Video Marketing Questions: Production, Equipment, Software, and More

Video Marketing Office Hours Event from 12/16

Study Group Questions

Question One: I’m confused about how to plan out a video beforehand. How does Nextiny plan out a video before filming?

Whether it’s an internal video or it’s a client video, you always start with a brief. What this is outlining is the goals, topics, and takeaways that you want from this video. A brief is very surface level and should really focus on the “why” behind the video. From there, you should create an outline, which breaks down the brief into more detail. 

Once you have your outline created, depending on whether it is more a voiceover or speaking video you can write your script, or if it’s more of a visual or animation video, you can create the storyboard. It’s important to storyboard so that your client can have a visual representation of the video they will receive from you and can make edits if needed before creating the video. 

If your video needs more specific shots, perhaps for a branding type video, you should create a shot list, so you know exactly what needs to be done during the shoot. This shot list can also help with the equipment preparations.

Question Two: During the Holiday Season, I have a lot of down time. Are there specific videos I can create now and get ahead on a project?

Quarter one typically leads to being busier than usual, so feel free to always begin thinking about creating briefs for those videos ahead of time. It’s never too early to start thinking about future projects. 

As far as videos you can create right now, the holiday season is a great time to send either a thank you or happy holidays video to your clients. They can be very surface level, but people love to see a more humanizing video. A few years ago, Nextiny created a thank you video to send to our partners, and we received a lot of positive feedback from it, so it’s always a great option to send out at this time of year.

Question Three: What free editing software do you recommend?

Our suggestion would be to use Descript. We utilize it here at Nextiny for our video and audio editing and are very happy with the tools and features. One of our favorite aspects of Descript is the way that you edit. When you input your audio, it transcribes it into text and looks very similar to a Google Doc file. In traditional video editing software, they give you a timeline to trim clips and edit the video, but with Descript, you actually select the text to edit the video; this makes it very user-friendly. 

Descript also has the ability to record directly in the platform, so you can import video and record audio in the same tool. They also have a feature called Studio Sound, which takes your audio file and enhances it to remove all background noises and creates a really professional sound for your audio.   

Learn more about Descript and Studio Sound here: https://blog.nextinymarketing.com/video-marketing-descript-studio-sound-lighting-and-camera-improvements 

Question Four: Can you recommend entry level video gear to get started?

The three pieces of equipment that we suggest you focus on are your camera, microphone, and lighting. One of the biggest things about your camera is you already have one on your cell phone. If you are just starting out with video, it’s a great option because you don’t have to spend any money. If you are still wanting to purchase a camera, we recommend an entry level mirrorless camera such as the Sony camera in the image above. 

For your microphone, we suggest either a lavalier or shotgun mic. A lavalier can clip onto a shirt whereas a shotgun is one that will need to be near the speaker. Most importantly when purchasing a microphone is to make sure that it is compatible with your camera or with your cell phone if you are using that.

Lastly, is your lighting. This is one of the overlooked pieces of equipment because the typical focus is on a camera and microphone. However, lighting can dramatically enhance your videos because your subject will be properly lit which also makes the video more appealing. We suggest a small LED light with USB power. 

HubSpot Bootcamp for Video Marketing, Sales, and Service

HubSpot Academy’s Video Bootcamp is a deep-dive 6-week program aimed at better educating you on your overall video marketing goals and efforts. The program provides a general overview on the current state of video marketing and guides you through the process of implementing your own strategy, execution of capturing and editing, and promoting and measuring success on your video marketing efforts.

In order to keep it actionable, they only allow a total of 50 participants. This permits more time to answer questions and a greater focus on the weekly tasks. At the end of this bootcamp, participants receive a special bootcamp certification through HubSpot Academy.

Sign up to the bootcamp here: https://www.hubspot.com/academy/bootcamps/application 

Join our Video HUG to learn about video marketing strategies. We will cover topics such as incorporating video into your marketing, sales, and customer service efforts, setting up your own video studio, and getting your video and podcast series kicked off. Engage with us on the Video Marketing Study Group in the HubSpot Community.