A Complete Guide to Video Production: How to Make a Video that Converts to Income
5.00/5According to G2, 1/3 of all Internet activity is video consumption. But stop for a moment to really analyse that number. You stream Netflix every night before you go to bed, you watch a YouTube video to understand how to do something, you run into a video ad while playing a game on your commute to work, and you scroll through TikTok while you are in the bathroom. We consume video content all day long. Companies have had to adapt and rely on video to attract new people to their brands. That’s exactly what we cover in our complete guide to video production.
This piece will help you understand how to create videos that attract, engage and convert. And how to outsource video production: either with an in-house team or by hiring a video production agency. Let’s get started!
What Is Video Production?
Video production sounds like a complicated business. The truth is, it refers to the entire process of creating a video. This includes everything from conceptualising the idea, writing scripts, and planning to the actual filming, directing, editing, and distribution.
Each step is important and plays a key role in the success of your production. Later in this article, we’ll explain what happens at each stage so that you have a better understanding of the whole process and why you can’t skip one or the other.
Why Is Video Production so Important?
By incorporating video into your marketing efforts, you will see a number of benefits that directly impact your business goals.
For starters, video increases your brand visibility. As we mentioned at the beginning of this guide, people spend about 18 hours a week watching video. When your brand appears in videos across multiple platforms (including social media, websites, and advertising), you have a greater chance of reaching new audiences interested in your products and services. At the same time, videos can help improve your brand ranking in search engines and attract more targeted traffic to your website.
Video production also increases your engagement rate. When people enjoy your content, they are more likely to engage with it. Either with a like, a reaction, a comment, or even a share. But the biggest benefit of adding video to your overall marketing strategy is that it increases conversions. A well-produced video delivers your message in a compelling way. It’s estimated that 82% of people have made a purchase decision after watching a video.
In short, video production helps you attract more people, engage them, and convert them.
Types of Marketing Videos You Can Create
Before we dive deep into the video production process, it’s important to understand that there are many different types of marketing videos you can create.
- Brand Video or About Us: Tells your brand’s story and creates an emotional connection with your viewers. It helps build brand awareness and demonstrates what makes you different from the competition. Remember, it’s not a commercial and can’t be used to promote your products or services.
- Product Video: These are designed to showcase a specific product. They show it in action, highlight its features, and educate potential customers on how to use it. Your video script should focus on explaining the various pain points it helps solve.
- Testimonial Video: Share the stories and comments of real customers who have used your products or services. They are perfect for building trust and credibility.
- Explanation Video: Help introduce a new product to the market by highlighting what you can do with it. It’s especially recommended for companies selling technical products.
- Team Video: These videos are created to build brand awareness and for internal activities. They show the faces that keep a company running and can quickly create an emotional connection between the viewer and the brand.
In addition, you can create promotional videos for social media or even for your organic posts. Before you even think about producing one, make sure you decide which type of video you want to work with or which one will resonate better with your viewers.
Pre-Production: The Planning Process
The video production process begins with defining a clear goal. You need to understand what you want to accomplish with this project and make it clear to everyone involved. Maybe you want to increase website traffic, or convert more people, or even increase sales. Whatever your goal is, make sure you create it using the SMART approach.
Once you understand what your goal is, you need to determine who your video is for. What specific audience will help you achieve that goal? With these two things in place, the next step in this pre-production phase is to develop the idea and concept for your video.
Hold a brainstorming session and have everyone share their ideas. But remember to always work with your goal and your audience in mind. This will help you narrow down the options to the ones that will actually work.
It’s always wise to have a clear understanding of the resources you have available for this video production. At the most basic level, you will need a videographer, location, lighting, and more. If you are brand new to this, you may want to consider working with a video production agency, they have all the equipment and professionals needed to handle everything from pre-production to post-production.
It is very important that at this stage you specify the available budget for this production and the timeline. That way, everyone, even if it’s a third party, will be on the same page about spending and timing.
You will also want to spend some time finding talent to act in your video, writing the script, and creating the storyboard. These elements will make the production and post-production stages much easier.
Production: The Filming Stage
Once you’ve checked off all the pre-production boxes, it’s time to start the actual production. This stage begins with finding and selecting the perfect location for your production. You may need to use props or design a set, just make sure that whatever you choose is in line with your video idea and resonates with your target audience.
Once you have the perfect location, you need to start setting up the cameras, lights, and audio equipment. This will help achieve the highest quality for the viewer, so don’t skimp on it. If necessary, hire a specialised video production company.
