The Power of Video for your BrandAnd how you can create effective, high-quality videos without breaking your budget.

It’s time to get inventive with video…Not sure where to start when it comes to integrating video with your content strategy? Or perhaps you need some advice on engaging with video professionals? Whatever your situation, you’ve come to the right place.

This guide is filled with handy hints and expert advice on how you can begin your journey towards capturing, producing and posting great video content for your property business.

We’ve partnered with Steph Neil, the Director of SNP Media, to deliver all the must-know information on everything video – how to brief them, plan them, frame them, film them, repurpose them and successfully engage with a production partner.

Keep reading to find out how your property team can begin and continue to create dynamic videos, without breaking the budget!

Property RepublicThe team at Property Republic have become passionate about creating dynamic and budget-friendly video content for our brand and our clients. We believe in video’s power to capture audiences better than a still image and caption, and drive engagement on social media. Not only have we invested in some good-quality equipment that allows us to capture great footage, we’ve also developed effective video content strategies that allow us to maximise the success of our filming days, and create a wealth of content for our clients.

Key to our success in capturing video content is our video production partner SNP Media, who have provided us with guidance, education and expertise on all things video! We’ve partnered with SNP Media to create our latest guide to help your property team begin and continue to create dynamic videos, without breaking your budget!

SNP MediaAt SNP Media, we’re a team of story tellers. We take a brief and make it happen. It doesn’t matter the size or the scope of the project, we apply the same attention to detail and personalised care to each of our narratives.

Creating brilliant videos is our passion, and is what we are good at. We are not a one-size-fits-all operation; we are boutique and creative, we customise and adapt, but most importantly, we always deliver.

With over 10 years of production experience, our team has written and produced many television series for free-to-air, Foxtel and international distributors. This includes sports and lifestyle programming as well as several documentaries across a broad range of subject matter.

Now we create content for all mediums, focusing predominantly on social media and online platforms.

Why use video in your content strategy?

87%of businesses use video as

a marketing tool

Wyzowl

96%of people watched explainer videos to learn more about a product or

service

Wyzowl

Using video on your landing page can increase conversion rates by

80%depositphotos

66%more qualified leads when implementing

videos into the content strategy

Smart Insights

53%more likely to show up on page 1 of Google if they feature a video

Moovly

Sites are

380%more clicks are generated by

call-to-actions in videos

KISSmestrics

82%of consumer traffic is said to

come from video by 2022

Cisco

Marketers achieve

5 The Power of Video for your Brand

Using video in propertyIn the property industry especially, it’s important that prospects identify the human and personable aspects of your brand, since it’s these factors that establish a connection and create a sense of trust with potential buyers. Video is one of the best content forms to achieve this, and ultimately creates an emotional connection with viewers.

Video can be easily incorporated into the digital marketing strategies of your property business. In fact, there’s a variety of ways video content can be used to capture, engage and convert audiences:

– Drone footage capturing construction progress. A link to this footage can be sent in an EDM with a construction update and posted on your socials

– 15-second promotional video on Facebook, promoting an upcoming event

– Filmed testimonials and interviews with satisfied buyers

– Brand video on your website’s hero banner 

– Filmed walk-through of a new development or display

– Filmed walk-through of your display office, introducing key sales staff 

– A short video showcasing your project’s different community groups and initiatives

– A video interview of key stakeholders for new infrastructure

– An interior styling video where you collaborate with a retailer, such as Adairs or Coco Republic

6 The Power of Video for your Brand

How video presents your business and brand As you begin to plan how your video will look, it’s important to ask yourself, and your team, the following questions:

– What video quality is right for your brand? It’s important that the video you’re producing aligns with your brand, market and the price bracket you’re operating in. A low production video will look out of place if you’re selling high-end properties – and vice-versa. Before you start production, establish a plan for how you’d like your video to look, who it’s targeting and what you want your viewers to take from it. Is the purpose of the video to increase sales, to educate, or to raise brand awareness? By establishing this beforehand, you will save yourself time and eliminate any risk of the video not living up to your expectations.

