your video make sure they quickly and easily get the message. This doesn’t mean your video needs to be 10 seconds long. Length is not as important as relevancy of the content. So go ahead and make that 90 second video - but only if the content and message requires it. People will still spend time watching if they find the content important to them. And that brings us to the next item.
Contain No Filler
This is kind of a subset of the point above. We all know that we’re all having our attention drawn in a thousand different directions all day. The last thing we want (unless we go on YouTube and search old cartoons) is to feel like we’re wasting time watching videos. To keep the quality of your video content high, refrain from adding a bunch of useless information. This also goes back to the first point about knowing your audience. If you’re trying to connect with CEOs and Founders of companies, you know they don’t have a ton of time to sit through content that doesn’t matter to their daily lives or roles as heads of brands.
Tell a Good Story
Telling a good story is the perfect combination of the previous two points. This can be the story of your business, the story of your brand’s culture, the story of one of your customers in the form of a testimonial video. A story is just something that engages your viewer rather than simply delivering information. Even if you’re creating a video about the tech you offer, go beyond telling your audience you have tech to offer them. While ensuring you’re not adding filler, and still explaining things clearly, tell why you offer the product, who it’s for, how to use it, what problems it solves, and examples of how it’s solved problems for others. Basically, make your video content interesting. Every person, every brand has their own unique story. It’s important to identify it and share it.
Look and Sound Great
Of course, this is the one that we really love. Our clients don’t need to know what type of lights or cameras we’re using, or what we’ve made certain decisions about camera moves and angles. But they know they want their content to look and sound great. And that’s really important for us. We’re creatives and artists and we know when our clients look good, so do we. We know that a well-produced video is going to garner trust better than a hastily thrown together piece. And we know that, even if an audience doesn’t know it conciously, good looking content that has good audio is better received.