Telling Your Story with Video
Imagine explaining your crowdfunding project to a friend. What would you tell them? What questions would they ask?
Your crowdfunding video is your chance to tell people that story in a nutshell: who you are, what you want to make, and why.
Stats show that a campaign video is a key element for crowdfunding campaign success. It’s also the first thing your audience will see on your campaign page. An awesome crowdfunding video also has the potential to entertain, get more shares on social media and to convey the majority of your messaging in one place.
So, where to begin?
First, let’s think about BUDGET.
If you have the funds to put towards hiring professionals to create your video, do it! Let’s face it, people look to video to communicate these days and can be well worth the investment in working with a creative, scriptwriter, and or video professional that know exactly what they are doing! Pricing for their services can range from budget to more expensive, depending on how much help you need and how technical it is to produce.
On the other hand, if you want to go for a low cost option, there’s also great ways to create a video without professional help, by following expert tips and a camera/device like a recent iPhone or iPad.
Follow these simple tips to create your own:
1. Turn to others. Save time and get educated by looking at other successful crowdfunding campaigns and watch their videos for inspiration. People who have successfully raised a lot of money through crowdfunding typically have very good videos. Learn from their experience.
2. Video and audio quality are pretty important. Shooting high-quality video on an iPhone or Android device is possible due to improved quality, but make sure the phone is on a tripod (or other stabile device like a table etc) and the audio is clear.
- Lighting is also key. Look to record your video in a fairly bright room or outside to get the best results. Before you hit action, shoot a sample scene. Preview it on your desktop/laptop to make sure the lighting is correct and clear. Try to have either natural light or artificial, but not both.
- Consider buying a clip-on microphone. They plug into your phone rather than using the built-in audio and will reduce the hollow sound that occurs the further you get from your phone. Speak clearly, loudly, and have the phone at an appropriate distance to get good quality. Listen to a sample, and if it sounds too hollow or if the sound pops, record it again. Trial and error is key here.
- Shoot in landscape format, not vertical to ensure your video fits nicely in your video player.
3. Don’t try to wing it. Unless you are a professional public speaker, don’t ad lib. Write a script and make sure it hits all the key points of your crowdfunding campaign. Like a journalist writing a news story, include the who, what, when, where and why of your campaign. Read it out loud and revise it until it is perfect. Then, practice. You should sound natural when you shoot the final product. Here’s a suggested format:
- About You
- Your Project’s Story
- Rewards
- Possible Scenarios
- Final Call-To-Action
4. Mention only a few rewards. People don’t want to hear a lot of details about every reward being offered. Instead, highlight only two or three of your most exciting rewards. You want to get the viewer excited about what you are giving away, because enthusiasm is contagious and drives pledging. For the remaining rewards, just include a simple reminder telling the viewer that there are more rewards to check out on your project page.
5. Don’t forget ‘the ask.’ Every successful salesperson in the world will tell you that if you do not ask for a sale, you will not get it. In your video be sure to ask for a donation and for help sharing the crowdfunding project to the viewer’s contacts and social-media networks. “The ask” should be clear, carefully worded and create a sense of urgency and action. Tell people specifically what to do and don’t leave it up to them to figure it out on their own. But make sure it is sincere, as this authentic message can turn a viewer into a donor and marketing machine.
6. Watch the time and end strongly! The video should be short, exciting, creative and get the viewer fired up and wanting to read more about what you are offering. Ideally, the video should be three minutes long or less (although really great videos will hold the audience’s attention even if longer).
Don’t forget that with a crowdfunding campaign, you have an entire page online to write out more details and to show infographics, photos, and additional media. People have busy lives and short attention spans. Don’t lose your viewers before getting to the most important part — asking for pledges and help spreading the word about your crowdfunding campaign.
If you’d like to learn more about how to build a great crowdfunding campaign, visit our resources pages or send us a hello and our campaign pilots and experts will be happy to help.