– What are the relevant production values? Once you’ve planned your video, it’s time to think about the production itself and determine what you need to invest in. While our smartphone cameras are getting better and better, we recommend investing in a quality camera and microphone, as these will produce clearer and smoother footage and higher-quality sound. You also need to establish if you want animations, actors and props in your video. If so, are you able to produce these yourself, or are you better off outsourcing?

– Where will your video be posted? Where your video is being posted will determine its style and level of quality. On Instagram, videos that come across as authentic, casual, and entertaining, such as behind-the-scenes footage, tend to perform well. YouTube and Vimeo require higher quality videos for a more immersive cinema experience. High performing videos on Facebook are more versatile and can be of both high production value and more casual – it all relies on the quality of the storytelling.

– How much is your time worth? Unless you have previous experience shooting and editing videos, you might want to consider outsourcing to an expert. It’s not a question of whether or not you can do it, but how much your time is worth. Instead of you spending a full day on a job someone more experienced could do in an hour, consider what you can dedicate your time to that will be more beneficial to your business.

7 The Power of Video for your Brand

DIY video tipsIf you’re going to begin incorporating video into your content strategy, here are our top 15 tips to help you get the most out of your efforts:

1. Invest in some good-quality equipment such as: - A microphone - A camera (or you can use your phone) - A tripod with a bubble metre to see if camera or phone

is straight

2. Practice framing your subject. Look at professional videos to see how they frame talent. As you do this, consider the appropriate headroom above the talent’s head and how well the talent fills the frame. It’s important to practice framing for different types of videos, such as:

3. Consider the lighting. It’s always best to film in a bright and naturally-lit setting. If you’re filming outside, make sure the sun is positioned behind the camera to eliminate glare. You’ll also need to establish the best positioning of your talent to ensure there are no obvious shadows that obstruct the shot. If you’re filming inside and have purchased lights for filming, be sure to research how to use your lights for best results.

4. Ensure your talent isn’t wearing sunglasses, as you’ll be able the see the reflection of the camera in the sunglass lens.

One-on-one interviews Down-the-barrel interviews

Two person interviews

8 The Power of Video for your Brand

5. Remember to film cut-aways or b-roll shots. This is footage that is relevant to the topic of your video. For example, if interviewing a key stakeholder on the construction of a local train station, be sure to capture footage of the construction process and the surrounding area.

6. Determine the appropriate location of the video and positioning of your talent. Things you’ll need to consider include: - Lighting - An appealing background - Ensure the talent is not positioned with the sun or a

window behind them

7. Decide how you want the video to be set up. Do you want the interviewee looking slightly off camera or talking to the audience directly down the lense?

8. If you’ll be getting your DIY video footage professionally edited, be sure to ask your editor what frame rate they’d prefer, as well as any other specifications.

9. If you’re going to be editing the videos in-house, consider what software you’ll need to invest in. We advise using editing software that suits your skills and budget. Also, consider cost versus time. If your in-house team are taking 4 hours to edit a video that a professional can do in one hour, it may be worth outsourcing the editing function.

10. Practice is better than perfection.

11. Create videos using still images. If you don’t have time to film footage, consider using still images, music and a voice over to create a video.

12. Should you be filming in landscape or portrait? The answer can be found by considering the subject you’ll be filming, as well as the platform it’s being posted to. Vertical videos perform much better on Instagram, Stories and IGTV, while both landscape and vertical videos can perform well on Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube.

13. Plan a filming day. Make sure you have a plan for your filming day, to ensure you make the most out of the footage you capture. An effectively planned day of filming can get you loads of content that can be cut up in a variety of different ways, to deliver multiple videos.

14. Consider the appropriate video length. Videos posted to Instagram and Facebook perform better when they’re short and sharp – between 20 and 60 seconds. IGTV and Facebook Live videos can be a lot longer in length, running from anywhere between 5 and 20 minutes – but this content needs to be highly engaging to keep people watching! Videos on YouTube can vary in length, depending on its purpose.

