After nearly a year of planning, I have joined the world of video marketing. The journey from the time I decided to create videos to the time when they went up on YouTube was much longer and far more involved than I had anticipated.

Here is what I learned along the way. My next blog post will provide tips for how to promote your videos once you get them made and posted so people will actually watch them. After all, that’s the point of going to all that trouble.

 Reflections on Creating My First Marketing Videos

• First, remember you don’t have to do it alone. If you, like me, believe your videos will be more effective with the assistance of video professionals, seek them out.

• Determine what topics your viewing audience wants to know about. My initial plan was to do videos that addressed privacy issues on Facebook, as many people who come to classes I teach on Facebook are concerned about this. However, since most of my clients actually want help with LinkedIn, I chose to create my first set of videos ways to get their LinkedIn profile to represent them well.

• Once you have chosen your overall topic, hone it down. Each video should be between one and three minutes, depending on the topic. I chose to provide tips on how to optimize a LinkedIn profile photo and headline, and the summary and experience sections. That was four videos total, each about three minutes long.

• Interview videographers to find the best fit for you. Starting in the spring of 2014, I met with several videographers to find out their pricing, their mode of shooting the videos, and to see if I clicked with them. I selected Alex Kiziah of Leveraged Lifestyle Marketing whom I met through one of my networking groups. I chose him because the price was right, I liked his style, and he offered to help me on a long-term basis with using the videos to improve the SEO (search engine optimization) for my company.

• Create a budget your time and your funds and set a target completion date. Originally I had hoped to create these videos in September, but due to other financial commitments, I ended up waiting until mid-December of 2014 to create them under the direction of Alex and his colleague Kyler Knutson. It was a good time of the year for me because I wasn’t as busy with client appointments or networking meetings. It also worked well for Alex and Kyler.

• Ask others who have done video marketing for suggestions. I picked the collective brains of several networking groups I attend regularly to get ideas for how to go about creating the scripts for the videos and how to handle everything else associated with this project. I got a lot of very helpful and practical advice. Of course, I also read blog posts and articles.

• Rehearse, a lot. You want to be able speak comfortably to the camera during the actual filming with minimal reliance on notes. Once you see yourself on camera looking down at your notes, you will know this is an essential step. Ask your videographer for suggestions to improve your script along the way.

• Dress for success. This will depend on what you’re speaking about, but standard business attire is usually a safe bet unless you are teaching aerobics or cooking. Ask your videographer for recommendations on what to wear.

• Relax and enjoy. I was pleasantly surprised that the actual filming experience went so smoothly. I even had some fun. Alex and Kyler had a lot to do with my positive experience.

Check out my four videos on LinkedIn on my company’s YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2s7fzNl0OaGg1jB4lmse1g

And while you are at it, feel free to subscribe to my channel by clicking on the link.

How About You?

What has been your experience with video marketing? What would you do differently the next time? What went especially well?

About Joyce

Joyce Feustel helps people, especially those age 50 and up, to become more effective using social media, especially Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Twitter. She works with business owners, nonprofit organizations, retired people, consultants, and many others. Find her at www.boomerssocialmediatutor.com.