A pleased and satisfied customer is any company’s most powerful marketing asset. Any kind of consumer generated praise of your business is a valuable indication of your service. Be it a simple rating, a mere comment or a detailed social media post.
“But, I have personally witnessed the incomparable sway a business gains in their brand recognition when they opt for customer testimonial videos.”
Having directed, filmed and produced hundreds of corporate videos, my faith in video content to establish market authority is encouraged by marketers all over the world. Wordstream reported that marketers who use video grow revenue 49% faster than conventional marketers.
1 Do not let the pandemic stall your content generation
The global lockdown of 2020 imposed upon us an unprecedented set of restrictions. Traveling, outdoor gathering and shooting are neither recommended nor convenient as per the new normal.
Yet this does not change the fact that video content is the future of marketing that will define your visibility irrespective of your territory or area of expertise.
2 Opt for the ease and cost-benefit of virtual video recording
Life slowed down for most people in 2020. It occurred to me that a fulfilled customer of any of my patrons is likely to have more time than ever to provide a fair and detailed assessment of a product or service, particularly, if it successfully added a little more convenience to their lifestyle
3 Preconditions to obtain a good testimonial footage
1. Ask relevant questions
For a genuine appraisal of your product or service, send your client a series of questions to reflect upon ahead of the shoot. They should be able to discuss the benefits created by your service in their personal or professional life instead of simply mentioning their preferred features.
2. Prepare your client for possible retakes
The person or people recording the client’s testimony must virtually hand-hold the client through the entire recording process. The client might be asked to restate certain parts of his monologue in case the face or voice lacks the appropriate natural emotion or tone. In another instance, the person recording the footage might need to make adjustments to light or sound.
3. Gift them a good quality webcam beforehand
When my team filmed our first virtual testimonial, I realized that no screen recording software can compensate for grainy, pixelated footage acquired from any client’s default laptop or PC camera.
To get suitable footage that can be manoeuvred in post-production into a professional-grade corporate video, reward your client’s effort with an additional giveaway of a webcam. The price of a good quality camera ranges from $25 to $120.
Cloudapp
Cost:
Free for an individual user with a 90 Sec video recording limit
$10 a month for unlimited video recording, enhanced editing features and customized sharing options
Filmora Scrn
Cost:
$19.99 one year license per PC
$29.99 lifetime license per PC
YouCam 9
Cost: $49.99 one-time purchase
Bandicam
Cost: Starts at $40 one-time cost per user
Finally, we remodel the webcam footage into a compelling piece of communication
A remotely filmed footage predominantly relies upon post-production to effectively blend your brand message with the words of approval offered by your client.
To pack more punch in every frame of the finished video, my team adds several elements some of which are:
A Credible and Inspiring Introduction
A suitable prelude using appealing graphics and visuals for the testimonial will allow the viewer a better understanding of your business purpose. It will also reduce the exit rate by engaging your audience with the context of the video.
The editing team adds graphics, animation and several other elements to illustrate all the aspects of the process adopted by you to drive your customer’s success. When technical details are demonstrated and simplified with the help of enhanced visuals, it strengthens the overall message of the video converting it into a powerful piece of sales collateral.
Supers / Dynamic Text Callouts
The increasing trend of auto-play and muted videos has made text callouts an essential feature of all marketing videos. We have observed that adding supers to highlight numbers, achievements and important keywords directly improves engagement metrics. This is yet another tool of post-production to boost the influence of the ideas represented in video.
Voiceover
Selection of a suitable voice for the introduction and other parts of video will set the required tone needed to support your client’s endorsement.
All testimonial videos require a positive expression and an encouraging speech.
I particularly like to pay attention to the voice of the artist to make sure it complements the voice of your customer. For instance, if your client is a woman in her 30s, I would recommend using a voice-over artist of the same gender who is of a similar or slightly older age group.
Music
The tempo, harmony, volume and selection of music will have a direct and profound impact on the emotions of the audience. It is yet another vital story-telling element to generate a rhythm for the filmed message. Our choice of music is meant to create an authentic undertone for your video to win the viewer’s perception in your favor.
B-rolls
Adding additional footage enriches the video message by creating more depth and relevance. In fact, B-rolls are also extremely helpful in hiding interruptions, dead air and unwanted expressions.
If the production team does not have the opportunity to film supporting footage to complement a remotely recorded webcam interview, I would recommend using pre-existing company stills or previously recorded footage for the B-roll.
Having elaborated upon the extensive features and capabilities available to us in post-production, I would like to reiterate that despite the limitations imposed on commercial outdoor filming, there are still several tools and strategies that can be used remotely to sustain high-quality video production and marketing.
So keep creating video content to grow your business and win more decision-makers in your favor.
Trueline Media has been helping various organizations across the globe develop compelling customer testimonials. In case you’re interested, we’ll be happy to help. Email us at info@truelinemedia.com