Video content creation: what are some tips for creating video marketing content for a website?

Jake,

Your video really needs to be thought out, pre-planned, scripted and story boarded before the camera is even taken out of its case.

Are you going to use real actors? While actors may be an expense, they can get the job done faster and usually more professionally than a employee or someone off the street.

Where are you filming? Lighting and proper audio are important issues to think about when planning a high-quality video. Things like knowing where the sun is and the difference between florescent and incandescent lighting will make a difference.

Then there is the camera, and while you can make a video from an Iphone or a flip cam now - the quality difference between one of those 'on the go' cameras is vastly different than even a entry grade professional camera. The person operating the camera will also play a large part in the quality of the presentation.

My advice - plan everything out as best as you can before thinking about a "shoot" date. You can then save money by checking local colleges that have video/film departments, some student films that I have seen really do rival Hollywood productions - but it all depends on who you get (I also went to Emerson College - probably the best film school on the east coast, so I'm a little bias). Actors will sometimes work for cheep/free if they know that they will get good exposure - so use that towards your advantage as well.

While the costs of producing good video can be high - they typically outweigh the costs of doing a BAD video. The goal should always be on getting the most bang for the buck - not just for doing it cheaply just to say you did it.

As for distributing the video online - YouTube is the king, but also check out Vimeo - as more "pros" in the industry prefer Vimeo's options and quality.

Good luck - if you want more info - you can e-mail me directly. I went to grad school at Emerson and learned from some of the best in the industry - so video is something that is near and dear to my heart.

Ryan
Ryan@LakotaDenProductions.com

You mentioned a tight budget, make your point quickly and get out. Don't try to outsmart your customers. You want them to know what you are selling and why they should buy it.

It can be done on a budget but you will want to spend twice as much time planning as you do shooting and editing. Consult with those who have done marketing videos before. It is not the same as shooting a movie or concert so you can't just pick any producer just because they have worked in video.

You must also realize that a 2 minute video could take 1+ hours to actually record and trim down so don't necessarily balk at a price quote that is 5x longer to record than you expect the final video to be.

Robert makes a good point. It really depends on how powerful, professional and profound you want the finished product to be. A 2-minute video that knocks your socks off can take all day to shoot. Before I got into the web consulting and marketing business, I owned a scene and prop shop in San Francisco. I remember being in the studio for two days, shooting a 30-second Clorox test spot. The full-on, prime-time version took a week to shoot.