Okay. These days, even your cell phone shoots better video than the average digital camera from a decade ago. But somehow, businesses still manage to fill their YouTube channel with unwatchable, bad online corporate videos after bad online corporate videos. Here are six of the worst offenders and what we can learn from them to make your online corporate video content a little bit better.
1. If you are uncomfortable on camera, the whole world will know it. Watch how these on-camera presenters avoid looking into the camera: VIDEO. Remember: if the on-camera talent looks nervous and uncomfortable, the viewer will feel equally awkward watching your online corporate video. Unless you are up to the challenge, hire an actor.
2. “Be yourself” is great advice if you’re Brad Pitt. If your on-camera spokesperson mumbles or speaks in a monotone, please have them be anybody but themselves (watch this)! In addition, videos should feel natural and not staged. If it feels fake when you’re acting, filming, or producing it, you can bet that your audience will feel that as well. This video totally illustrates the point. I dare you to watch it to the end.
3. Quality counts. Bad quality counts against. Remember, customers are watching your online videos on uber-quality, high-def retina display screens. If your online corporate video has crap lighting, crap sound, and crap focus, don’t you think folks might notice? See this example video. If in doubt, hire a pro.
4: Music doesn’t always make an online corporate video better. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clzFybU5kDg Music is often used in online videos to mask sound issues, add energy, set the tone, etc. But music can be more trouble than it’s worth. Legally, you’ll need to license any music you use for commercial purposes. You can’t just use the latest Taylor Swift song off iTunes. There’s affordable stock music, but much of it sounds cheesy. Then there is the challenge of appealing to different age groups, genders, and cultures. Remember, somebody thought the above corporate video was good music–– and maybe somewhere it is.
5: Sex doesn’t always sell. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfUl608gvYM This video is a reminder that having young, nubile women in swimwear doesn’t always make a video more watchable. Nope, it sure doesn’t.
6: Get to the point. https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=36&v=TgtUDTFxOkQ This online video takes 1 minute and 20 seconds to first mention the subject. That’s the point in a video when you should be wrapping up the message. Remember, aim for a 30-second to two-minute maximum length. So, what does a good online corporate video look like? Other than the obvious answer of ‘exactly the opposite of all of these’, it has to have a few key qualities and ultimately be relevant to your audience. If it’s not relatable, informative, and entertaining, you can pretty much bet your users won’t really… well… use it. Let’s take a look at this video from HubSpot as an example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTWk1lzjTUA . HubSpot was succinct in their message; the people featured on camera were relatable and acted naturally; and their lighting, use of background music, and overall production quality were tastefully done throughout.
In addition to creating great video, as a business, you should also be concerned with learning from that video in any way that you can. At Agency Creative, we use a platform called Wistia, which provides in-depth analytics on our videos, including overall engagement and where users drop off. Using a platform like this allows us to monitor our videos and identify sections that cause users to stop watching, highlighting the need to rethink those portions of the video.
If you need a creative resource to help you script and film your next online corporate video, we would love to help out. Give us a holler at 972.488.1660. We are a Dallas advertising agency with extensive expertise in online video production.
