We have already established the massive effect a successful marketing video can create, (see – Key Elements to a Successful Digital Marketing Campaign).
Selecting which type of video filming strategy you want to employ can make or break a project, as described below.
Live Action:
By far the most common form of video marketing is the use of live action. In this style, scenes are arranged around “real life” scenarios of people interacting with your product or service.
PROS:
Familiarity
Live action is the root of storytelling. The audience is given backstage access to become a “silent passenger” within the story, discovering and exploring the product simultaneously with the characters. In this way, the consumer gets to take something of a test drive of the product with no risk to themselves.
Whether this means giving the audience a slice of “real life” scenarios or a glimpse into a highly sophisticated, luxury brand lifestyle. Live action video is the one that consumers have the most experience with. Due to this familiar format consumers tend to be more open to making purchasing decisions based off these portrayals.
Story Driven
As a creator, using live action means you don’t have to spend a lot of time developing worlds and abstract ideas, instead you can focus on the message itself and the audience can quickly settle into the story.
CONS:
Time and Energy
A live action video shoot takes a tremendous amount of planning. From first inception to final scene, you must have a quality idea to begin with backed by solid execution. It doesn’t matter what idea you have, if it cannot be actualized then it will flop. Along those lines, you can create a beautiful scene, and if the idea isn’t relevant, the end result just won’t hit the right note.
Idea plus execution. Accomplish both or it doesn’t work.
In addition to planning, shoot days can be long. Identifying and tracking all the moving parts during the preparation and filming process takes patience, foresight and adaptability. Trying to coordinate these efforts in addition to making target deadlines can be overwhelming and the need to be flexible is paramount. Regardless of the amount of careful planning you’ve done, you will always be at the mercy of the director, the actors, and other unexpected situations that arise over the course of the shoot.
Animation – Created Graphics
PROS:
Own-able Look
Using animation gives you complete control to create your product’s universe and branding style. You are limited only as far as your imagination. The ability to shape the image of the shoot from the ground up can enormously influence brand recognition and can ultimately create bigger buy-in.
Ideally, with this ability to control 100% of the environment, animation can give you the opportunity to stand out in an otherwise saturated crowded content cycle.
Little Risk
Working with a small team of one to three animators versus a much larger film crew of 40 -100 people, allows the flexibility that comes with quick communication and efficient decision making. The fewer “middlemen” reduces the risk of miscommunication and time delays. Creators and contributors can communicate their thoughts quickly and can gain feedback almost simultaneously. Thus, the use of animation can vastly reduce time lag between planning and production.
Modular
Another benefit of using animation is its innate specified modular capability. This means, depending on the need, a creator can easily produce footage in longer versions, shorter versions and clips. This comes in particularly useful depending on the sharing platform and time specifications encountered in various media.
CONS:
Launching and Storytelling
The use of animation sometimes makes it a little more difficult to have automatic audience buy in. This is primarily because the audience must first overcome the sometimes “absurd” or “fantastical” scenes set before them, before they can focus on the messaging at hand. Launching a brand in this manner can sometimes be difficult as you must work harder to the show the product benefit versus using live action.
Demanding Quality
We feast first with our eyes. In today’s market where it is increasing difficult to differentiate between the lines of the real and the virtual, quality animation is vital when wanting to stand out.
The animation route is a double-edged sword in that a poor choice in project quality or direction can sink the product before it’s even gotten started. In the same vein, “average” animated projects are seen so often they are often forgettable or unimpressive.
To compete, you must stand out.
A great example of an animation project that was highly successful is one BLEND collaborated on with Redspace.
Brand Anthem Videos
These are the videos that showcase the higher purpose and vision statement of brands. Brand anthem videos are usually presented in a feel good, “We help you live a better life” type of style. These videos often promote an idea or moral belief that are incorporated with the product they are showcasing.
PROS:
Knowing a company’s purpose and values has increasingly become more important to consumers who are making purchasing decisions. Depending on what your product is, brand anthem videos provide consumers with additional “unseen” benefits.
For example, if your product is affiliated with a charity that a consumer supports or if your product is made with a specific type of a material that the consumer enjoys – brand anthem videos promote a connection between product and a “feel good benefit” of buying said product.
Once an association between purpose and company is made it can be very difficult to break – which can work in your favor. Leaving a good first and lasting impression can very quickly turn into brand association and ultimately brand loyalty.
CONS:
No Direct Return on Investment
Brand anthems “get better with age”. This style should be regarded as a continued investment in public brand perception, not necessary an instant correlation to direct ROI (return on investment) in the way of sales.
This longer-term filming investment strategy builds brand equity over time but does not usually show immediate results.
Product Video
PROS:
Established Demographic
A product video speaks directly to a core, educated audience. People know immediately whether a product is geared toward their lifestyle. Because of the targeted marketing demographic/niche, the consumer knows enough about the product to determine its inherent value. Therefore, whatever you bring to the table is either going to entice them to engage further or effectively cross you off the list of considerations.
Product Speaks for Itself
The attention to the product itself really highlights the performance of the product in a beautiful way. Allowing the product to speak for itself often resonates more loudly than the hype and frills centered around other filming strategies.
More importantly, shining a spotlight on the desirability of the product can be the final element in the sales funnel converting interested parties into purchasing customers.
CONS:
Making product photography and product video look good is not easy – “tabletop” production is painstaking. Bringing value to a product and creating a desire to purchase the product is an art in and of itself.
Lighting, effects, music, etc. all play a crucial role in presenting the product in the best way possible. Getting those mouthwatering shots isn’t always easy and often needs a little behind the scene magic to make it come to life.
Small Targeted Demographic
Because you are speaking only to a core set of enthusiasts, you lose a broader audience base who may not know of or see the value of your product.
Our team of professional creative team in Los Angeles has the experience to produce engaging storytelling content in ways that compel your target audience into action. If you’re interested in incorporating video marketing into your digital marketing strategy we can help, contact Blend Today.