Corporate video inspiration needed

[sadude]

Ive done allot of videos for corporate clients in the past. These productions have been fair budgets but no real elbow room.

The videos Ive made for clients so far, are videos that give clients exactly what they need in terms of script, cinematography and editing. If a client needs a video about his products then that is what i give them. No more, no less.

When i hand these clients the videos they are always overly happy about the video and often comment that they never knew it was gonna be that good.

Ive gotten really good at giving the client the video they need.

Now i would like to push the boundaries, just a bit. I want to take the videos to the next level.

It's great that my clients love the videos that i give them, cause it means i get paid, but now i want to get other clients, maybe bigger clients interested in my videos.

I would like to go beyond making videos that meet the requirements to making videos that surpass those requirements.

But where do i start? How do i incorporate creative elements into a production that will make it a work of art as well as a corporate video? How do i create a vision im the videos and where do i draw inspiration from to create this vision?

 

[kennedymax]

Many corporate videos are pretty dull. They are but catalog sheets in motion. Yet, there are quite a few that are much stronger communications tool and are a joy to watch.

A company generally spends a lot of time and effort defining and developing a product, and it has a definite and distinct place in the market. It seems to me that the video producer who wants to make an interesting and valuable show does his own research to understand the merits of the clients product or service, and spends sufficient creative time with this information to weave an interesting story. The added insight of understanding a company's reasoning should really light a fire under one's creative juices.

 

[jghenderson]

Warning: incoming generalization.

I think that there are two overall types of commercial or corporate videos. There are the videos driven by writing and acting, and the videos driven by visual aesthetic.

I think the first question you need to ask yourself is: which route do you want to go? You should also ask yourself, what are you good at? If you are a very visual minded person, then perhaps it is best to push in that direction. Focus as much as you can on making the images memorable and beautiful and interesting. If however you are a better writer, then try to push the narrative structure of these corporate videos.

Once you have this figured out, the path to moving forward will be much easier as well as will help narrow down your list of potential clients (which is a good thing in my opinion ; in the corporate world it is much better to be seen as a specialist in a specific type of video).

 

[sadude]

The added insight of understanding a company's reasoning should really light a fire under one's creative juices.

My clients don't really have an in-depth marketing plan and they don't really have reasoning for why they are positioning the product and the company the way they are. Its usually just because they want to make a video to put on their website or help with sales. If they had an imahe or style that would be great, but unfortunately they don't.

jghenderson[/URL];1986200215]If you are a very visual minded person, then perhaps it is best to push in that direction. Focus as much as you can on making the images memorable and beautiful and interesting

What would be the starting point, from which you would decide how you want to film a certain something. For example, a sophisticated machine that fills packets with powder foods; how do i incorporate this into the video in an interesting way?

 

[stefanhuberfilms]

hi, i shot this just recently: https://vimeo.com/46708743 plus a trailer: https://vimeo.com/45598081

cheers

 

[FrameFarmMedia]

For example, a sophisticated machine that fills packets with powder foods; how do i incorporate this into the video in an interesting way?

I wouldn't concentrate on the machine but how that machine benefits their clients or the end user. Connect the emotional ties with people to this cold machine and it helps to warm the story. (IMHO of course take it for what its worth)

 

[Liam Hall]

For inspiration you could start by checking out the many industry award winners to see what they are doing. Corporate videos shouldn't be bland or boring, but they often are due to a lack of imagination on by clients and production companies.

 

[sadude]

hi, i shot this just recently: https://vimeo.com/46708743 plus a trailer: https://vimeo.com/45598081

cheers

Very nice visuals and the music helps to keep me interested. Your production is almost the complete opposite of the way i currently do my corporate videos. I would be so unsure about making a corporate video with no voice over and only graphics, like you have done, its a risky move for my clients. But i do like the way you have relied almost predominantly on your visual quality to sell the video. Is that all done with a 35mm?

In contrast to you, here is a video i made for a client where i would say the message and wording is the thing i had to focus on, i dont think there was time to set up nice shots like you have. This was shot in one day, how long did your video above take to film?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCRJTe4rkxA

 

[sadude]

For inspiration you could start by checking out the many industry award winners to see what they are doing. Corporate videos shouldn't be bland or boring, but they often are due to a lack of imagination on by clients and production companies.

