HOW TO USE EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IN YOUR VIDEO

Emotional intelligence (EI) is nothing new, yet it is probably one of the last things you’re considering when making your video. If you want to create a powerful video with impact, you must grasp the concept and use it strategically within your video – how will your audience feel?

SO, WHAT IS EI?

Emotional intelligence rose to prominence in the early 1990’s when Peter Salovey and John D. Mayer first coined the term and began discussing it’s use to guide one’s thinking and action, although some may argue that it originally appeared in a 1964 paper by Michael Beldoch.

In essence, EI is the understanding of your own and others emotional responses to stimuli and how this changes behaviour. A huge part of this is empathy and the ability to share feelings with another and so having great emotional intelligence improves relationships and communications.

A succinct explanation of what EI is, was produced by The School of Life’s short video which can be viewed here;

WHY SHOULD I USE EI WITHIN MY VIDEO?

Emotions are always used within any form of communication as humans respond to these communications with their emotions (heart) as well as their logic (mind).

When creating your video, you always want to consider what your audience may be feeling (as well as thinking) to ensure you are producing the desired outcome you are aiming for.

If you are providing information, you want your audience to trust that the information you are providing is credible. If you’re providing entertainment, you may want your audience to laugh and feel joy. You want your audience to relate with you and understand you, so you must first understand with foresight, how they may potentially respond to your video, you never want them to feel bored after all as they will then associate boredom with your brand. How do you want your brand to be seen or your message to be received?

You also want your audience to feel engaged, that whatever they came for and the reason they pressed that play button is being satisfied. This school of thought provides a very different experience within your audience compared to a video that does not consider EI. Some of the greatest films, advertisements, educational pieces, and television shows use EI to their advantage and you will want to do the same if you want to experience a similar success.

HOW CAN I USE EI WITHIN MY VIDEO?

It’s all about putting your audience first. This will always produce a competitive advantage against those who do not. You want your audience to feel like the video was made just for them!

Our first port of call is understanding the potential motivation for why someone is viewing your video, engaged in your advertisement, sitting and waiting for your programme to begin, what is it that they are looking for and seeking as a result of watching your content?

Motivations may include;

·???????to find out about products or services to discover if they are suitable before making a decision to buy

·???????to feel connected by sharing common interests and having common knowledge

·???????to discover and experience something new

·???????to be entertained and to relax

·???????to stay up to date with news and information

·???????to learn something that can help them progress

Understanding the reason why someone may actively watch your content is a great foundation to set up your video in a way that fulfils this motivation.

You then want to look at your own brand and how you want to be perceived. You may want to be seen as;

·???????elegant

·???????professional

·???????fun

·???????controversial

·???????helpful

·???????mysterious

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Setting the tone of your video should match the overall sentiment of your brand identity. This ensures consistency and promotes brand loyalty in the long game.

The campaign you are producing or the content you are making may have a unique voice, business and companies don’t always stick with the same thing forever, so if changing your approach, ensure you are doing so in a way your audience will resonate with and won’t feel like you are doing something strange and out of character.

Now with this basic information, go through each step and stage of your content’s creation considering how you feel first and foremost, and then how your audience may feel. It is worth getting other opinions as different perspectives will react in different ways. If you’re unsure of how to create a certain emotion yet know the emotion you want to create, always discuss with your content creators about your expectations and they will assist you in the visual realisation of this.

Video content always has several layers and humans, as complex beings, will not just experience a single feeling when viewing. Remember all communications are a journey in your audiences thinking and feelings. Be careful how you navigate through this, especially in longer pieces. Think about your favourite film, everything is not happy or sad all the way through. Think of an informative talk, often comedy is used to change the tone to keep the audience engaged. Your content should be directing your audience with empathy towards a common and shared goal.

Once you have a script/storyboard of your concept, write next to each beat (bit) what someone may experience to plot the emotional journey out. Maybe someone will begin by being curious, then they may relate to something and be in agreement, or remember something they’ve experienced too, they may start feeling hungry or excited, yes I was watching a McDonals tv commercial when writing this! And by the end of the short 15 second video on YouTube they may already be thinking “should I, shouldn’t I go get one?”.

Emotion is a powerful thing. Logic says I need to buy a winter jacket to keep warm and dry, emotion says I want a big blue parka jacket with huge fluffy hood because I like the way it looks and will make me feel. Is this beginning to make sense to you?

WHEN YOU GET EI RIGHT

You won’t always get it right with everyone, your aim is to get it right with the majority of your audience so you can more realistically reach the results you expect.

When you have created a fantastic piece of digital content that uses emotional intelligence and puts your audience first, you can expect people to;

·???????press that like button on YouTube

·???????share your video which means more people viewing your video

·???????recommend your video

·???????leave comments on your video (particularly if on YouTube, Facebook or Instagram)

·???????write articles and reviews on your content

·???????discuss and debate the content produced and what they think it means

·???????watch your content more than once

·???????seek more of your content

·???????visit your website

·???????enquire about your product/services

·???????order or purchase your product/service

With this tool in your arsenal, you can also review the behaviour of your audience and the reception to your video after it has been published. Taking care to again understand how your audience has responded to a video will certainly place you in a stronger position when making your next video by checking what you did really well, how you may improve, and what your audience loved.?

Here is an interesting article entitled “The link between viral content and emotional intelligence” that is worth a short read https://www.fastcompany.com/3025474/the-link-between-viral-content-and-emotional-intelligence.?

So you kind of already knew what emotional intelligence is, we hope now you understand it’s importance and power especially in marketing and making successful pieces of content that will enrichen your own experience of how you interact and relate to your audiences.

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Methodworks Production are an agile and responsive, innovative and disruptive, film and video production company based in London. To begin your journey with us, send a message using our contact form on our homepage or complete our Quote request form. ?

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