With billions of weekly viewers and mobile-first consumption on the rise, video has become an essential medium for connecting with audiences. Video content is expected to account for 82% of all internet traffic in 2025 (Linearity). With 78% of people watching videos weekly and 55% engaging daily (SocialPilot), video has become the go-to medium for online engagement. Mobile-first consumption is also surging, with over 75% of video views happening on mobile devices.
If you’re looking to leverage this form of marketing and add video to your strategy, it’s important to have a clear idea of the process before heading into production to help ensure a successful launch. If you’re not properly prepared, you could end up wasting a lot of time and money, with an overabundance of unusable footage. So, let’s get you rolling down the right track.
Pre-Production Planning
The project brief.
There are a lot of reasons why you may need a video for your business — to advertise a new service or share your unique corporate message to stand out from your competition. Before a tripod is set up, define the purpose of your video. Are you promoting a new service, explaining a product, or reinforcing your brand message? A project brief should outline the video’s goals, target audience, key takeaways, and intended platforms (which also helps determine ideal video length).
Effective brainstorming.
Gather your team for a creative discussion. Review past content, explore competitors’ videos, and align ideas with your brand. Share visual examples and consider your buyer personas to generate fresh, relevant concepts to refine further.
The goal of brainstorming is to leave with a few great ideas to dig into deeper and take to the next level.
Writing the script and storyboard.
Once the idea is set, write a concise, clear script with a beginning, middle, and end—plus a strong call to action. Avoid jargon and ensure it’s understandable to your audience. Read it aloud and time it (180 words ≈ 1 minute).
Marking up the script on what’s being delivered on camera, or creating a video storyboard, can help guide the shoot itself. This also aids the video production crew in identifying the required video equipment, lighting, shoot location(s), talent, attire, props, rentals, etc. Additionally, areas that could be troublesome while shooting can be noted with solutions that are ready to be implemented.
Creating the shoot schedule.
The final phase of the pre-production planning is the creation of a shot list. This should include a list of every scene and every angle that will be needed to tell the story. This will shape your shoot schedule and ensure efficient use of time. It provides a timeline for when exterior and/or interior shots can be taken and if the shoot needs to be extended. If you are preparing on-screen talent or employees during portions of the shoot, it will allow you to know when to have those people prepared and ready.
During the shoot.
As the shoot day approaches, designate a point person to help with on-site coordination. This person will provide direction based off of the schedule and answer any questions during the shoot (i.e., where gear should be stored when not in use, where the crew should park, unload, and enter the building, and when talent should arrive). This person could also secure any necessary products or prototypes to be used in the video as well as have general knowledge of the product/service to direct appropriate product placement and usability. This will make the process run that much smoother.
After the shoot.
After the shoot is done, editing is complete, and you have the final video in your hands your new content should be distributed to your target audience through the channels previously determined in your video marketing strategy. Whether that be a six-second teaser for YouTube pre-roll, shared with your followers on your social media channels, and/or uploaded to your website. Don’t forget: video boosts SEO, so make sure it’s optimized and easy to find.
Video truly makes for one powerful marketing tool that can greatly influence consumer decisions. For a successful video shoot and production process, continuous communication is key. Following the necessary steps of pre-planning allows for what should be a smooth, exciting, and fun shoot, resulting in a video you’ll be elated to share with your audience!
What story are you looking to tell? Contact us to get started on your video project.
