#5 Essential Stages of Planning a Business Video

On a daily basis, we see a number of business videos come across our social media feed. Among those, there are promotional videos, which introduce us to new products and services, and testimonial videos featuring celebrities opening and reviewing products. It’s no secret that the use of business videos in marketing campaigns has become a powerful tool in increasing brand awareness, audience engagement, and ROI, but in order to have an effective video, there needs to be planning. Planning will help you have all elements of video production ready to go, so once you reach the production and post-production stages, you can successfully complete your project on schedule and within budget. Here are 5 essential stages of planning a business video:

STAGE ONE – GOAL SETTING

The first essential stage of planning a business video is goal setting, and this will set precedence for the remaining planning stages. During the goal setting stage, you should define the purpose of your video, which will narrow the message. Whether it is a promotional, brand positioning, testimonial, or other types of business videos, the message will revolve around a specific target audience. Who are they? Are they of a specific age group, demographics, etc.? Once you have defined your target audience, you should establish a schedule determining the project’s deadline. This will allow you to plan your marketing campaign surrounding your video. And finally, set goals in terms of budget.

STAGE TWO – DISTRIBUTION & PROMOTION

It’s probably strange seeing distribution & promotion as the second stage of planning a business video – even before script, crew, and locations, but here is the thing… social media completely changed our accessibility to distribution and promotion, and different distribution channels have their own rules to follow. Determining distribution and promotion type will have a direct impact on the length of your video, which will impact the length of your script. If your video is for Instagram or Facebook, as instance, you will likely want it shorter than a business video that will be featured on your website. You don’t want to spend time creating a five-minute script when your goal, combined with distribution and promotion plans, require a quick 30 seconds video ad to get your message across. Distribution and promotion will also determine the video output(s) needed.

STAGE THREE – THE SCRIPT

Now that you know the goal of the video, the target audience, and the ideal length, you can brainstorm the script. Knowing the audience and goal, will help you set the tone. In order to reach the reaction that you want and make your message memorable, should your video be funny or serious? Two main questions to keep in mind while brainstorming the script are: “How do you want the audience to feel?” and with the video’s purpose in mind, “What action do you expect from the audience once the video is over?”

STAGE FOUR – VISUAL CONTENT

Writing the script will help you set the tone. Planning visual content will ensure that the visual aspect of your video aligns with that tone. Here you can determine what style best fits your message; as instance, would you benefit from using animation? Also, your brand should have a direct impact on the visual appeal of your business video. Does the visual content align with your business goals? Whether it aligns with your brand’s message and values? Does your company logo appear on the video? Those are all essential elements to plan ahead; after all, that is how your audience will associate the video with your business. The last thing you want is your audience saying, “Oh, I just saw this amazing video. What is the name of that company again?”

STAGE FIVE – THE TEAM

Who is going to produce your video? Your budget and timeline determined during stage one, will help in selecting a production company, but other important elements to consider are professionalism, quality, and experience with business videos. A great crew will ensure that you have a high quality video and they will know the value perfecting your video based on the above plans, while giving valuable feedback. Plan to have a list of questions to ask potential companies. Production companies will not only have quality equipment at their disposal, but they usually assist with finding the right location and actors, within the budget they agreed on.

Throughout every stage, remember that communication is the key. Ensure that your team knows your goals and expectations. Effective communication during and after the planning stages is essential in ensuring that plans are followed.

Whether you are in the planning stages of your business video, or if you are ready for the production stage, Digitallagos offers a truly inspiring creative strategic approach. Our team can shoot in 1080p as well as 4K, the latest in ultra high definition video footage. Contact Digitallagos.