I have watched a few as you say "industry award winners" videos, but usually they are companies who have a ethos and a vision already and im sure that helped the production company as kenneddymax pointed out. Its like watching a dvd movie and then not being able to watch the directors commentry afterwards, where i would be able to get an understanding of what inspired them to film something the way they did. Ive often watched movies and thought that was a great scene, but i didnt know why i thought it was really great, then i would hear why the director filmed it the way they did and it will all make sense.

 

[sadude]

I wouldn't concentrate on the machine but how that machine benefits their clients or the end user. Connect the emotional ties with people to this cold machine and it helps to warm the story. (IMHO of course take it for what its worth)

That could work, but the objective of the video is to let the customers know exactly what foods can and cannot be processed at the plant. It seems like i would have to go outside of those parameters to include the people who receive the product element. Do you agree?

 

[stefanhuberfilms]

Very nice visuals and the music helps to keep me interested. Your production is almost the complete opposite of the way i currently do my corporate videos. I would be so unsure about making a corporate video with no voice over and only graphics, like you have done, its a risky move for my clients. But i do like the way you have relied almost predominantly on your visual quality to sell the video. Is that all done with a 35mm?

In contrast to you, here is a video i made for a client where i would say the message and wording is the thing i had to focus on, i dont think there was time to set up nice shots like you have. This was shot in one day, how long did your video above take to film?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCRJTe4rkxA

thank you for your feedback, i tried to tell the story just by pictures - i think you just have to get used to this style of productions, but its doable with a good script/concept and a good collaboration with your client... Almost all is shot on a HVX200 with a Letus Extreme 35mm Adapter, some shots are from a Canon 7D.

I loved the dolly shot where the guy was talking in the beginning - you setup the lights very nice!

i shot it in one long day from 8 am to 8 pm and one afternoon from 12 o'clock to 7 pm - very stressful though

EDIT: i think its not easy to tell that some foods can not be processed - reveals the disatvantages of the company somehow..?

 

[sadude]

I loved the dolly shot where the guy was talking in the beginning - you setup the lights very nice!

whoo hoo!! :beer:

i shot it in one long day from 8 am to 8 pm and one afternoon from 12 o'clock to 7 pm - very stressful though

Those shots looked like they took you allot longer, so well done

 

[stefanhuberfilms]

whoo hoo!! :beer:


Those shots looked like they took you allot longer, so well done

thank you, good you enjoyed it!

 

[Michael Carter]

I'd say about for about half of my clients, I'm their full-on marketing consultant. Regardless of what they came to me for (logo, web design, product photos, video) if they're in the "no vision" or "poor job of positioning their product/service", I end up fixing... everything.

I just think of it as common sense (I don't have, like, a marketing degree, but do have close to 30 years agency and large consumer goods retailer experience as a creative), but apparently it's not that "common".

If you want to take it to the next level, don't start until you fully understand the product. Many clients are so close to their product that they can't "explain" it. Many people aren't "teachers" and they just can't see what a layman does and doesn't get, especially about technical products. They are so familiar with it they assume everyone is.

So - particularly for products (and I regard "services" as a product in this sense) that are industry specific - ask ask ask until you understand it. Try to understand what their market understands, and what is unique/new/revolutionary.

NEXT... figure out what they "really" sell - and there are VERY FEW PRODUCTS IN THE "REALLY" CATEGORY. As an example, I had a client who manufactured shoes for JCPenney, Footlocker, etc. After decades of so-so performance, the younger guys moved into management, bought a factory in China, took full control of manufacturing, and within a few years sold shoes that had the lowest returns - and the highest markup - in the industry.

Their customer wasn't the guy buying shoes at the mall - it was the wholesale shoe buyer for the dept. stores. He didn't need "shoes" - he needed higher profits and fewer returns to look good to his boss.

In this case, the PRODUCT MY CLIENT SOLD was profitability. The additional benefits were career stability, getting home on time and less stress/less work.

They didn't sell "fashion", other than they knew the styles customers were seeking, or could quickly develop styles the buyer wanted to knock off.

THIS NEVER OCCURRED TO MY CLIENT. But the sales guys in the field had an inherent understanding of this.

To learn a business, talk to sales as part of your process. In a smaller business, your contact may well be the sales manager. never hurts to ask for insights from the guys in the field or ask for a respected sales guy to be involved at some level.

THEN - figue out how to show and tell the nuts and bolts of what they do while expressing what the "real" product is. And again, there are few "real" products - B2B products are almost always profitability - it all boils down to that. Consumer goods have a wider range - style (which is a complex set of social and emotional benefits), aspirational fulfillment, value, etc...

