Do you remember the messy kid in class? The one with papers flying out of his notebook, always borrowing a pen, shoes untied, and a backpack that hadn't been cleaned out since pre-K? 

That's a little bit how you might thinking about video. Its the messy kid in class for your business. 

 It all seems like a hopeless jumble of steps and confusing gear.
​
It doesn't have to be that way. Different video are used for different goals, but here are some guidelines to get you going. 

Note: This is a long post, taken from our Guide to the Ultimate System for FabVideos, Finally Done. To receive more tips and a free limited time 30 minute consultation on your videos or marketing video strategy, sign up here. You'll be taken to an easy to use calendar to choose your time. 

1. Mindset

Start working on your mindset around video. I have a separate post around this, because it’s a big deal for most women.

2. Now, get tactical:

Eventually you will want to set up a 3 - 6 month business video content strategy . For now, start with 2 steps:

• Easy peasy ‘cause you don’t have to shoot it: Ask all your happy clients to send you quick video testimonials about specific outcome they had with you, directly related to your secret sauce. Ask them to tell a quick story about it. Then use it in a short blog post to highlight THEIR achievements or business. With their permission, of course.
• If you don't know what videos you want to create, outline a basic script for 1 - 3 core SHORT marketing videos every business needs - for most businesses this your personal introduction, and a video or two about your main product or service. Your goal is finished length, Max 2 minutes each. 60 seconds if you are going to post on Instagram.

IMPORTANT>>>>>>Don't forget a call to action that reflects your conversion goal for the video.

​Have a podcast?  You still need some video. Create a monthly video about upcoming speakers, or the best highlights from the month before. Do a “behind the scenes” video of your podcast set up. I know a woman with a podcast for working moms, she podcasts in her closet to hide from her kids. I totally want to see that - from her kids POV. Have them shoot it, maybe even interview her in her closet. Brilliant, right? 

Once you have your list of videos you want to create, here is the key: 

3. Batch those suckers. 

Set up a day to do your script outlines. Set up a day to practice. Maybe you don't need a day, choose what works for you. Tell us what is different about you and your product. Who is it for? Do not use the same glittering generalities that everyone else in your space is using.

Set up one day to record all of your videos. Get some sleep the night before. Get a buddy to help you. 

This is introducing you to the idea of batching your videos, which is the key to eventually creating lots of videos, efficiently.

Success mentor Darren Hardy’s Darren Daily is a genius example. Every single weekday, he sends a short, inspirational video to his email list. He is in the same chair, wearing the same blue shirt in almost every video.

He must have shot a couple of hundred videos over the course of a few days. He has leveraged that to build a huge following online in just a couple of years. ​Good video content is the definition of a good investment. Shoot once, use a gillion times. 

Whatever your flow, ideally you are shooting 10 days before you need the videos to give you time for the edit. (more on the edit, below)

Tips for scripts and shooting: 

• ​Unless you are a 14 year old YouTuber, do not open your video with “Hi guys! Whats up?" Or  “Hello, my name is…” Open your video with an unexpected comment or “hook”. Sometimes it can lead to a story. See this video 1 minute quick tip below (and subscribe to our channel to receive more Quick Tips!)

Here is a screenshot of yours truly, obviously NOT a beauty blogger. lol.

There are practical reasons why we ask you to get closer. 

The first one is that about 50% of videos are viewed on mobile phones or tablets, your viewers are watching you on a very small screen. We want them to see your face clearly. ​

The second reason we ask you to get close to the camera is because the closer you are, the less you have to worry about your background. You only have to have an unclutter one corner of the room, not the whole room. You don’t have to worry about that load of unfolded laundry on the chair behind you.  (or am I the only one who has chairs that are really glorified laundry baskets?)

​Try to find out if most of your audience is viewing videos on their mobile phone. If so, consider formatting the video with a square in the edit - talk with your editor ahead of time or contact us for advice. Its not hard but its a bit technical to get into in this post. 

Bottom line is, we ask you to get close to the camera because if you are filling most of the screen, it makes it easy to reformat your video and retain decent quality.

Are you coveting the softly lit, muted uncluttered artsy background of some YouTube gurus?  Just keep in mind once again that people are watching videos more often on their phone than a computer. Small details in your shot will get lost and unnecessary clutter in the background will add visual confusion. Just start with this system. It will save you at least a day of futzing around with your background and lighting. 

You can always upgrade the environment of your mini studio later if you like. 

Step THREE:

Start Batching.

Try not to write and shoot one video at a time if you can help it. Shoot for (ha!) a minimum of 3 videos at a time. 

Once you have your content outlined, order your equipment for your shoot, if you need to.  

While you wait, you can write your scripts. 

Write at least 3 scripts all at one time. Then, set up your ministudio and practice your scripts. Shoot all three videos on the same day. 

As you get more practice you can bump that number up. I have shot up to 15 videos all at one time in an afternoon. 

Marketing videos in general should not be longer than 5 minutes,  the optimum length is 1 to 2 minutes, so this is the perfect project for batching.

