Expert Tips for Corporate Video Production

Corporate Video Production Best Practices You Need to Know

It’s no secret that video marketing has become an essential business practice. To that extent, corporate videos are an effective way to connect with your audience and your staff. However, investing in corporate video production is also an important part of communicating with your employees.

In the digital age, using video content to get your message across is vital. On average, modern consumers remember 80% of what they see and only 20% of what they read. Your training manuals, whitepapers, and text-based ad copy still have their place, but if you aren’t also creating videos, your audience could be forgetting 80% of your content.

Whether you’re making corporate videos to advertise your products or services, train new staff, or catch the attention of investors, one thing remains constant: engaging your target audience.

This can be tricky. A 2015 study by Microsoft showed that average adult attention spans begin to diminish after only eight seconds. Your video needs to grab your audience’s attention within the first 8 seconds, and you need to work hard to ensure that their attention doesn’t dip another 8 seconds later.

In this article, we’ll share some expert corporate video tips. We’ll also thoroughly examine what a corporate video is and show you insider strategies that will help you make a corporate video that sticks.

What is a Corporate Video?

The main difference between a corporate video and a typical video advertisement is targeting. Video advertisements are designed for the general public while corporate videos are for a highly targeted audience. Examples include:

• Financial investors
• Staff or potential recruits 
• Specific consumer groups
• Conference attendees

Supplementing your marketing strategy with targeted corporate video production is an excellent way to establish credibility and set your brand identity apart. Just like video ads, a corporate video will also increase your SEO rankings.

There are several different types of corporate videos. Some common examples include:

1. Corporate Trailers

It’s one thing to describe your business using words and images effectively. However, those two elements are often not enough to develop a proper rapport with your audience. 

You can tell the story of your business on paper or through your website. However, a corporate trailer video – also known as a corporate marketing video – helps to sell that point home by adding a critical video element to the storytelling process.

Corporate trailer videos aim to create a strong connection between your business and its target audience by stimulating their senses. This is achieved through a rich narrative, compelling music, and spectacular visuals that draw your audience in.

2. Explainer Videos

An explainer video is a short-form video that highlights the key features of a specific product or service. You can use this type of video to target specific demographics that will benefit from this particular product or service.

3. Social Responsibility Videos

A corporate social responsibility (CSR) video showcases a company’s commitment to a social initiative. 

CSR videos deliver a tangible ROI. Statistics show that 82% of customers are more likely to purchase a product from a company that demonstrates its commitment to social responsibility.

4. Company Profile Videos

A corporate company video provides a brief overview of what your business offers. They are generally 2-5 minutes long and go a bit deeper than a general advertisement. 

Your company video helps you distinguish your brand personality and connect to potential buyers who visit your website.

5. Employee Testimonials

Employee testimonial videos are a fantastic way to help your company recruit top talent. Employers receive 34% more applicants when their job ads include videos. Job seekers want to see authentic reviews of your company culture before they send an application.

6. Company Culture Videos

The primary purpose of company culture videos is to capture what it’s like to work for your company. It might explain how your teams operate, the values that drive them, and how your company differs from your competition.

If your business is known for having a certain type of atmosphere, where it’s serious, casual, or otherwise, this type of video would highlight it. A company culture video can also display some of your in-office perks. 

Depending on the business and its industry, some of these videos might adopt a more serious tone and focus on areas like corporate values, organizational hierarchy, and the like.

How to Make Corporate Video Content

This video production process includes three phases.

1. Pre-production (planning, budgeting, and scripting)

2. Production (shooting your film)

3. Post-production (editing and distributing)

During every phase of video production, there are several tips for creating impactful videos that you should remember.

During Pre-Production

• Choose a purpose and stick to it. You don’t want to muddle your corporate video with too many ideas. Once you have selected an audience, focus on them and what you want to tell them. Every aspect of your corporate video should revolve around this central message.

• Make your audience’s emotions your script’s focus. As much as we like to think of ourselves as rational beings, 95% of our buying decisions come from our subconscious minds. 
  
  Many corporate video creators make the mistake of simply reciting cold hard facts and figures which have little to no emotional appeal. If you want to tap into that 95%, you need to touch your audience’s emotions.

• Keep your script short and sweet. Remember that you don’t have much time to grab your audience’s attention. Try to pack a lot of punch into as little time as possible.

• Remember to show and tell. Add notes to your script and storyboard that remind your production crew to visually demonstrate your message. Combining both visual and narrative elements prevents monotony and increases engagement. 

During Production

• Invest in high-quality production. Your target audience is intelligent, and they can readily tell if you cheaped out on your production costs. 
  
  As your goal is to tell the story of your business, a video with Hollywood-level quality can make a huge difference in helping your organization stand out from the competition. 
  
  Whether you plan to outsource filming to a video production company or create your video in-house, take the time to find the best quality resources you can fit into your marketing budget.

• Take some B-roll footage. Your editor will decide which shots fit your final video, but taking time to capture some exciting action shots will help demonstrate your value. 
  
  For example, if you are selling cleaning products, you’ll want to shoot some extra footage of your products cleaning tough stains.

During Post-Production

• Use editing tricks that help support your message and appeal to emotions. Filters, color-blending, and background music can all help convey a mood and touch subconscious cues. 

• Export your video with care. Remember that your corporate video will probably be shared on social media and viewed on a wide range of devices. Choose a flexible format and consider compression methods that won’t affect video quality.

• Be strategic with your distribution. Don’t simply post your video to every online platform imaginable. Consider who you are targeting and where they view content. 

In some cases, your corporate video may be private so it wouldn’t be appropriate to upload it to YouTube. However, YouTube is the second largest search engine after Google which means corporate YouTube videos are a great way to reach a lot of eyes fast.

It’s also important to consider some other elements for effective distribution. For example, you might consider optimizing your video for mobile viewing. Even the thumbnail image you select for your video is vital to ensuring your video stands out.

Adding a call to action (CTA) is another strategy to explore. An effective CTA tends to perform 202% better than a generic one, and can drive traffic to your website while helping you convert and nurture leads. 

If your company has a dedicated YouTube channel, the CTA can also direct viewers to your other videos.

To further connect with your viewers, you might also consider adding subtitles to your video. Subtitles make your video aesthetically pleasing by making good use of your letterbox. 

They’re also effective for people with hearing impairments, people who may be watching your video without sound, and platforms that default to zero audio.

Ready to Invest in Your Corporate Video Production?

There are numerous different types of corporate videos and a lot to remember when making them. If you’re ready to add corporate videos to your online marketing but don’t know where to start, Pixelcarve, a premium, full-service digital marketing boutique is here to help.

Our expert team of marketing consultants can help you zero in on the type of video you need, create a stellar company video, and provide top-notch corporate video tips to fuel your next project. 
Join several other best-in-class companies who trust us for professional corporate video production services. Contact us today to get started.