5 Types of Corporate Video

We live in a world where video is critical to corporate and brand success. In fact, a recent survey shows that nearly eight out of every ten users have purchased a piece of software or app after having watched the brand’s video (Wyzowl, 2018).  The same study show that 96% of consumers turn to video to learn more about a particular company, product, or service.  And in a world where more consumers watch video than ever before (online video consumption has doubled since 2018), having some form of video to represent your organization and brand is more critical today than it was yesterday.

But in a sea of options, what style of video makes the most sense for you?  Our team at NewsWatch, a cable television show on AMC, and their production house, NWT Media Group came up with five possible videos to consider when creating a video about your organization, brand, or service.  Let’s dive into them.

Company Profile – “About Us”

A company profile video can best be described as an “About Us” video. These videos are generic in nature and purpose. They are meant to introduce a brand or organization to a select audience and then reveal the value of that organization at a 1,000 foot level. Most “About Us” videos involve three to four interview subjects that represent the organization or brand. They begin with a clear elevator pitch on what the organization or brand is, then dive into the value proposition, and follow up with a call to action.  The call to action can be for more information, a purchasing decision, investment options, or website traffic.  They often require on-site filming and approximately one to two days with a film crew. If your organization or brand doesn’t have any video content yet, this is a fantastic first dip into the world of branded video.

Testimonial

A testimonial video can be an internal or external tool used to showcase your organization or brand value. Internally, it allows employees to boast about the value of working at your organization. Externally, it allows potential customers to hear directly from past customers about their experience with your offering. It can be used for social media, television advertising, pre/mid/post-roll on streaming services, or on website recruitment channels.  Testimonials are powerful options when you have enough customers or employees interested in speaking on your behalf. Most often, organizations will incentivize customers to be a part of their testimonial video by offering their services at a discount or free rate for a period of time. Testimonial videos can involve a bit more work with a production team, including several days in multiple locations of filming. They are often a bit more of an investment, but can be incredibly powerful when done professionally.

Social Media

Social media videos are a massively growing segment of branded video content. They are short, emotional, and geared towards the possibility of viral sharing. They often require musical licenses, are filmed in a vertical format (9:16 aspect ratio vs 16:9 for television), and can involve influencers where budget allows.  The sole purpose of a properly filmed and produced social media video is to become shareable. Social media videos often require creative thinking, group brainstorming, competitive research, and up-to-the-minute trend watching. When done properly, a social media video can be a game changer for an organization, but their shelf-life is short.

Instructional

Instructional videos are one of the more over-looked branded video options, but they are often the most replicated and produced. Instructional videos are used for, well, instructing users on how to use a software/service/product. They can be internal-focused for complicated tasks; they can be external-focused for frequently asked questions; they can even be promotional in nature – think Amazon.com videos that explain how a product works while promoting the values and differentiating factors. Instructional videos often involve one spokesperson with overlaying b-roll. But they can be more complicated in nature dependent on the offering.  Instructional videos can range from 1-4 days of filming with 1 person to multiple actors and locations.

Recruitment

A recruitment video allows your organization to find and hire the best possible talent using the words of your employees and customers. Combining internal and external spokespersons on the value of working at your organization and the value of your offering to the public is a powerful hiring tool. It allows you to have a consistent and accurate message that has a medium-to-long shelf life.  It can be used as a filter for potential hires and as an incentive for an initial conversation.  Recruitment videos will require on-site filming in one or multiple locations, will require your staff be present on filming days, and will require several people at various levels of leadership to speak on camera. But when produced well, this can be the most valuable tool in your arsenal for hiring top talent. Because we all know the power of a quality employee far outweighs the single cost of producing a video.

While these five videos are some of the most common corporate videos out there, there are still tons of examples left off the list. From animation videos explaining an industry, to 3D pitch videos, the world of video production is endless and ever growing. When finding an organization to produce your corporate videos, remember you get what you put in. Work with a reputable organization, not the one that simply offers the lowest contract value. A video production organization like NWT Media Group with years of experience, hundreds of happy clients, and a reel of example videos to choose from, will make the experience and final product worth the investment.