The Winning Video Structure

We all know that when we plan and prepare properly, we achieve a better outcome. Yet when it comes to video, many people think it’s fine to just turn up and film ‘some stuff’, then piece it together afterwards.

Sure, there are some situations where this works and is essential - events videos for example, where you don’t know exactly what’s going to unfold.

But when it comes to your marketing videos, you can and must plan the content properly.

So where do you start?

To begin, you should have a good idea of who your ideal customer is, what their problems are and how your product or solution solves those problems. I can’t overstate the importance of speaking in terms of your customer’s problems - that is how they’ll know you understand them, how you’ll build trust with them and how your content will stand out amongst the crowd.

Remember, you’re not trying to appeal to everyone. You’re trying to show your ideal customer you have the solution for them. Your message should be specific and targeted towards that one ideal customer.

With that in mind, you can move on to planning your next marketing video.

What does a video plan look like?

When it comes to most marketing videos, there’s a proven structure we like to follow to entice the viewer into watching your video. It rewards them for watching and helps them move on to the next steps.

We’re going to look at a basic video structure, and then a slightly more involved structure. Both of these can be implemented by you today when planning your next video.

The first 5 seconds

The first five seconds of your video are absolutely crucial, especially these days with the clutter of videos out there and the amount of information we have coming at us every day.

The first five seconds is called the hook and as you can imagine, this is the part of the video where you need to entice the viewer in to watch more.

Now, a word of warning about the hook. You must avoid clickbait. This is where you promise something that is way overly dramatic and sounds like it will be a huge revelation - when in fact it has nothing to do with the content of the video. People will soon realise that you’re not delivering on your promise and they’ll be annoyed that you enticed them in with a false hook.

The video needs to deliver whatever it is you promise at the start. If not, you risk losing that all-important trust.

The hook is a simple one-liner that draws people in.

It creates intrigue and makes them want to watch more. It could also be a visual hook - some compelling footage that makes them want to find out what’s going to happen in the video. Or you may use both footage and speech to create your hook.

After the hook is the build-up. This part of the video sets the scene for what you’re going to deliver. You might tell a story, give some background information or take your viewer on a journey.

Finally, the reward. This is where you reveal the information you promised at the start. This might be a new insight or it could be showing behind the scenes of a process. Either way, it should reward the viewer for having watched the entire video.

This is a classic, proven structure and can be summarised as:

Hook - Build Up - Reward

To take this to the next level with some more elements, I like to use a structure laid out by Derral Eves in his book The YouTube Formula. Derral has been studying video commercials for decades and is a mentor to some of the biggest YouTubers in the world.

(N.b. I’ve altered the name of two of the sections to use words I feel are more relatable for a British audience.)

This video structure looks like this:

Hook - As before, the first 5 seconds are crucial, and what you say/show here will get people hooked into watching the rest of the video.

Re-engage - This is something to pique their interest even further. It might follow on from the hook, or it might contradict the hook to create intrigue.

Setup - This is where you set the scene for the insight you're about to share. Think about telling a story or describing a situation.

Peak - deliver the main piece of information/advice/insight that you promised at the beginning.

Bonus - some bonus information you hadn't promised. This is your chance to over-deliver.

Wrap-up - a short summary and/or call to action

So when you’re thinking about your next marketing video, use this structure and apply your script to each section.

The important thing to remember here is that planning your video is going to take it to the next level and help you achieve the results you want from your video marketing.

Check out my YouTube channel to see how I'm applying this structure to my own videos.

Hi - I'm Dan Barker — a former aerospace engineer who now runs a video production company for manufacturers.

Follow me for posts on how to leverage video in your business.

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