Most, if not all consumable content is through - you guessed it - video.

It’s the easiest and more preferred form of content people bother to pay any attention to nowadays due to the simple fact that not everyone wants to read a bunch of words but rather watch and listen to whatever it is you have to say about anything.

So how do you go about creating a well-thought-out professional-looking video? Follow these 8 easy tips for beginners to start:

1. Plan it out

Regardless of the quality of your video, it’s the content that truly matters. So think:

What are your goals? Do you want to raise engagement? Gain more followers? Make them laugh?
Who is your audience? Children? Adults? Youth? People who like shoes? It could be anyone and anything so long as you know who you’re targeting.
What do you want to make them feel? Joy? Laughter? Happiness? Sadness?
Most importantly: what’s the message?

Ask yourself a few of those questions and write them down on a piece of paper so that you’ll remember what it is that you’re trying to achieve.

2. Background - Real vs. Fake

No one’s to say one’s better than the other, they’re just useful in different ways - depending on what it is that you want to achieve in your video’s overall look and get the message you want to be delivered.

Real Backgrounds, where you’re physically in the actual location. Whether it’s an office setting, the woods or a mall. Remember framing matters, and to make sure that there’s nothing that shouldn’t be in the video showing.

Fake Backgrounds typically consist of what you put over a green screen or curtain to give the illusion of reality. However, these can be tricky to set up and actually learn the technology for it, especially for beginners but who’s to say you can’t do it?

Regardless of which one you decide to use, make sure the colours match well with the foreground.

3. Use Natural Lighting

Lighting is one of the most important aspects of filming a video and as a beginner, you won’t necessarily have the equipment for it but fear not - natural lighting is free and is actually one of the best types of lighting.

Here are some ways you can use natural lighting to get the best results:

Outdoors on a cloudy day
Golden hour
A room with large/multiple windows
Other light sources (lamps, ceiling lights)

Regardless of the weather or time, shooting with natural lighting will get your video looking like it was made by a professional.

4. Learn Composition

Composition rules in photography are just as important when it comes to videography as it helps you frame the subject in an effective and appealing way.

One of the easiest and most promising ways is the rule of thirds. You divide your frame into a three-by-three grid and where the lines intersect is where you would place your subject as the audience’s eyes are naturally drawn to it.

Basically, don’t place your subject in the middle and make sure everything that’s supposed to be in the frame is in it!

5. No Need For Expensive Equipment

Not everyone has the budget to buy an expensive, top-of-the-line camera to film a quick video to promote their brand, and with technology nowadays you can easily film something in high quality with your everyday device: your phone.

6. Don’t Use Your Camera Microphone

While the quality of the camera doesn’t need to be superb, the sound quality definitely does (no one’s really going to listen to a video where they can’t hear anything properly).

The best way to get clear and crisp audio is through an external microphone.

7. Film In Segments

Now that it’s finally time for you to start filming, start by doing them in short intervals. This will save you time and energy when it comes to going through your footage, choosing whether or not to reshoot and editing it.

8. Promote Your Video

And finally, all that’s left to do is to get your video out there. You can easily promote it on Facebook, YouTube, or even Instagram as an ad, attract an audience, increase engagement, and gain a following. This way, your brand becomes more well-known.

If you’re looking to sell videos, it’s best to create your own website and launch an OTT (over-the-top) app, similar to Netflix where people pay and subscribe to view your video content.

Conclusion

The possibilities for creating videos are endless and are super easy to get started. You simply start by planning it out, choose what your background is, and remember to use natural lighting, and composition rules. Keep in mind that there’s no need for expensive equipment, but do look into purchasing an external microphone. And to make things easier, film your video in short segments and finally, share your work with others! Follow these steps to create professional-looking videos even though you’re a beginner. Let us know if you’re a beginner and started creating your videos! What did you make? What tips did you follow? We’d love to hear from you!

Written by Tina Phong

If you need further help creating your own marketing videos, we offer video production services that will help you elevate your brand!

We look forward to being a part of your success. Contact us here to get started.