An interesting discussion about online marketing with video is taking place over on a website called Traffic Bumper. The article that prompted the discussion was: “Most Web Videos Stink, Articles are Better.”
The author, Richard Day, claimed that because so many web videos are too pitiful to watch, they do more harm than good.
I see his point.
As big a fan as I am of web video, I have to agree that a grainy, shaky video with inaudible sound that rambles on forever is not going to boost your bottom line.
Let’s get one thing straight.
The videos Richard griped about were SO bad, that even their mommies probably can’t stand to watch the entire thing.
Were they bad because they were not big-budget, complex productions orchestrated by Steven Spielberg?
No.
They were bad because a viewer could not even hear what was being said. Even worse, what was being said was not really worth hearing. So I mean terrible, not just low-budget, can’t-compete-with-Oscar-winners bad.
Every one of the things Richard complained about is EASY to fix. None of the fixes require more money or more production time. They just require some very BASIC video production knowledge, like how to use a tripod and how to get decent audio. Not surround sound, 10-channel Dolby audio, just something folks can hear.
Rambling on and on and going off on tangents was probably the single biggest complaint. That’s an easy fix too. Stay focus and to-the-point. Keep it short and sweet. People are in a hurry, and chances are they are not really interested in that funny incident that happened to you on the way to the bank. Unless it’s actually funny and actually relevant.
In giving advice to nervous beginning video producers, I frequently hear myself saying, “Just go ahead and do it! It doesn’t have to be perfect.” And I mean that. But obviously, it IS important to make your video good enough, so it will work as you want it to. Not perfect, not even great. But good enough in the basics of video production that an interested person will watch the video and understand it.
Marketing with online video is productive, fun and relatively easy, but do not buy into the notion that slopping up any old piece of video crap will work miracles. It seems to me that in the world of internet marketing advice, people are often led to believe that video is SO powerful and SO EASY, that one quickly-produced video will catapult you to internet video stardom and vast riches. Unfortunately, it is not quite THAT easy, but it is certainly worth doing.
Thanks for reading Video Production Tips
Lorraine Grula
Wow! Right on the money.
I especially liked your comments about rambling and going off on tangents.
To get rid of the rambling and tangents, the video producer must, AT LEAST, have an outline to follow.
Let’s face it. Some people are so good, they can make a three minute video without ever messing up. They do it and it is done.
But for most of us, we have to edit the video.
When you play the video back for yourself, before you hit the publish button, make sure that you aren’t repeating, wandering or wasting focus. (When in doubt, cut it out.)
Richard Days last blog post..MOST Web Videos Stink – Articles are Better
Oh honey, let me be the one to spill the beans. You know that thing called the “editing room floor?”
Speaking as an editor who has lived in editing rooms (on the floor), all those people you think can do a 3 minute video perfect in one take, can’t.
Oh good grief no. They goof a million times but you never see that. It’s there on the floor with the potato chip crumbs.
Metaphorically speaking anyway.
The editing room floor is a reference back to the days of film when editing was done by cutting the film with a razor, throwing the rejects on the floor, and taping together the good parts. With digital, your broom stays in the corner but the concept is the same!
One of the best advantages to having a script is that it has (hopefully) already been edited and trimmed down.
So many people just wanna be the cool dude on camera but only tons of experience and real talent give you that. The rest of us have to edit.
Seriously. Delete. Edit.
I know it says, “point, shoot and upload,” but really, please don’t.
All too true. Sadly, I have made my fare share of video that should have either been deleted or needed editing very badly…These are not high quality videos, mind you, but more of the Vlogging types of videos.
For Vlogging, don’t you think that less than perfect is acceptable.
Since starting making personal journal types of videos, I have started using note cards to make sure I stay on task…yea rambling is not good.
Hi Clint.
You bring up a very good point.
“Less than perfect” is ALWAYS acceptable.
But “less than perfect” and “sucks out the wazoo” are far apart on the judge’s scale. both are relative, no doubt.
I am a big fan of “good enough.” Some of my favorite sayings are: “It’s better than good, it’s done!” and “We’re not doing brain surgery here, it’s just video production!”
Luckily, the main things people complain about with online marketing video are easy to fix.
Do not ramble
Get DECENT audio
Get DECENT video
If you think about what you are going to say before the camera rolls, you won’t have to edit so much later. Short and sweet.
Use a tripod or prop the camera up on something steady like a table.
Speak loudly, clearly, and fairly slowly. Turn all the background sounds OFF. Stand fairly close to the microphone and speak to the back of the room.
