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The Power Of Two

Written by: Guy Kingston

Article Overview: Many agree with internet entrepreneur Guy Levine. Online video marketing has seen a rapid growth over the last two years.

The Power Of Two

“E-books – old hat; sales copy – boring; we've got video!”

Many agree with internet entrepreneur Guy Levine. Online video marketing has seen a rapid growth over the last two years.

Relatively cheap new technology means that it is now possible for almost any entrepreneur to produce a video.

A crew of two – one behind the camera, one in front of it – can shoot a presentable 10-minute video in only half a day. No more than another half-day to a day may be necessary to edit it.
It takes two people just two days using anyone of a number of affordable, commercially available video editing packages for the PC or Mac. You could even see if you can get away with the free Windows Movie Maker. And, if you’re savvy you’ll have find a camera operator who’s also a good editor.

Since anyone can do it, everyone is doing it – at least badly. Millions of kids are sticking rubbish onto YouTube but the corporate video market is still one of dire quality, offering no value to the viewer but puffing the ego of the CEO.

The challenge is no longer to make your own film, but to make a film of such high quality that it stands out from the mass and attracts the limited attention span of the jaded viewer.

Large corporate have been doing this for a while, but most small businesses have missed just how affordable good quality video has become.

This is a ‘call to action’ for business owners to turn video producer-directors – no experience
necessary.

Here are a few tips I have discovered, on how to get that professional look that attracts attention, from having a go myself:

• KISS – Keep It Short & Simple – remember you have to catch and hold the attention of someone with a million better things to do

• Make something that is of interest to the market you want to attract – don’t make something that makes you feel important yet has no meaning for the rest of the world. See our DIY Public Relations video for a prime example.

• Consider future proofing – if you want people still to be watching your video in two years time, better to make everything in high definition video (HDV) rather than standard (SDV). You never know what new media might be just round the corner that makes today’s standard practice look very quickly dated.

• If you intend doing the presenting yourself, consider a short media presenting course – many who are very impressive in person can come across as a bit artificial on camera if they have not learnt a few basic tricks

• Alternatively, you can hire someone with professional presenting skills for as little as £100/$200 a day at places like shootingpeople.org or talentcircle.org – there is no need to splash out on a “celebrity”

• Choose between seasoned veterans, who will charge more but will probably bring their own equipment, or the cheaper option of hiring ambitious young assistants, who are keen to work their way up the career ladder but who are more likely to expect you to provide all the gear. Many of the latter may well be more interested in getting a credit than in the fee. Again, try shootingpeople.org and talentcircle.org

• Consider buying the rights to use commercially available music – it can be surprisingly cheap and it usually makes more of an impact than home-produced or royalty-free music
There are also a few traps to avoid.

• Do not make the false economy of relying on the microphone built into your camera, because it always sounds amateur – better to invest in a decent clip-on radio microphone, which will make all the difference to the quality of the finished product

• Do not buy or hire expensive lights – just look on eBay under “video lights”

• Be wary of using inexperienced people for critical shots. A less experienced, but far cheaper, crew will make more mistakes. Chosen well, perhaps after a trial, this risk can be reduced. However it might be worth paying for a professional if you’re filming something that can’t be readily reshot

• Do not expect perfection your first time – or waste your resources trying for it. Have a couple of trail goes first, which can also double up as test of your proposed crew.

You will probably find that your first project as a producer/director will not be your last, and, as with most things, that you will get better as you go along. So do not be obsessive about getting everything right at any price. Instead, be open to learning from your mistakes and just enjoy the process. That sense of enjoyment will usually come out in your video and may give it the edge you need.

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Article Tags: attention span, camera one, camera operator, e books, free windows, future proofing, guy levine, half a day, half day, hat sales, internet entrepreneur, old hat, prime example, rapid growth, video editing, video market, video marketing, video producer, windows movie maker, youtube



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