As a business owner, you know it’s hard to market yourself these days without a digital presence.
Today’s potential customers have access to seemingly-endless quantities of content and their attention may be divided between several devices at one time. So how can you cut through the noise?
Your business needs to create short-form videos that are …
… to get viewers sitting up and taking notice of what you have to say.
If you don’t know how to create short-form content by yourself, this may seem impossible. Fortunately, we are here to fill you in on the basics you need and give tips on how to make videos that draw in new clientele.
Keep reading for more information.
A good short-form video keeps your audience engaged with a small snippet of information or entertainment in digital format. When making short-form content, you should decide:
There are other crucial parts of the short-form video process, but this will get you started on the right path.
It’s certainly possible to make great creative content on your own — but some people feel like they need a little extra help with the process. If that’s you, we’d love to have you contact us and let us jump in.
Our portfolio shows just a few examples of the eye-catching and audience-engaging work we produce.
Absolutely. Creating quality short-form content is possible, especially when you have access to the right tools. And you won’t even have to invest much money to get started.
Since digital marketing is crucial to the success of most businesses these days, coming up with a process to create short-form content will only help you in the long run.
Video can be a compelling format to help your brand come to life for your potential customers, so take advantage of the opportunities its creation gives you.
You may be overwhelmed when first figuring out how to create short-form creative content — but with a few basic tips, you’ll be ready to go in no time.
Have you ever watched a video that was so dark you could barely see what was going on? And on the flip side, have you seen others where the subjects seem to be standing on the surface of the sun?
Proper lighting is one of the most important aspects of producing high-quality short-form videos. But you don’t have to shell out a bunch of money on lighting rigs or other specialty equipment.
A great hack is to find a window with good natural light coming in. You don’t want to film with direct light behind or in front of you, as this will cast harsh shadows on your face.
Nice, soft light coming it at around a 45° angle will be the best quality and the most visually pleasing. Light that gently falls on you from the side has an illuminating effect that will make you — and your video — look amazing.
There’s no need to buy expensive camera equipment to shoot your short-form content. You probably have everything you need in your pocket — after all, people are shooting entire movies with iPhones these days.
If your iPhone has cinematic mode, set it to that and you’re ready to film. If not, go to settings and make sure you are shooting in 1080p HD at 30 frames per second.
Your front-facing camera is great for taking selfies or making a FaceTime call, but use the back camera to make short-form content — the video will be higher quality.
Audio is the only part of the short-form video-making process where spending money is a must. If people click on your video and hear echoes, a garbled mess, or even worse — nothing — they aren’t going to stick around for your message.
But don’t worry, you can get some pretty solid audio equipment at a low price. Purchase a cheap wireless set on Amazon for around $30, or you may want to invest a little more in the Røde Wireless Go system.
You probably won’t want to shoot your video in front of a boring blank wall, but you also don’t want a background that will distract your viewers.
Instead, create or choose a background that holds some visual interest while still allowing viewers to focus on your message.
Steady camera work will make your short-form video look more professional.
You can always go the free route and balance your phone on a stack of books sitting on a table. But why do that when tripods and other clip-on stands are cheap and make the job so much easier?
These helpful tools will not only hold your camera still, but they’ll also allow you to adjust to any angle and make your filming look sharper and more professional.
The goal of these short-form videos is to convert views into customers, so let’s look at a few things you can do to make sure your content gets noticed.
Your video should start with a powerful headline. This will grab viewers and get them to stop scrolling.
It’s the first thing they see, so it should be both attention-grabbing and central to your message. You only have eight seconds to get someone’s attention before they move on to something else, so you’d better make those seconds count.
Once they stop to watch, you want the intro to your video to reel them in. Carefully craft your opening words so people will want to know more.
Other ways you may catch a viewer’s attention in your short-form content are by using:
There’s a lot of content vying for a potential customer’s attention. Let them know you respect their time by keeping your message short and sweet while still being valuable.
If the objective of your video is to let people know about your brand, make sure you deliver the message quickly, clearly, and with impact.
If your objective is to convert viewers into customers, your video should focus on the service or product you provide.
Short-form content should not be complicated. Make your videos brief, straightforward, and fun. Have a plan and a strategy, but the last thing you want to do is overthink it.
You can always make changes to your content as needed over time once you see what themes your viewers respond best to. Just get out of your own way and get have fun in front of the camera!
We recommended some great wireless audio setups that will ensure you have great sound, but you still need to consider background noise that may be present. Any extra commotion can be distracting to the viewer and take away from your message.
Consider using royalty-free music as the background of your video, especially if it’s mostly visual or you’re walking the viewers through a process.
We’ve given you some great tips on how to create short-form content by yourself. But if you’re still feeling a little overwhelmed by the whole idea, why not let professionals do the job?
Ridgeline Media Marketing wants to help you dominate your market with proven video strategies. We know what works — and we know how to tailor our process specifically for individual businesses.
We will take care of everything, including:
We’d like to help streamline your processes and increase your traffic. Contact us today and let’s discuss your video strategy journey.