Video ROI basics

Mention filmmaking and the imagination leaps to the cast and crew, the camera, the lights and the action, but that’s not really where the real creative work gets done - that’s just the tip of the iceberg. 

So much of good filmmaking happens before anyone gets close to a camera. 

Step 1: Be clear on your brief

What are you trying to achieve with your video campaign?

Create a market for a new product?

Increase market share by taking ground from the competition?

Maintain market share against other businesses stepping on your patch?

Whatever your objective, the net result you’re doubtless looking for is to get noticed. Get likes, shares, signs of interest, sign-ups and ultimately sales. 

Clarity on your objective is great, but it’s not the whole story. 

Step 2: Know who you’re speaking to

There’s a lot of noise online:

The marketplace is crowded, and gaining the attention of your target audience is essential if you want them to stick around long enough to get to your call to action. 

How will you get cut-through? It’s less about high production value and prime lenses, and more about the fundamentals – basic things like knowing who you’re addressing, and where they are.

Step 3: Find out where your audience are hanging out

Being clear on your audience will not only help you know where to find them, but also how to address them. 

Step 4: Deliver your message in a way your audience can relate to 

Marketing guru Daniel Priestley advises that viewers become customers after viewing 7 hours of content, with 11 touchpoints across 4 platforms. 

Step 5: The platform shapes the message

In Step 3 you considered where your target market are hanging out. Are they millennials on Snapchat? Fifty-somethings of Facebook? Each platforms requires different video outputs: Different strokes for different folks.

This knowledge will help in choosing our writing style, our choice of scenarios that we’re going to film, our casting, style of cinematography and editing, the tempo of the edit, and the look and feel of our graphics, not to mention the choice of music.

Armed with considered answers to these 5 Steps you can start to create a film for your business that gives great return on your investment, because you'll know what you're saying to whom, where they're hanging out, and how they like to be communicated with. With these foundation stones in place you can move onto the next stage of production.

If you want to find how I can help you with that please get in touch on [email protected]

…And Action!