15. Invest in an appealing and captivating intro and outro. Whether you’re doing this in-house or through a video creator, ensure it grabs viewers’ attention, is not too long, and is high-quality.

9 The Power of Video for your Brand

InterviewsInterview videos work extremely well in the property industry, as they provide viewers with expert information from important and relevant people. Here are some top considerations for filming interviews:

1. Interviews allow you to capture lots of content in one day. If you can coordinate multiple interviews on one shooting day at a relevant location, not only are you able to capture the interview footage, but also a range of b-roll at the filming site.

2. There are so many ways to slice and dice interview footage to create multiple short video clips. Depending on the topics your interviewees are talking about, you can slice the interview into short clips that focus on: - Product-related information - Community - Amenity and lifestyle - Location

3. Some interviewees like to be briefed on the questions you’ll be asking ahead of the interview. Be sure to email through your questions so your interviewee can prepare their responses and feel ready to go on the day.

4. Consider what interview technique will work best for your video. Single interviewee looking at interviewer, single interviewee looking at the camera or a two-person interview are some of the most common set-ups.

5. Make your talent feel comfortable. Often, your interviewees will feel nervous about being in front of the camera and you’ll likely need to shoot multiple takes in order to get what you need. Be sure to maintain a calm, comforting and encouraging presence for your interviewees to make them feel as relaxed as possible.

10 The Power of Video for your Brand

6. Inform the interviewee on the purpose of the video, how it will be marketed, why the interview is taking place, where the video will be posted and used, when it will be live, and when they can receive a copy. This can be done in an email ahead of the shoot day, or on the filming day itself.

7. Take notes on what the interviewee is talking about, such as a specific location or amenity, and be sure to film overlay footage of it.

8. Sometimes the interviewee’s eyeline might move from the interviewer to the camera, or even to the floor. Don’t be afraid to politely remind the interviewee to keep their gaze on the agreed location and re-take the shot if necessary.

9. Don’t forget to provide talent release forms! When conducting interviews or smaller production videos, these forms need to be signed by each person whose face is featured in your video. If your talent is underage, a parent will need to be present to sign the form. If you’re filming at an event where many faces may appear in your video, you’ll need to position a general sign in a visible location for attendees to be made aware that filming is taking place.

10. Get approval. Even though the talent has signed a release form, seeking approval in writing from the business interviewed is essential.

11 The Power of Video for your Brand

Engaging with Video ProfessionalsIf you’ve decided your video production requires more experienced hands, engaging with video professionals is the way to go! Here are some top considerations when selecting a production partner:

1. Choose a production partner that’s nimble and agile. This ensures the video team can easily adapt to your brand’s unique requirements.

2. Your creative agency is not necessarily the best person to use. Is there someone more specialised in video production you can engage who won’t charge an arm and a leg?

3. Share your brand guidelines. Your production partner will need your brand assets in order to ensure the video adheres to your style guidelines.

4. Choose someone with a large network. It’s ideal to engage a videographer or production team who have access to a wide network of specialists, such as a producer, director, animator, editor, director of photography and even a drone operator. This gives you greater opportunities for your video production.

5. Choose a team that’s creative and cost-effective. You’ll want to engage a production team who can think outside the box to create an impressive and brand-keeping video, without spending a fortune.

6. Ensure your values align. It’s important to engage a team who share the same values as your brand, form a strong relationship with you and are committed to communicating effectively with your target audience. Find a team who really want to see your product or project succeed.

7. Your production partner essentially becomes part of your content team, so make sure you share your content strategy with them. This ensures you are all working towards a common goal.

12 The Power of Video for your Brand

BriefingBriefing is such an important step when engaging with your production partner. It’s your opportunity to provide the video team with your expectations and allows you to really set the tone of the production you want to create. Here are some things you’ll need to consider during the briefing phase of your video production:

1. Be a clear briefer. This means providing as much information as possible, including aspect (portrait or landscape), deadline in market and length. This can be done through filling out a briefing template. In your brief, be clear about what you want and what you don’t want. You may even like to provide examples of other videos whose style you’d like to mimic. It’s also important to be realistic with your expectations – do your expectations match your budget? You can’t expect premium results with a meagre budget.