My experience is when you figure out how to do the above, you can have a client for life. whatever media you express the above in - video, photos, a logo, web design - is specialty stuff that still requires the above knowledge to pull off properly. THINK LIKE A CREATIVE/MARKETING DIRECTOR, especially for smaller clients.

For video, I can never escape the pull of a linear story: problem, crises, product, solution, happiness/success/increased profitability. Even if it's not that totally linear, a sense of linear story is a great starting point for idea generation. Stories are as old as language, and video/film gives us an existing and rich vocabulary/language of techniques that have an instant power over the viewer's mind. Don't just explain a product - start with the problem/need - if it's well executed, people will get sucked in because we all want to know how the story ends.

REMEMBER THAT YOUR AUDIENCE ARE ALL CONSUMERS, even for B2B - their market goes home and sees the same movies and TV spots you do. The vocabulary of film is effective in even the driest business proposition.

BE MARKET APPROPRIATE - but keep in mind "appropriate" implies a boundary. Those who push through or stretch boundaries often are pioneers. Keep it in mind.

The visual style of the delivery is icing on the cake - and I've eaten cake with awesome icing, icing that was too sweet, and cream-cheese icing (yum!) that was spoiled and sour (doh!). How do you make awesome icing? Watch things, take notes, look for stuff that inspires you, and look beyond the norm.

Some people are just amazingly gifted at what they do. Look at guys who grab a camera and make amazing stuff without even seeming to think of it. If you can't BE them, at least learn from them. Digest all the visual content you can. Some of us just don't have amazing "taste" - I don't, my first three tries at anything creative just SUCK. Developing your creativity is another huge subject... but for corporate marketing, I think the above stuff is vital before you ever start creating.

 

[TheDingo]

I would like to go beyond making videos that meet the requirements to making videos that surpass those requirements.

...Better quality usually means more time ( to compose and light your shots ) and higher costs. ( i.e. more shooting days and a larger crew to make things happen )

Other than being lucky, I don't see any other way of producing better results.

BTW, how much planning do you do before you shoot?

I am assuming that you do a location walk-through, where you have time to take photos and plan your storyboards before you come back for the actual shoot days.

 

[sadude]

I'd say about for about half of my clients, I'm their full-on marketing consultant. Regardless of what they came to me for (logo, web design, product photos, video) if they're in the "no vision" or "poor job of positioning their product/service", I end up fixing... everything.

I just think of it as common sense (I don't have, like, a marketing degree, but do have close to 30 years agency and large consumer goods retailer experience as a creative), but apparently it's not that "common".

If you want to take it to the next level, don't start until you fully understand the product. Many clients are so close to their product that they can't "explain" it. Many people aren't "teachers" and they just can't see what a layman does and doesn't get, especially about technical products. They are so familiar with it they assume everyone is.

So - particularly for products (and I regard "services" as a product in this sense) that are industry specific - ask ask ask until you understand it. Try to understand what their market understands, and what is unique/new/revolutionary.

NEXT... figure out what they "really" sell - and there are VERY FEW PRODUCTS IN THE "REALLY" CATEGORY. As an example, I had a client who manufactured shoes for JCPenney, Footlocker, etc. After decades of so-so performance, the younger guys moved into management, bought a factory in China, took full control of manufacturing, and within a few years sold shoes that had the lowest returns - and the highest markup - in the industry.

Their customer wasn't the guy buying shoes at the mall - it was the wholesale shoe buyer for the dept. stores. He didn't need "shoes" - he needed higher profits and fewer returns to look good to his boss.

In this case, the PRODUCT MY CLIENT SOLD was profitability. The additional benefits were career stability, getting home on time and less stress/less work.

They didn't sell "fashion", other than they knew the styles customers were seeking, or could quickly develop styles the buyer wanted to knock off.

THIS NEVER OCCURRED TO MY CLIENT. But the sales guys in the field had an inherent understanding of this.

To learn a business, talk to sales as part of your process. In a smaller business, your contact may well be the sales manager. never hurts to ask for insights from the guys in the field or ask for a respected sales guy to be involved at some level.

THEN - figue out how to show and tell the nuts and bolts of what they do while expressing what the "real" product is. And again, there are few "real" products - B2B products are almost always profitability - it all boils down to that. Consumer goods have a wider range - style (which is a complex set of social and emotional benefits), aspirational fulfillment, value, etc...

