Picking a Topic For Your Next Video
Real-life video production and marketing advise to help you in your video business!
Determining your next video venture is a complex subject.
Should you pick a topic that’s hot right now, like the reality-based series’ proliferating the cable and network channels?
Should you try replicating a successful video that’s already on the market, like the now famous “Road Construction Ahead” childrens video series?
Or should you delve into some topic no one else is touching?
You’ll have to do your homework to answer these questions.
- Pick a topic you know or understand.
- Utilize some common sense, ie. Is there a need for the video?
- Look at similar products that are already on the market.
- Model your topic after successful programs already making money.
So once you’ve determined a topic, think about your market. Who’s going to be your audience for the program?
If you feel your video should be on television to reach the proper audience then you’re going to need a higher end production, which means more money.
But if you determine that you can reach your audience by means other than television then why not produce your video at a quarter of the cost and market it over the internet and thru special interest catalogues.
A word of caution though, if you go really cheap and don’t get your message across to the end viewer, they’re not going to be happy and you’ve wasted your money and potentially ruined your reputation.
Put forward your best effort on every project because it represents you and your company
So figure out how much money you have to spend on the program, then determine if you can convey the message for the allotted budget. The more money you spend making the video, the more videos you have to sell before seeing a profit. Sometimes the best videos are the simplest videos.
As an example, let’s look at the formula Video Solutions followed to produce its first “how-to” video.
My partner, Don Schnure, and I took an everyday subject, improved upon existing information and repackaged it into a much more succinct final product: The Tie Video!
We get a lot of chuckles when people hear about the video, but after we show them how much money we’ve made, the laughing stops cold!
The Tie Video is a necessary product because when you go looking for instructions on how to knot a necktie all you find are poorly drawn diagrams that are difficult to decipher. You can’t tell which end of the tie to wrap around where.
It becomes rather convoluted and confusing. But by using the unique capabilities of video and graphics, we were able to put together a product that is unmatched in the marketplace.
After spending several weeks researching and writing the script, we video taped our “expert” describing how to tie the five most popular knot styles, using language that actually makes sense.
Then we used professional graphics to illustrate the same steps reinforcing it with voiced over instructions to really drive home the instructions.
Even with all this, the final cost was still very low. We actually put it together for less than a thousand dollars and made our money back in less than six months.
“The Tie Video” is listed on Amazon.com, You can view a sample of the video at www.thetievideo.com.
Marketing your video is an entirely different topic that we’ll cover down the road, but “The Tie Video” is a perfect example of how you might be able to take an every day topic and bankroll it into a steady revenue stream.