Using video is a great way to feature your organization and to deliver a clear and concise message to your audience. However, if it is not done correctly the results may fall short of your expectations. When considering hiring a Videographer to help you create your videos, here are some questions you should ask to be sure that you will reach your audience in the most effective manner.
1. How long have you been working in video production?
Working in video production requires a wide variety of skills. Your Videographer needs to be amazingly comfortable working with people and to have great communications skills. There is a lot of creativity that happens in creating engaging content and you want to rely on the person you hire to provide those ideas and communicate them effectively. Their years of experience and training play a large role in their ability to communicate your message in a clear and concise manner.
2. Can we meet to discuss ideas and marketing strategies?
It is important for your Videographer to be a good listener. They need to understand what you are hoping to accomplish by using video to communicate your message. They should be able to take any of your ideas and strategies and incorporate them into a custom video for your organization that is unique from the videos of your competitors.
3. How can a video help me to market my brand?
Marketing your brand is what sets you apart from everyone else. It helps your customers remember and identify with your organization. Marketing is how you initiate and develop relationships with new customers and keep them engaged so they think of you when they need the services that you provide. Marketing is an ongoing process of informing and engaging your customers about your organization and builds a level of trust so that they will become comfortable to work with you.
4. Do you have samples of your work?
The easiest way to get an idea of the end-product your Videographer is capable of producing is to see multiple samples their work. Ideally, you would like to see different styles with different organizations so that you can rest assured that they’re not creating the “boilerplate” video for their customers.
Take note of how well they light their scenes. Are the subjects easy to see and follow as they speak? Are there any distractions in the background? Proper lighting puts the attention on where it belongs – on the main speaker in the video.
Pay attention to the pacing of the video. Is it keeping you engaged and holding your attention? Did you like enough to watch it a second time? Did it convey a clear and concise message?
And lastly, listen carefully to the audio. Is the dialogue clear? Or is it difficult to hear due to background noise or the music is too loud? Audio is the most important component of the videos you’ll make. Take the time and effort to get it right.
5. What are some of the details you provide in your videos to keep the viewers engaged?
Attention spans are not what they used to be. Try watching any videos or movies from the 70s and 80s. They just do not present with the pace of our videos of today. We expect our content today to be high energy with a wide variety of shots that help accentuate and validate the story. We expect to be entertained by the creativity of the shots and our standards demand that today’s videos look and sound realistic. We want to see creative transitions, scenes with good lighting and color correction, graphic support and we expect that the audio will sound natural. Make sure your Videographer is familiar with these techniques so your video will be remembered.
6. How do you handle situations where your clients are not comfortable on camera?
Many people are not comfortable in front of a camera but there are many ways to help them work through their on-camera anxiety. This is another area where you want your Videographer to have some experience so that they know how to respond and work through this stressful situation. There are a many techniques that can be used depending on the situation and the individual affected. Your Videographer should be able to take you through some of those successful techniques and demonstrate how they were able to help their subjects to appear comfortable on camera.
7. What kind of equipment do you use and why?
Even if you aren’t familiar with the available equipment and programs used to create good high-quality video, it’s good to speak the language of your Videographer. They should be excited to talk about the tools at their disposal and they may provide some insight that you did not expect. Most importantly, you want to get a sense that they are using technology that is current and why they prefer the use of that equipment.
8. What methods do you use for distribution, and why?
Whether it is for broadcast TV, social media, or projection screens, one of the questions your Videographer should be asking you is how you will feature your video to your audience. However, if they don’t, you would want to know to ask them what platforms they use and why they prefer those platforms.
9. Can you give me some client references?
Just like anything that we purchase, it’s always a good idea to do a little research. Any information you can learn about the person you are hiring can give you some insight as to whether they are a good fit for your needs. Hearing first hand from someone else who hired your videographer gives you the chance to find out what they liked and disliked during the process of working with their videographer.. Don’t be afraid to ask for the contact information of the person who hired your videographer for a specific project.
Summary
These questions are a great way to start a conversation about your video and what you hope to achieve using video to reach a greater number of clients for your organization. It will also help you to define some of the parameters with your Videographer to minimize any unwanted surprises.