Make sure the area is bright. Open windows and curtains. Turn on any lights available. Make sure the light falls on the person’s FACE and not behind their back. The background should be darker than their face or else you get a silhouette.
These simple things will improve your quality by leaps and bounds.
No, it doesn’t have to be “perfect.” Online viewers are not expecting Star Wars special effects. They just want the damn thing to play, be audible and not waste their valuable time.
Lorraine
I second your point about the lighting. A good, but cheap solution to lighting is to use a “work light”.
They usually are available at your Home Depot, Lowes, Harbor Freight type retailers. They cost about $12 or so. Just aim that light up into the corner of the room — not at yourself.
The light will bounce around the room and it will be very soft, diffused, and of a consistent color temperature.
You can, and should, adjust your camera for the color of the light.
For about $30 you can buy a lavalier mic to improve your sound considerably. (You must have a video camera with an external mic input — harder to find these days.)
Yes, you are right. We aren’t looking for perfect, but we don’t like to watch videos with glaring faults.
Richard Days last blog post..MOST Web Videos Stink – Articles are Better
Hey Richard
Great tips. Any light will help. Just make it bright! And diffused, which is what you’re doing if you point it toward the ceiling like you suggest.
I have a 3 minute video tutorial about lighting for video that will tell you everything you need to know. You can see it here.
http://www.videoproductiontips.com/2008/11/24/lighting-for-video-production/
Internet Video Gal, thanks for the response, sorry I took so long to get back to you.
Sadly, many of my personal videos, are probably closer to the “wazoo” then “good enough”.
Richard, and Internet Video Gal, my camera does not have an external mic input…Could I use a mic and record a separate sound track while I make the video, then put the sound track onto the video in the editor? Bearing in mind the problem of having the voice and mouth looking like a foreign dubbed movie..
Hi Clint.
If you do not have a microphone input on your camera you can still make it work.
The process you describe is called over-dubbing. This is done all the time. Usually it is only big budget stuff that has over dubbing. It is critical for the person doing the speaking to speak at EXACTLY the same speed both times in order to avoid the bad foreign movie dubbed syndrome, also known as lip flap. This can indeed be difficult. Usually, the actor is staring at a monitor of the previously shot video, watching their mouth move carefully and imitating precisely what they see. Then the new audio is edited in to replace the old audio. doing this successfully is not easy.
Here are two ways I have gotten around this problem without over dubbing. My camera does not have a separate mic input either. (It’s very old and I’m itching to buy a new one!)
First way is to use the on-camera mic and make sure ALL background noise is turned off. Make your recording environment as quiet as possible. Then, have the camera and mic relatively close, 5 feet or so. Then speak loudly. Articulate carefully. Do not mumble. Doing all this will ensure that the audio you pick up is adequate.
The second way is to have my hand held microphone plugged into my mac computer while I am video taping. I am able to record the signal from the hand held directly into my edit software, Final Cut. So while videotaping, I have Final Cut playing using the voice over tool. I have a hand held microphone and a cable that has an XLR connector on one end and a USB connector on the other end. Then, I video tape myself speaking and at the same time, I am getting a simultaneous recoding of my audio that I use instead of the camera audio when editing. There are no lip synching issues since it is really the same track of audio, just a different recording of it. this is easier than over dubbing but you have to have the hand held mic and a way to record while you are videotaping.
I hope that helps!
Lorraine Grula
Lorraine’s use of the hand held microphone is a great way to accomplish the task if your equipment is also capable.
Although I haven’t tried this, I think it would work. Make your video with your camera as usual. At the same time, record what you say on a separate recorder – with a close mic.
When you bring the video in for editing, delete the audio track that the camera recorded. Now, you can import the audio track from the separate tape recorder.
I know in Sony Vegas you can separately adjust the audio and video tracks so that you can get the lips synced up.
It is tricky, but I have accomplished the resyncing when for some reason, I have inadvertently deleted video without deleting audio or vice verse.
Give it a try.
Rich Days last blog post..See What Your Competition Pays For Google Adwords
Richard makes a good point. Not all video edit programs allow you to separate video from its audio. Which is a real bummer to me. That is an indication of a low quality program.
The best way to get it to synch up is to watch yourself on a monitor while recording the better quality version.
One reason I like to use a high quality editing program is because not only can I easily separate audio and video tracks, but once, when I was over dubbing, I slowed the video down to 80% and then it matched perfectly. You could not tell that the video had been slowed down. Smaller edit programs will not let you adjust the speed of your video.