Each video has only eight seconds to grab its viewers’ attention. If the video does not start to get interesting by then, people will simply switch off and stop watching. With the many distractions vying for our attention these days, chances are an uninterested viewer will just close the window, tab out, skip the ad, or go back to their social media feed, completely forgetting about your video – which is not what you want to happen to your million-dollar campaign!
The importance of starting off every video with a bang cannot be stressed enough. Show your audience something shocking, interesting, funny, bawdy, or whatever piques their attention. However, video commercial production is at a high right now – there are already billions of videos out there that have clinched the low-hanging fruits. What’s a new company to do?
Well, look no further. Here are some of our suggestions on how you can make an impactful message in your brand video production.
Use Humour
Laughter is the best medicine, and also one of the best ways to attract an audience. Even years and millions of views later, funny commercials are still being watched all over video sharing sites. People will always remember a good punch line and your brand name with that. Inserting humor into your video is a great marketing strategy, with one caveat: it absolutely has to be in good taste. Nothing ruins a commercial more than some poorly directed humor that ends up offending people and giving your company a bad reputation.
Make a Parody
One of the advantages of making a parody is that most people already know how the original scene plays out and are eager to see what you have done differently. Videos such as “budget” renditions of popular films or re-enactments of scenes are always a big hit, as long as they are done comically enough to get a good reaction. Since your videos are commercial, be sure that you are not infringing on anyone’s intellectual property if you are creating a parody of a particular scene from someone else’s work. In some cases, you may have to contact the creator of the original work and request for permission to create a parody of it.
Tell a Story
Stories are another way to draw people in as they keep watching to find out what happens at the end. However, for your story to do that, it has to be relevant and interesting to your audience. For instance, telling a story of office humour will not impress your audience much if you are targeting a product at young children.
Additionally, not all stories have to be humorous or entertaining. Some industries do very well with commercials that play on people’s emotions. A good example would be life insurance commercials, which often tell emotional stories with a sad ending. Even though there is no “punch line” or upbeat feeling to these commercials, they still do their job effectively by first getting viewers interested in the video, and then creating relatable characters that stick in people’s minds especially after a sad ending.
Teach Your Audience
Does your company’s line of work have insight on topics unknown to the common public? You could make instructional, “how-to” videos that teach your viewers something they want to learn. Videos that teach simple “life hacks” in just a minute or two are especially popular. Make it clear from the start of your video that you are going to teach a certain skill to your audience. This is an effective way to sieve out your target audience from the rest of the crowd, as those who are not interested will simply close the tab, leaving your potential customers behind. If you can deliver your message in a clear and concise manner, you can be sure that your audience will share your video to their friends, raking in views and exposure.
Animate It
Although the age of animation is steadily growing on us, most people will still expect to see live videos in commercials. Why not do something completely different from people’s expectations and animate your video? Even under the category of animation, there are many different techniques to choose from. You could create lifelike animations, have them cartoon-style, or even animate figurines. The sky is the limit, as long as the animation style is suitable and relatable to your target audience.
Read Also: Top Tips for Video Production
Whichever strategy you choose, it is most important to ensure that your video is short and to the point. By the first few seconds, your video should make its message clear. On traditional television advertising, the longer your video, the more expensive the cost to advertise it. Although we do not have this restriction on modern video sharing platforms, the attention span of viewers has only gotten shorter with the advent of technology. Instead of sitting and watching through an advertisement to continue with a television show, people can tab out, scroll away, or watch a more interesting video. This can be both a blessing and a curse, depending on how your video ranks in the eyes of your audience.
Still stumped on making the next viral video? Video commercial production does not have to be a hassle. What if you could sit back and have your brand video production done for you? Give us a call today and satisfy all your video commercial production needs!