My experience is when you figure out how to do the above, you can have a client for life. whatever media you express the above in - video, photos, a logo, web design - is specialty stuff that still requires the above knowledge to pull off properly. THINK LIKE A CREATIVE/MARKETING DIRECTOR, especially for smaller clients.

For video, I can never escape the pull of a linear story: problem, crises, product, solution, happiness/success/increased profitability. Even if it's not that totally linear, a sense of linear story is a great starting point for idea generation. Stories are as old as language, and video/film gives us an existing and rich vocabulary/language of techniques that have an instant power over the viewer's mind. Don't just explain a product - start with the problem/need - if it's well executed, people will get sucked in because we all want to know how the story ends.

REMEMBER THAT YOUR AUDIENCE ARE ALL CONSUMERS, even for B2B - their market goes home and sees the same movies and TV spots you do. The vocabulary of film is effective in even the driest business proposition.

BE MARKET APPROPRIATE - but keep in mind "appropriate" implies a boundary. Those who push through or stretch boundaries often are pioneers. Keep it in mind.

The visual style of the delivery is icing on the cake - and I've eaten cake with awesome icing, icing that was too sweet, and cream-cheese icing (yum!) that was spoiled and sour (doh!). How do you make awesome icing? Watch things, take notes, look for stuff that inspires you, and look beyond the norm.

Some people are just amazingly gifted at what they do. Look at guys who grab a camera and make amazing stuff without even seeming to think of it. If you can't BE them, at least learn from them. Digest all the visual content you can. Some of us just don't have amazing "taste" - I don't, my first three tries at anything creative just SUCK. Developing your creativity is another huge subject... but for corporate marketing, I think the above stuff is vital before you ever start creating.

Thank you Thank you Thank you, Youve answered questions that i couldnt even put into words. Ive read your post over and over again and each time i gain something else from it. Im still reading it. This is a great forum. The linear story part and telling a story, sounds like the key i have been missing. This has put allot of things in perspective for me. Thank you again. And thank you for taking the time to look so thoroughly at my situation.

 

[sadude]

...Better quality usually means more time ( to compose and light your shots ) and higher costs. ( i.e. more shooting days and a larger crew to make things happen )

Other than being lucky, I don't see any other way of producing better results.

BTW, how much planning do you do before you shoot?

I am assuming that you do a location walk-through, where you have time to take photos and plan your storyboards before you come back for the actual shoot days.

I do a brief recce usually, if the client is willing to take me around, which is most often the case. I dont do a storyboard but i do a shot list. AT TECH WE WERE TAUGHT to do story boards and floor plans but i never really put enough effort into trying that. I could never justify spending time on doing it, but maybe i should look at that now.

 

[ulisses]

Find a creative script writer. Add some original ideas that you know the client will love and you have a good start.

 

[TheDingo]

First off, I always do a walkthrough and...

1- Shoot a photo-storyboard with my Panasonic LX-5 pocket camera. ( any pocket digital camera will do )

2- Use the PowerPoint "Insert ---> PhotoAlbum" menu command to import your photos into a single PowerPoint presentation. You can import 100 photo in less than 60 seconds, using one photo per PowerPoint screen.

3- Make sure your photos are in the correct order, and delete duplicates or junk photos.

4- Next print from PowerPoint, select "Handouts" with 3 images per page vertically, and print to a PDF document. ( you may have to install one of the free "Print to PDF" drivers to do this )



...Following these steps you now have a 30+ page photo-storyboard ( assuming that you took 100 photos ) that you created in less than 3 minutes, with room to write notes beside each picture, and you can email the PDF to other crew members, agency contacts, etc...

 

[Grahamrobbins5]

I use to shoot a lot of corporate content as a cinematographer for a production company I work with. This is before we broke more into the commercial world. One of the clients we still shoot for is Taylor Dunne, I think its very good corporate content because we spend the time to light it, compose nice shots, and the editing and graphics are simple and describe the product well. Take a look and maybe it will give you some inspiration.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uizw-FZJ6Fo&feature=relmfu

We do these on pretty small budgets, I usually bring out some 2k fixtures, and 4x4 kino flo's. I get all the movement on a Dana Dolly, and though the production company owns a RED epic, we shoot these just on 2, 7d cameras with zeiss primes. Its very simple but I think just spending extra time in composition and lighting can really up the caliber of corporate content.

Graham Robbins