Imagine this: you’re tasked with creating a video. It’s a fun project, and you run with it. You find a supplier to work with. And after weeks of back and forth on scripts, storyboards, and video drafts you finally have a video you love. Hooray! The mp4 file is sitting in your inbox, and you’re asking yourself, now what?
We really hope this doesn’t sound familiar. The last thing we want for our clients is this ‘now what?’ scenario. Video is an investment. It’s an important and powerful tool, but it needs to be carefully considered, and you need to ‘begin with the end in mind.’
Before you begin your video project there are six important questions you should ask:
1. What is this video for and what results do I hope my association will achieve by creating it?
If you can’t answer this question, you should consider if you really need to create the video. For example, if you’re creating a sizzle or highlight video from your annual conference is your goal to feature (and keep!) sponsors or to drive member attendance for next year's event? Maybe it’s both. Understanding this will impact what gets filmed at your event, what makes it into the video, and how the video is promoted.
2. Who is this video for?
Is it for existing members or for new member recruitment? Understanding who your audience is will impact the video content, where you publish the video and how you promote it. For example, a video for existing members doesn’t need to include an overview of your association, whereas one for prospects should highlight the purpose of your association as well.
3. After you have created the video, where will it live?
There are many video platforms and locations to choose from like Vimeo, YouTube, your website, or customized online platforms (like Association TV *wink*). Do you understand the pros and cons of these platforms and their advertising models? If you choose a platform like YouTube, what happens then? Will you embed the video on your website? Do you have a landing page prepared? Which brings me to my next question…
4. How are you promoting and distributing your video?
Have you considered what tactics you will use to make sure that your audience can find your video? At Association TV we arm our clients with a list of best practices for video promotions that include promoting via email, social media, and your own website. If you plan to use social media, it’s important that the video is an appropriate length for the medium you choose, and ideally it should be captioned so it can be easily consumed by viewers who have their sound off. (Perhaps they are watching in a public setting, or at their desk at work!)
5. After someone watches the video, what do you want them to do?
If you have a firm understanding of what your video is for, and what you want to achieve by creating it, this question is probably easy to answer. Planning ahead for including call to action banners, or in video annotations (clickable buttons that appear inside your video) ensures that your viewer can take action after they watch your video. For example, if a prospective member watches an informative video on a hot topic in your industry and it inspires them to learn more about becoming a member of your association, is it easy for them to get to your ‘Join’ page?
6. How will you measure the results?
In question 1, you identified what results you hoped to achieve by creating your video. Now you need to consider how you’ll measure those results. This might not be as simple as the number of people who viewed the video. Maybe your goal is to drive viewers to your event registration page. If your video is on a landing page with a “Register Now” banner you’ll be able to measure how many people clicked on the banner. If you never asked this question and your Event Promo video is sitting on YouTube with 56 views, it might be harder to measure how you impacted registration.
If you can answer all of the above questions, that is fantastic! You are ready to, not only create a carefully considered and impactful video, but you’ll also know exactly what to do when that approved video hits your inbox.
If you’re struggling, consider a partner like Association.TV. Every time a client engages with us on a video project we channel Steven Covey and Begin With the End in Mind. That’s what these six questions are really about: carefully considering your video goals and putting a plan in place to achieve them.
Learn more about Association TV and our Content Strategy model at https://association.tv/content-strategy