We have much more detail about all of this and more, including lighting tips, where to set up your mini-studio, how to set up your shoot, how to frame your shot, camera confidence and much more in our Ultimate Guide to Fab Videos, Finally Done, part of our complete system to help entrepreneurs transform their business with video.  Looking for furrther ideas about where to get started? Check out this blog post on the 3 essential videos every business needs (including scripts!)
​​

No excuses! This is the number one type of video you can start working on today!

Testimonials: These are golden, do you know why? 

1. ROI is fantastic - there is almost no production expense - because you are not shooting them.
2. There is no excuse not to start on them - because you are not shooting them.
3. They give your business “social proof”  - potential clients trust word of mouth from peers more than they do your marketing. Makes sense, no?
4. They are highly effective, especially when done right. This is how you do them right. Ask your happy clients to shoot a simple video with their smart phone, using this outline: 
   
   State problem they had before they came to you
   Transformation they achieved from working with you.
   Favorite part of what you did for them. 
   This is their script, but don’t tell them that. Script makes it sound like scary work for them. 
   
   Tell them you will send them suggestions for what to say using a helpful outline. That sounds like you are doing the work for them! Much better. 
   
   Notice how they don’t start with Hi, I’m Jane Smith, owner of Cuties Cupcakes.
   
   Why? You only have 3 - 5 seconds to grab attention. Unless Jane Smith is a celebrity (and if that is the case they will know who she is anyway) your audience DOES NOT CARE about her name and company in the first 5 seconds. In the middle of the video, yes, at which time they will naturally learn about her at the exact time they start to care about that info. 
   
   Besides that, viewers will already know who she is because you have identified her outside of the video footage - on your website, and in the title for the video, or the blog post, etc.
   
   So how many testimonials videos will you ask for this month? 

If you have any questions, we are here for you.

Next check out Essential Video #2 - Your company profile video. 

Essential Video for your Business Marketing Strategy  #2: 

Company profile video - People!  Do not make this hard. Keep it FUN! This is capturing the Why of your business! 

This is the video where you describe:

1) who you help
2) what is their transformation from working with you
3) why you do it
4) what they should do immediately, or else (urgent call to action)

Did you notice the order of those points? That is on purpose. That is your script outline. 

Start with a hook, and quickly lead into THEM, so they recognize within 5 seconds the video is for them. 
Tip: You can start with a question:

• Are you busy entrepreneur who doesn’t know where to start with shooting the marketing videos every business needs?
• Are you overwhelmed with getting started on your marketing video strategy?
• Are you stressed out because you are not a techie yet  you KNOW you need marketing videos?

Picture your audience nodding their head and thinking, “Why yes, I am!” or “Why yes, I need that!” or “omg yes, how did you know?”

Again, do not start with your name and title. You should do that in what is called the “lower third” - the writing with your name and title below your face on the video. 

Focus on the transformation they experience working with you, not the features of your product or service:

• What would it feel like to implement a simple, affordable system to create a steady flow of fab videos to engage and delight your audience? 

End with a quick emotional hook as to why you do what you do and how that makes you different. Example:

• As a marketing video producer, I spent the last 15 years helping entrepreneurs simplify the complexity and high costs of marketing video production. In 2018, marketing videos are a necessity for almost every business, and  I am on a mission to help even more fabulous businesses video-fy their marketing strategy. Here is the secret. This is not hard and it is more affordable than ever. All you need is a strategy and the a simple system that keeps you organized and teaches you the most efficient and effective way to create your videos.

What they should do next - also known as a Call to Action:

• Don’t put this off any longer. Businesses without a marketing video strategy will fall behind in 2019. Please click on the learn more button below to get started and receive your …. (insert freebie name here)

(This, as you likely can tell, is the basics of my actual script for the FVFD System, which I just wrote as I wrote this post, and that I’ll be shooting this weekend along with about 30 other videos, some quite short, on my Batch Video Production day. I”ll post a link when it’s done).

FREE FAB TOOL

Wondering what to actually say in your videos? Below is the link for the FVFD Core Marketing Copy Worksheet that will simplify your scripts when you video-fy your content strategy. ​

What is your biggest question about your company profile video? Any tips for others just getting started? Let us know in the comments.

Now check out Essential Video #3 - Your product or service video.

​Essential Video for your Business Marketing Strategy  #3: 

Bonus! You get to choose

Your choice: 
A video that answers one of the most common questions you get from clients all the time. Turn your FAQs into a library of short videos.

Script:
Start with the question.  
Answer the question in a general way. Then mention how your product or service is especially good at solving this problem, even better if you can use  a real example.  Be subtle, not salesy.

Call to Action; To learn more about our innovative approach, (do this). You can also ask people to leave a comment below, if its a social post.  It all depends on the goal for the video. 


Choice 2 :
A video that has more detail around your core offering, this one can be like a part 2 to your Company intro video.

Script:
Invite them in. 
Tell them more - in a list. 
Weave in human touch
End with call to action

For example: 

Invite them in. 
Again, grab their attention. 
How is our xyz product different? People ask us that all the time and I’m super excited to quickly share a little more info with you along with examples of our client’s successes.

