There’s no doubting the value of corporate video production – for decades, companies have been making videos to recruit and train employees, promote new products, and share their brand story with the world.

But corporate videos have come a long way from the hilarious and bizarre training videos of the 1990s’, and they aren’t just for employees or other businesses to watch behind the scenes, either. The rise of YouTube and social media has thrust B2B video marketing in the spotlight, so there’s no better time to brush up on your knowledge and learn the best practices in the industry.

By following these simple tips, you’ll never shoot a dull explainer video, soulless interview, or boring brand story ever again.

Pre-Production Tips

Before the camera even starts rolling, there are important steps you can take to help make your video a success.

• What’s the message? You may know what kind of video you want to make, but why do you want to make it? Keep your “why” audience-focused. For example, if you’re making an explainer video, focus on showing the audience how your product can benefit them.
• Storyboard your video. You may be familiar with storyboarding in animation, but did you know that it can be a useful tool in creating live-action videos, too? In addition to a written script, planning out your video visually can help you spot awkward transitions and make adjustments before you enter the production phase.
• Hire a professional. Anyone can hold a video camera and press record, right? Sure, but unless you hire a professional, the final product is going to be noticeably amateurish. A corporate video production company will help you with every part of the process, from the first script to the final edits. Plus, it’s nice to have someone else worry about things like lighting, location, actors, and all of the logistics associated with planning a shoot.

Real Employees or Paid Actors?

If you need actors to be in your corporate video, should you spend the money on professional talent, or save by making your employees the stars?

The short answer? It depends.

What’s the goal of your video?

Paid actors and real employees each have their pros and cons, so it really boils down to what you want your video to convey.

Real employees are going to convey a quality of authenticity. That’s exactly what people want to see in a recruitment video – people that they can identify with. Real employees work well for brand story videos, too, for the same reasons. Viewers will see your company as more down to earth and relatable.

You might assume that your audience will always want to hear that authentic brand voice, but there are plenty of situations where the polish of a professional actor is a better fit. If you’re trying to convey information on your website in a way that’s easy to digest, they’ll be able to get the message across more clearly. The same goes for explainer videos or any video where you’re trying to sell a product or service.

Best Practices for Video Interviews

Few corporate video production strategies are as simple and effective as interviews. The goal of any video interview, whether it’s with your company’s CEO, employees, or customers, should be to capture a genuine conversation that your audience believes and connects with.

Here are some quick tips to help your interviews go as smoothly as possible.

For starters, make sure the interviewee is a willing and enthusiastic participant. That may sound obvious, but you’d be surprised by how often companies choose someone based on nothing more than their title. And unsurprisingly, their lack of enthusiasm shows in the final result.

If you can help it, don’t give participants their questions before the actual interview. If they can’t prep their responses beforehand, their answers will feel more natural. You can give them an idea of the subjects they’ll be talking about, but avoid giving out anything exact.

Remember, video interviews are about telling a story, not putting people in front of a camera to sing the praises of your company. Audiences can tell the difference between sincerity and robotic corporate speak, so it’s important to create an environment where your participants can feel relaxed. Smiling is contagious, so if you smile when you ask them questions, they’ll be more likely to smile back!

Lastly, make sure you conduct the interviews in a location with little to no background noise. The sound of traffic outside or even something as subtle as the hum of a breakroom refrigerator can be distracting.

Post-Production Tips

In a perfect world, everything could be filmed in one take. But corporate video production is a human endeavor, and there are bound to be mistakes – that’s where post-production comes in.

Unless you’re familiar with industry-standard editing software like Adobe Premiere Pro or Vegas Pro, you’ll want to hire a post-production company for this step. A professional editor will clean up and trim your footage until you have a final product made up of only the best clips.

Here are a few other post-production tips to consider:

• Background audio is your friend. Odds are, most people aren’t going to remember the music that you use in your corporate videos, but they will remember how it made them feel. Music helps establish the mood, whether it’s light and uplifting or deep and powerful. If your video contains any kind of audio, stick with purely instrumental background audio to avoid confusion.
• Be mindful of copyright laws. While adding music to your corporate video is a great way to make your video feel more professional, it can also be an easy way to get into legal trouble. Using music that’s unlicensed will result in sites like YouTube and Vimeo taking down your video, or worse – an expensive lawsuit. Either obtain the proper license for the song you want, use a recording that’s in the public domain or available under a Creative Commons license.

Marketing Your Video

What’s the point of spending time and effort on a video if no one sees it?

You’ll need to develop a marketing strategy that gets your video out in front of your target audience. That strategy can include:

• Creating a video ad campaign on Facebook
• Adding your video to a landing page to boost conversions
• Incorporating the video into an email campaign
• Playing your video at events
• Posting the video on all of your company’s social channels
• Sharing your content with colleagues and friends

Lastly, you’ll need a way to measure your video’s performance. Most social platforms have built-in analytics tools that you can use to see how many views, shares, comments, and clicks your videos are receiving from your target audience.

Use these metrics to make improvements to your next corporate video production. For example, if you notice that a lot of viewers are dropping off around the 1-minute mark, work on ways you can keep their attention.

Final Thoughts

The corporate video production process is one tough decision after another. Which actors convey your brand message authentically? What location has the least background noise? What clips should the editor cut?

Making all of these decisions can feel like a daunting task – that’s why most companies choose to work with a professional video production agency.

Slice is a video production company in Tampa, Florida, with a love for collaboration. We work closely with our corporate clients to create something truly unique to their brand. Contact us today to learn how we can put your ideas in motion.