2. Provide solution-based feedback. Voice your ideas and criticisms in a constructive way that will help the video professionals to understand your expectations. And be prepared to listen to suggestions from the professionals – after all, they’re the experts!

3. Provide the video agency with all the necessary assets to create your video without too much ‘back and forth’. Present them with all the relevant footage, captions, music and brand guidelines they’ll need to use.

13 The Power of Video for your Brand

EditingOnce the video has been briefed, footage has been captured and you’ve received a draft copy of your video, it’s editing time! During this stage, it’s important that you are as clear as possible, to ensure your requested edits can be effectively and efficiently implemented.

Make sure that you consolidate all your feedback. If multiple people are providing feedback on the draft video, ensure all the comments are consolidated into one document and sent to the editor. Sending too many revisions from different members of your team makes for an inefficient, costly, and potentially misaligned final product.

14 The Power of Video for your Brand

ProducerEngaging a video producer as part of your outsourced video team is highly recommended! The producer takes all the hard work out of your hands, and ensures the delivery of a high-quality video that meets your expectations from end-to-end. Your producer will be responsible for:

– Ensuring your needs and wants are met

– Coordinating the video crew and ensuring all OH&S requirements are met from end- to-end

– Sourcing and liaising with the best talent and crew, as well directing the talent and crew on filming day

– Managing all post-production activities such as the editing process

– Ensuring the end product is what you’re expecting

– Making the shoot day run as efficiently as possible

– Organising a call sheet and production schedule to ensure everything runs to time

Tip: If you attend the shoot day as a marketing manager, be sure to observe and listen to the direction being provided by the producer, to ensure everything is meeting your needs and expectations.

15 The Power of Video for your Brand

Other considerationsGraphics and Animations

Using graphics and animations is a great way to enhance your videos. Animations are great for explaining abstract or complex topics and graphics help to clearly communicate important numbers and statistics. Both can be used to tell a story and grab your viewers’ attention. They’re also easy to understand, making your video’s content easier for viewers to absorb.

Music selection

Your video is edited and looking great but don’t press the upload button just yet! Have you considered what music to feature? Good-quality and relevant music can be the difference between an okay video and a great one. It’s not just about adding good music, it’s about adding the right music for your video. Depending on what type of emotion you’re looking to evoke from your audience, you need to determine what genre best suits. We recommend choosing a track with a consistent rhythm. This will allow you to control the volume to highlight important parts in the video. Depending on your budget, you may consider sourcing royalty-free music, paying for existing music, or hiring a composer to create your unique sound.

Repurposing video content

So, you’ve captured a heap of footage and produced an effective video to post across your socials and website. But you’re not done yet! Repurposing your captured content is such an important part of your video strategy and can help you to deliver an array of content in an efficient way.

The best way to repurpose your video content is to plan properly and think about repurposing from the beginning, by setting in place a repurposing strategy. Establishing this strategy before you head out on a filming day allows you to effectively plan and film content for a variety of videos in a single day. Instead of leaving your shoot day with footage to make one or two videos, you’ll leave with a wealth of footage that can be sliced and diced in many different ways.

You can also create videos with content you already have, such as photographs taken at a launch or community event. Place these still images into a slideshow, add a voiceover or subtitles, overlay some music and voilà – a highly engaging piece of content that shouldn’t take more than 2 hours to create, and didn’t cost a cent!

Be like Spielberg, on a budget!So, there you have it! Whether you’re looking to create your own videos in-house, or don’t know where to start when it comes to engaging with video professionals, this guide will have you on the path to success!

With video being such an effective way to connect with, communicate with and convert customers, property businesses can’t afford to overlook it. Luckily, this guide has presented you with some cost-effective solutions that you can easily implement.

If this guide has helped you establish a video strategy or create some super useful video content, we’d love to know about it!

hello@propertyrepublic.com.au www.propertyrepublic.com.au

We’d love to hear from you

hello@snpm.com.au www.snpm.com.au

Capture. Create. Convert.