Tell them more - in a list. 
Be succinct. Rambling is DEATH in marketing videos. Focus on what is unique, your secret sauce. You can touch on features, but in general you want your written marketing materials to do the heavy lifting of the features and mundane details. Keep your videos moving by talking about the transformation, the emotional appeal.

Weave in human touch 
An  example or testimonial. You can do this toward the end or in the context of telling them more, above.

End with call to action
_________________

There you have it! Three marketing videos (maybe four!)  you can quickly produce and repurpose to social media across your marketing content strategy. Please let us know if you have any questions, we are here to help.

FREE FAB TOOLS

Wondering what to actually say in your videos? Below is the link for the FVFD Core Marketing Copy Worksheet that will simplify your scripts when you video-fy your content strategy. ​

Next is the link to the FVFD Video + Social Media Planning Matrix Chart which compares all the major social platforms, their audiences, video types and requirements. We created it to keep ourselves sane with social video, now we're happy to share it with you! ​

In this post:
3 basic strategic details to decide for every marketing video, before you shoot.
Links to posts for the 3 Essential Marketing Videos, plus script template and brief examples!

Optional Fab Power Tools: (available for download at bottom of post.)
Fab Videos, Finally Done Marketing Copy Worksheet.
FVFD Video + Social Media Planning Matrix Chart

Are you old enough to remember the old days, when setting up shop meant checking off all of the essentials of opening a business -  print up business cards, letterhead (wut?), sign a lease on an office, start marketing and attending networking events.

Then the internet came along, and the big pain point for busy entrepreneurs was getting a website online and figuring out how to incorporate it into the marketing strategy.

Here in 2018, we wish the website was all we had to worry about. Social media has splintered our audience and stunted attention spans.

On top of that, there is one more huge shift we need to make to stay competitive. It is the one thing that most small entrepreneurs have not implemented yet, so if you do this, you will be way ahead of your competition, especially going into 2019:

Prioritize video in your marketing strategy.  We must start thinking of video as an essential element  to your marketing communications, like your newsletter or blog posts, not a silo-ed “thing I need to get to later when I have time”. I have detailed the trends for video and marketing in several other places, and the reason I’m so loud about this is that I see a lag in video adoption among small entrepreneurs trying to get traction.

We need to be nimble and quick to stay relevant and compete online with our bigger competitors that can spend thousands (literally) on ad platforms per month.

In fact, you can even start a business with only a marketing landing page and a video based on your sales copy.  (That is what I did with the Fab Video business line, by the way.)

I get it - sometimes getting started is the hardest part. Especially with something a bit complex and unfamiliar.

If you haven’t created any videos for your marketing yet, here are some ideas to crush the natural resistance many of us feel to video, and crank up the momentum.

Be bold.

I encourage you to plan out 3 videos, not just one.

Why? Efficiency. Once you get the first 3 done, the video process looks and IS much easier.

We practice what we preach. In phase one of the Fab Videos, Finally Done Ultimate System, most clients start with 3 videos to save money, learn the organization for their Business Video Hub, get momentum going, and break through the inertia.

Begin with the end in mind.

We also strongly encourage clients to create the basics of your core marketing copy or sales copy,  if you haven’t already done so. This will make scripting your videos go MUCH faster

(No core marketing or sales copy? We won't tell. Download our template  if you need help - see the homepage).

Power Tip:
Speaking of beginning with the end in mind,  you will also save time and angst if you know these three strategic basics for every video:

1. Audience - who is it for?
   
   
2. Platform: Where will it be seen? What social media platforms is your audience most active on?
   
   Examples:
   Website
   Facebook Cover Video  
   Y outube Channel cover video
   
   Are there length limitations? For example - Facebook cover video can’t be longer than 90 seconds.
   Do you need a caption file? 80% of videos on Facebook are viewed without sound.
   Should you be considering square video for Instagram?
   
   Are you confused about video and social media? So were we, so we created a free Video+Social Media Planning Chart (link at the end of the post)  for a list of the different platforms and video parameters.  
   ​
3. Call to Action - what do you want them to do after they watch the video?

OK now that you know what you need to know first, let’s look at the 3 essential marketing videos for your business, updated based on marketing video trends for 2018 and projections for 2019.

All including super simple script outlines.  

Here are the links to each post:
Essential Video for your Business Marketing Strategy  #1: ​Testimonials!

Essential Video #2: Company Profile

Essential Video #3: Product or Service Detail, including what not to say in this video

FREE FAB TOOLS

Wondering what to actually say in your videos? Below is the link for the FVFD Core Marketing Copy Worksheet that will simplify your scripts when you video-fy your content strategy. 

Next is the link to the FVFD Video + Social Media Planning Matrix Chart which compares all the major social platforms, their audiences, video types and requirements. We created it to keep ourselves sane with social video, now we're happy to share it with you! ​

What is your biggest hesitation getting started with your videos? Any tips for others just getting started? Let us know in the comments.