Innovate or Die.

How are you innovating your marketing efforts?

Here at 898 Marketing, we have a recurring book club in which one of our team members chooses a book that the rest of the team reads. Our most recent book was “Ride of A Lifetime,” by Bob Iger. In the book, Iger talks about the need to innovate saying, “there’s no innovation if you operate out of fear of the new or untested.” In the marketing world – especially video marketing – this is especially important.

People using laptops, marketing team

Since graduating from Youngstown State University in 2011, I’ve already seen several shifts in the production industry. Everything from the complexity and affordability of gear to the platforms in which projects need to be delivered on— things are constantly changing.

These days, the great unknown for a lot of businesses is TikTok, which requires a whole new style of content, displayed in a completely new format. And believe me change can be difficult, especially as someone who’s railed against vertical video throughout the past decade. But now… it’s time to innovate.

For our production team, that means re-thinking the way content is filmed to allow for vertical versions of the final product; it means occasionally putting down our production cameras and filming with a phone if that’s what the final product calls for. For some clients and some projects, it means a fundamental redesign of the entire strategy.

So what does the change mean for you, and how can you equip yourself and your business to innovate? Just remember that ultimately, there are a few timeless fundamentals that help video content succeed, regardless of the technology or platforms being used at the time.

First, be authentic. It doesn’t matter if you’re filming yourself on a phone or standing under the lights of a professional production, you have to be yourself. To quote a couple of my favorite “internetainers” Rhett and Link, “just yourself be, if weird is you.” Audiences can see through phony scripts and overly polished productions.

Man filming another man, marketing team filming

Second, tell a good story. All of us have stories to tell, but most of us are too humble to realize it. If you’re a business owner, people want to know who you are and where you came from— they want to know why you do what you do, and what in life drove you in that direction. Even funny or interesting diatribes about the quirks of your life and your business make for great video content on social media these days, but you have to be willing to tell those stories.

Lastly, practice makes perfect. Every person I’ve ever filmed with, well into the hundreds, has some level of camera shyness. And every single one of them, regardless of how well they do on camera now, were terrified the first time they ever stepped in the spotlight. Being scared of the camera is completely normal, and the only way to overcome that feeling is to do it. Over and over again. Eventually, talking to the camera will be as easy as talking to your best friend, it just takes time.

If you remember these core principles, whether you’re creating your own content for social media or working with an agency like ours to produce videos for your events or TV campaigns, you’ll set yourself up for success… and the payoff will be well worth it.

Recent Comments