Web Video For Your Business
Web video is something that many business leaders have embraced.
Have you been thinking about producing a web video for yourself or your business?
Green Screen
Green screen is the red hot ticket right now. It’s perfect for people who want to talk about what they do, or what their business can do for potential clients.
A short (one to two-minute) video posted at your site will help stimulate SEO (Search Engine Optimization) rankings. And you will finally have staked your claim in the ongoing “Gold Rush of the New Millennium” which is all about web videos.
DP Mark Schulze at The Great Wall of China
A Plethora of Backgrounds
Why green screen? When the editor keys out the neon green background, you can replace it with anything you want. The sky’s the limit! Imagine the Great Wall of China, dolphins riding a wave or a live volcano. It’s up to you.
This is a far better option than shooting you with your back to the wall of your office where there is no depth of field, or a boring background. The beauty of green screen is that in addition to you presenting your “elevator speech” to the general public, your selected background will support your content.
Are you an attorney? You could put the Hall of Justice in the background. Are you a solar panel installation expert? You could show the homes you have worked on with bright, shiny, money-saving solar panels.
Do Your Homework Before Booking a Crew
Prior to booking a video production crew to videotape a green screen session with you, I have some suggestions. Write out a script of what you want to say.
Read it aloud several times, to get a sense of the timing. In these days of post-MTV, it is now better to have five one-minute pieces than one five-minute piece.
People just don’t have the kind of time to watch anything that they think is going to take up several minutes of their time. Make it short and sweet and the likelihood of people watching will be far better.
Next, stand yourself in front of a mirror and deliver your talk. Better yet, have a friend videotape you on an available video camera. By no means do you want to post THAT video to your site. Showing an unprofessional video on a professional site will do more damage than if you had never posted a video at all.
The Video Sketch
What you want to do with this “video sketch” is study it. Do you like your hair? Is your clothing attractive or distracting? Do you see that you need to look directly at the camera and engage the viewer, rather than letting your eyes dart side to side, or look up to try and gather your thoughts?
Use this sketch to decide how you’d like to wear your hair, whether or not you should wear makeup. Men, you may need a little powder to keep the shine down. You’ll be able to check out whether you are sitting or standing up straight, or slouching. It’s easier to implement any necessary changes to your presentation before committing it to high definition video.
Just a little time and forethought will help make your production smooth and professional. And you’ll look and sound marvelous.
