A key component of our Total Traffic Conversion Way is to publish a steady stream of quality videos that promote your message and brand, as well as text and image blogs and posts.
This article provides:
- A strategy for creating consistently branded clips.
- Approaches using the gear and space that you likely already have.
- Some low-cost gear to add to improve the audio and video quality.
- Lighting and presentation secrets.
- Suggestions for creating a video studio.
- Greg Dixon’s adventures and video and why he can help you with your videos.
Your Influencer Mission
The most important thing is have clarity in what you want to achieve with your messaging.
What do you want to get out of this?
Your mission will inform the branding to develop for your videos.
We can help you with that too.
The Influencer Video Mission
In a nutshell, you want to use video to present you and your brand consistently and professionally.
Here are the main elements of videos that look like they are part of a brand or series:
- A branded splash screen.
- A short intro clip (optional)
- A nice branded background.
- Onscreen banner with your name and the topic.
- Good image quality.
- Good lighting.
- Good audio.
- Your confident presentation.
- Overlays as appropriate.
- Outro video (optional)
- Call to Action splash screen.
Most of these items can be created as a template and used for each video clip.
Using a Laptop
I have around $10,000 worth of camera and video gear that I have used for almost any kind of video you can think of, including travelling to do interviews.
Once in a while, I have an event that warrants the use of the gear.
A MacBook Pro is all I need to create a huge range of videos including personal influencer videos and interviews.
While my previous laptops had poor cameras and microphones, my new-generation MacBook Pro does not need any add-on accessories to be good.
I think there is a lot of AI built into the software running the hardware to adjust to various sounding and lighting challenges.
For example, Betty Withrow and I did I broadcast when I was on the deck of Mahoney and Sons Irish Pub on False Creek in Vancouver.
It was windy enough that we may have had trouble talking on the phone. Yet the audio in the StreamYard broadcast is quite good.
Watch On YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIw2I_oj3q0
Improving The Microphone and Camera
The simplest way to upgrade is to add something like a Logitech webcam with a camera and stereo microphones in a single compact unit.
Podcastor Microphones
Many podcasters use a stand-mounted microphone.
There are many worthy microphones on the market. Many will use the Shure SM 7B or it’s cousin the Shure MV7 USB microphone.
These microphones are known for their warmth and good rejection of side noise.
Much of the magic is having the microphone less than a foot from the mouth.
The best stores to find a good selection of microphones are larger music stores like The Guitar Center in the US and Long & McQuade in Canada.
And, of course, Amazon:-).
Rode has a wide range of microphones for all occasions, including shotgun mics that are great for larger studio setups.
See https://rode.com/en/microphones
Lighting Tips
Natural lighting provides the best lighting.
An outdoor location out of direct sunlight or a well-lit room where to face the brightest source of light can be all you need.
The best lighting options are inexpensive softboxes with the light bounced of walls or ceilings.
Greenscreen
StreamYard and programs like Zoom can create a good virtual background given a powerful enough video processor and good lighting.
A green screen or green-painted wall will improve the results.
The minimum practical green screen is five feet by eight feet. Amazon has lots of choices.
Graphic Design Elements
The most important graphical element is a Splash image that is used for the video before playing, displayed in social media posts, and the SEO image for blog posts.
If you are the brand, then a good professional photo of you can be included in most splash images.
I use PhotoShop to create these images. Canva and other tools are good. There is a wealth of excellent royalty-free images available on services like pixabay.com Getty Images.
And you may have photographers and graphic designers on staff or as freelancers.
Many new AI-driven applications can provide images.
The same is true for creating intro and outro videos.
I created the Total Traffic and Conversion intro with Viddyoze.
Other elements include on-screen banners, overlays, QR Codes and the like.
StreamYard For Broadcasting, Recording, and Production
Not only is StreamYard great for broadcasting to many channels such as LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and others, it also has many tools to record produced videos locally and remotely.
- Use virtual backgrounds and overlays.
- Put up banners live.
- Record each person’s video locally for high-quality HD clips that are not compromised by poor Internet connections.
- Play music live.
- Run presentations and video within StreamYard.
- Much much more.
Recording and Editing Process
I use StreamYard to record presentations remotely through StreamYard, allowing for coaching and multiple takes.
I then can download the video for editing and audio sweetening with Apple Final Cut Pro.
What used to take much time with equalization and compression is now down with two clicks for voice recordings.
I can also help you produce videos from footage you shoot or have in your archives.
You may already be sitting on a pot of video gold!
In Office or On-Location Setup
If you have a great office or presentation space, there are a few easy options.
SmartPhone Setup
- Newer Smartphone.
- Tripod
- Bluetooth lapel microphone set.
- Softbox lighting
Professional Video Camera Setup
- Professional Video Camera with XLR microphone inputs.
- Tripod.
- Boom stand with a shotgun microphone.
- Softbox lighting.
DSLR versus Mirrorless versus Video Camera considerations.
I bought a Panasonic GH4 because it is compact and has great photo and video capacity. I have taken thousands of photos and shot a lot of videos with this camera. Still, I tend to use my iPhone 13 over this camera in the field.
For a lot of technical reasons for another day, a decent professional video camera will get better results with less fuss for shooting studio or location videos.
Building A Full Studio
For some of you, the investment in creating a studio space for creating videos, broadcasting, and doing in-person interviews is the best thing for you.
Here are some basic tips:
- Assign a fairly large space that is somewhat isolated for sound.
- Create an appealing space.
- Have a large green-screen available.
- Invest in multiple softboxes to create even lighting. The brighter the better.
- Three midrange professional cameras are more useful than one large camera, especially for three-camera interview shoots.
- Each camera should have XLR input for professional-grade microphones.
- Learn from the film industry and use boom microphoness just out of frame for a natural sound.
- Identical cameras will have the same video characteristics, making editing much easier.
Best to visit a professional camera shop like BH Camerashttps://www.bhphotovideo.com for advice on the current gear.
Consider the cameras under $2,000 at https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/buy/Pro-Camcorders-Cameras/ci/1881
My Adventures In Video
I bought my first video camera to capture family stories and travel adventures.
Since then I have bought many cameras and have hundreds of hours of edited video and out in thousands of hours in production.
Types of video include Family Stories | Sizzle Reels | Training Videos | Keynote Presentation | Concerts | Business Events | Theatre Productions | Workshops | Interviews | Business Introductions | Personal Stories | Quirky Music Videos (with no budget) | Garden Tours | Art Tours | Video Ads, …
Check out some of the videos at https://www.youtube.com/@GregDixon2007
Let’s discuss your video projects.
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