Audiences only have a limited attention span, and with brand after brand out there fighting for that attention, it's crucial to stand out from the crowd. But cutting through with branded video content isn't easy.
So, let's talk through some ideas on how you can create videos that turn your contribution to the noise into a jazzy sax solo.
What makes a brand video stand out?
We all know Nike and Amazon are pretty good at it, and John Lewis obviously smashes it every Christmas. Their videos are always more likely to get noticed, they're easy to distinguish in style, and they're memorable.
While Nike, Amazon and John Lewis are obviously playing with big brand budgets, the real trick is to start with a creative idea that differentiates your brand from what everyone else is doing. And that doesn't cost a thing. In fact, here are three for free...
3 WAYS TO create standout videos
1. SAY NO TO Clichés
Explore how you can distinguish yourself by listing out common tropes within your industry. For example, if you're a travel company, you might find yourself listing things like blue skies; sunshine; relaxing music; beach activities; and happy families. All undisputedly prominent features within a typical travel ad.
While these tropes exist for a reason and you shouldn't throw them all away, you do need to ask yourself: if all the brand logos were gone, would you be able to differentiate between your videos and theirs?
Once you've identified these clichés, you can look into how you might distinguish your brand from your competitors. And be sure to consider other elements too, such as tone of voice, titles, soundtracks, thumbnails, and colours. A good exercise to do is write down the opposite of what those common elements are, and work on your creative ideas from there.
2. ADDRESS THE problems WITHIN YOUR INDUSTRY
What new questions or concerns might your audience have that you can answer? How can you establish yourself as a thought-leader in your space? Is there a problem your audience is facing that no one else is addressing?
Let's take this video by Venture for BDO as an example, which aims to tackle having difficult conversations about race within the workplace:
3. Aim to Change the way people think and feel
Don't lose sight of the most important thing: what matters to your audience. Because everything that matters in your business begins and ends with them.
The aim is to create a campaign that's not only beautifully-executed, but that enriches people’s lives. Something that has the ability to transform the way a person thinks, feels and ultimately behaves. Because inspiring, captivating, and getting people thinking and feeling is a surefire way to be memorable and stand out from the crowd.
We use The Humankind Scale, which is a simple scale from 1 to 10 that focuses on the outcome of a campaign. 10 is the best you can possibly do; it's world-changing creative. And 1 is really work that shouldn't exist in the world.
We tend to ignore 1 to 4, because you really want to start at 5 at the very least. 6 is an intelligent idea. 7 is an inspiring idea that's beautifully crafted. 8 changes the way people think and feel. 9 changes the way people live. And 10 changes the world. To create something truly unique and memorable, you need to be aiming for a 7 or an 8.
Here's an ad we consider to be a solid 8:
Want to create a video that cuts through?
From audience insights & research to campaign strategy to video production, Venture has helped some of the best brands out there create remarkable video campaigns that cut through.
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Written by Emily Malone Marketing Manager for Venture — a full-service video production agency that specialises in producing creative videos & campaigns that get real results.
