Go DIY or Pro With Your Video

In my line of work I often come across people contemplating creating their own video vs. hiring a professional producer.  Which option is the best?  Well, either one  depending on your goal and your eagerness.

If brand and image are central to your project (commercial for Television or your website) then by all means employ a capable professional production company that understands marketing communications.  If your project demands less attention to your company’s professional image (blog commentary or a quick product training blurb) then if you have some underlying talent and the enthusiasm to labor through what can be a considerable learning curve, DIY could work.

The mistake most make is trying to replicate the example of someone they have seen create a great YouTube spot without realizing the skills and experience that person brought to the table.  Your example do-it-yourself producer might say that it’s simple; right, simple for them but perhaps not for you. What I have found is that most who do well with DIY video are enthusiasts.

For the enthusiast playing with cameras and editing software is fun, so much so that they are willing to learn what white balance is, how to compose a scene, how to set external microphones as well as the many buttons and doohickeys driving an editing console. If video enthusiast is not your calling, I suggest enlisting the assistance of a pro.  You might not want to pay but what is the cost of your time and frustration only to create a tool that is unlikely to yield the intended result.

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Place is Everything! Entice Prospects Like These MMA Experts

You have probably seen or heard of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC, mixed martial arts or some of the other names martial arts go by these days.  Well my good friend and mixed martial arts expert Ryan Hoover over at Ryan Hoover’s Extreme Karate, a mixed martial arts academy is one of the savviest marketers I have come across and I want to share with you a strategy Ryan uses to create  “buy-me-now” opportunities anywhere his team set’s up shop.

Ryan had us insert some great testimonials to expand a 30 second television spot into a 2 minute promotional video that his team plays wherever they appear.  Ryan and the boys (ladies too) recently showed up at their local theater (video in hand) for the premiere of The Forbidden Kingdom where they engaged martial arts enthusiasts with their video display and walked away with a fistful of new registrations.  The video also plays as a loop in their studio lobby, consistantly delivering the Ryan Hoover Extreme Karate experience to prospective customers who happen by. 

WATCH RYAN’S VIDEO

 

Ryan’s strategy can be used anyplace a business has a presence; in the lobby, at a trade show, as part of a public speaking engagement, even as a kiosk at a partner location.  The beauty of Ryan’s strategy is that the more he shows his video, the lower his cost per impression (view).  Try to realize the same with television advertising and you are in for a rude awakening.

I am sure Ryan would appreciate your thoughts on other ways he might use his video (click to add your comment).

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