Businesses can use video for a wide range of purposes. They can be tools for internal communication. They can be display ads that people encounter when watching television or before a YouTube video. Alternatively, organizations can utilize videos as content for blog posts or newsletters. They're also an effective way to announce company updates or new initiatives.
Videos are a powerful and effective medium because they capture people's attention. But they also allow an opportunity to tell a story. Video storytelling is one of the best ways people can communicate their brand's values, their aesthetic, and the audience they are trying to draw in. In this article we will discuss the basics of video storytelling, why it's so powerful, and how your business can use it to improve your bottom line.
What Is Video Storytelling? The Basics
Essentially, video storytelling is exactly what it sounds like: a means of delivering a narrative using video as the medium. Video storytelling is a particularly powerful technique for a business that wants to attract a larger audience of potential customers and be clear about who they are and what they do.
Video storytelling utilizes discernible through lines or accounts that grab people's attention and hold it from start to finish. Stories have a beginning, middle, and end, so they're effective at ensuring people don't tune out while they watch. Because video stories have a visual element, as well as an audio one (usually), it's a multifaceted means by which an organization can say something about who they are or what they're doing.
When viewers watch each video story that a company creates, they walk away with a better understanding of whatever message is being delivered in the story as well as a sense of the company's general aesthetic and who they appeal to.
How Companies Can Use Video Storytelling
Video storytelling is a tool that can be used in a range of ways in one business, from the onboarding experience you provide to new employees to the announcement you make about a big company development.
Here are some parts of your business that are particularly well-suited for using video storytelling, and the type of videos they may want to produce:
- Customer Support: How-to videos
- Social Media / Inbound Marketing: Behind-the-scenes organization videos
- Executive Team: Company mission and values videos
- Outbound Marketing or Advertising: Video ads that convey your brand
- Human Resources: New employee orientation and onboarding videos
When it comes to hosting video for enterprise, there is no better platform than Viostream. With branded galleries and advanced security features, you can present your videos in a way that is unique to your business, while making sure the videos can only be viewed by your intended audiece. To experience the full range of Viostream's features for businesses, start your free trial today.
How to Use Video Storytelling in Your Organization's Videos
If you want to use video storytelling to make better videos at your organization, here are some tips for getting started.
Identify Your Audience
Before you even write the story of your video, develop a clear picture who you are talking to and who you want to draw in. The intended audience will shape many aspects of what you create, including the language you use, what kinds of images to incorporate, and what you want the end message to be. You can't create a good video story without understanding who the video is talking to.
Hone in on Your Hero's Journey
Think about the overarching narrative you want your video to deliver, then think of a beginning, middle, and end of the story.
The best video stories introduce a hero or main character who wants to accomplish a task. In most case, the hero is a stand-in for the viewer themselves. The middle shows roadblocks or challenges they may encounter on their way to achieving their goal. In the end, the hero overcomes their difficulties and triumphantly reaches their goal----usually with the help of your product or service.
Following a hero story is a reliable way to create a story that is engaging and easy to understand.
Related Reading: How to Write a Video Script
Consider Design and Visual Factors
Think about your company's aesthetic and what aesthetic you want your video to have. Choose design elements that will speak to your intended audience, and discuss these elements with your videographer, editor, and designer. Your video's aesthetic will add more to the story than its plot and language, so it should be carefully considered when you're using video storytelling.
Related Reading: Video Storytelling Techniques
Appeal to Emotion
The most moving stories appeal to people's emotion. Make sure there's an emotional element to your video storytelling. Tell the story of a moving victory or a challenging loss. When people encounter an emotional story, they experience empathy. This in turn creates a feeling of connection with your company, encourages loyalty, and may ultimately convince them to buy. Emotion can be incorporated in the tale you use in your video, and it can also be heightened by elements like stunning mages or different types of music.
Related Reading: 5 Examples of Engaging Internal Corporate Videos
How Viostream Can Help With Your Video Storytelling
Visual storytelling is a powerful tool for communication that can help shape and grow your brand. If you want to harness the power of video storytelling to help your business thrive, consider using Viostream.
Viostream is a leading video platform for enterprises and government organizations. Viostream offers a place to publish all your organization's narrative videos, as well as the tools to promote them and make sure they're getting seen by the right audience. Contact our customer support team to see how the platform can help your business better utilize video to refine your brand and bring in a new audience of customers and clients.
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