When everything is ready, start filming. To make it perfect, make sure you work with a call sheet. This is a document that serves as a guide so that everyone (crew, actors, producers, etc.) on the team understands what scene is being filmed and when. This way you can have everything ready and avoid constant interruptions.
When you start filming, you want to make sure you have at least one videographer shooting the main footage and others focusing on B-roll, voice-overs, and sound effects. This way you capture everything that happened on stage and make the editing process easier.
Keep in mind that production time will depend on the length of your video. If you want to make a short promotional video, you can do it in one or two days of shooting.
Post-Production: The Editing Process
At this point, your planning and filming is done. You now have a clear goal, a specific target audience, a script, and a raw video. It’s time to make the magic happen and turn your idea into reality.
The post-production stage brings in a variety of professionals. You need editors to organise, cut, trim, splice, and enhance your raw footage. Colorists to correct and grade the colors of your video. And sound engineers to fix anything related to audio and music.
It’s important not to rush the editing process. We know that at this stage you want to see the results and distribute your creation. But editing is a key step to success and it takes time. Details make all the difference.
Ask your team to stay on schedule, but give them room to work. Also, be specific about where and how this video will be distributed. Each platform has its own specifics, and the post-production team needs to understand them so they can export the video in the right format. Some of the most common marketing distribution channels include TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, website and email marketing campaigns.
Videography Production Tips
Effective video production process is not easy. As you can see above, there are a lot of things involved (actions, actors, music, voice-over, lighting, etc.), fortunately there’s a lot of experience in the field and best practices to follow. Here are some tips to help you succeed and create videos that resonate with your target audience.
- Always work from a brief, storyboard, and script. This will make everyone’s life easier by aligning the team on what needs to be done.
- Pay close attention to location. You want to work with one that fits your needs, your idea, and your concept. Avoid locations with a lot of background noise, as it will only make your work harder.
- Use soft lighting to avoid casting shadows on the actors. Note that natural sunlight may be your best ally.
- Keep your set simple; you don’t want to lose your audience’s attention with objects or graphics that don’t add value.
- It’s always a good idea to take a few test shots before you get started.
- Work with the right equipment to avoid shaky footage.
- Shoot according to the rule of thirds. This means dividing an image into nine equal parts with two horizontal and two vertical lines. The main subject of an image should be placed along these lines or their intersections, not in the middle.
- Pay attention to the sound. Make sure it’s clear and has no background noise.
Types of Video Content Production
Before you freak out and start searching for film and audio equipment, a professional production crew, camera operators, colourists, and video editing software, it’s important to weigh your options. You can choose to do everything yourself or hire a specialised video production company. Let’s take a closer look at the pros and cons of each.
In-house Video Production
Producing your video in-house means you use your internal team and resources to handle everything from planning to editing. While this may sound like a lot to handle, it does come with some advantages.
For one, you have complete control over the production process and the delivery of your brand message. For another, you get faster turnaround times for reviews and approvals, and it can be cost-effective if you have ongoing video needs.
But you need to keep in mind that the initial investment in equipment is not small. Equipment, technology, and skilled professionals come at a cost.
Outsourced Video Production Company
Working with a specialised agency means that a third party is responsible for everything. Of course, you’ll need to brief them on what you want to achieve and your brand so they can create something that meets your expectations.
This option gives you access to a team of professionals with different skills and experience that will make pre-production, production and post-production much easier. It also gives you the opportunity to get a fresh and creative perspective.
Keep in mind that it can be a bit more expensive than creating everything in-house, but do you have the team and equipment to do it? With an agency, you can even negotiate a bundle that includes different projects.
Key Takeaways
- Video consumption is a dominant force in online activity, making it essential for businesses to incorporate video into their marketing strategies.
- Video Production Process: The process involves several key stages: pre-production planning, production (filming), and post-production editing.
- Videos can increase brand visibility, improve search engine rankings, increase engagement rates, and drive conversions.
- In-House vs. Outsourced Production: Companies can choose to produce videos in-house or outsource to specialised agencies, each with its own benefits and considerations.
Conclusion
As you can see, creating an effective video requires an understanding of video production, an experienced team, specialised equipment, budget and time. Fortunately, there are many options available to help you create a video that will attract, engage, and convert viewers into potential customers.
Take the time to determine what type of video you want to create, what goal it will help you achieve, and who you want to target. These three factors will be the starting point for all your video production projects. Even if you work with a video production agency.
