Did you know that YouTube is the world’s second most popular search engine? Simply put, if you want to learn how to unblock a drain or bake a cake are you going to scroll down reams of tightly packed text or watch a short video that shows you how to complete your mission in a few easy steps?

There’s no denying that right now video content is king and if you’re not on board you’re at risk of missing out on a ton of exposure and ultimately, business. Tweets with video clips are retweeted much much more than those without. Never rely on text alone, no matter how sparkling the copy may be. And video content has a positive effect on SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Research has shown that websites with video content are 53% more likely to end up on the first search engine results page.

To reiterate what I’ve stated in previous posts: brevity rules. If you can convey your message in short and snappy clips your viewers (and potential customers) are more likely to watch until the end and remember what they’ve heard and seen.

So, right now you can’t afford to dismiss the power of the visual. Granted, not everyone feels comfortable in front of the camera and most understandably baulk at the idea of putting themselves out there but with an experienced professional to put you at ease you could generate some wonderful content in as little time as half a day.

Of course, it should go without saying that photography done well is an incredibly effective way to position your brand. I say ‘you’ and your business because as the old adage states, `people buy from people’. Consumers want to see the face behind the product. If they like you, they’ll buy from you and with clever, intuitive digital marketing, they’ll continue to buy from you.

By marrying video and photography you can easily create a broad body of work ready to market your business on your website, on social media and YouTube. And it won’t take longer than half a day.

Working with a professional might initially seem daunting and pricey. Be rest assured that you will save time and money by bringing an expert on board. How? Taking your own photos (regardless of how good you think you are!) is a laborious process and if you don’t have the skills or the kit your snaps will sadly lack that professional touch. You could spend days setting up your shots, taking them, being disappointed in the result and then capitulating and bringing in a professional. You’ll lose hours of productive work time and money.

By budgeting for a half or full day shoot a decent return on investment is pretty much guaranteed (but don’t quote me on that!). Your snaps and video clips can be used multiple times in multiple ways and will pull together your business brand like nothing else will.

There’s so much potential. Here’s a flavour of what you could do:

By allocating 4 hours a month you could create:

• 3 x 1-2 minute videos - from these you can also get  3 x 15 secs clips per video  - that’s another 9 videos to use on your website, on YouTube, on social media etc. (Thats 12 pieces of content)
• You could also get 20 -30 still photos that can be utilised for blog posts, website articles, editorial pieces, social media, special offers and so much more. (That's another 30 pieces of content)
• Dialogue from the long form video could easily become podcast material or transcribed into a blog post. (That's another 2 pieces of content)
• You can take photos and video of the whole photo shoot giving you a bunch more content to post in the coming weeks. (That's another 8 pieces of content bringing your total to 50!)

If you want to see how much information you can convey to your audience in just a short clip then take a look at this:

If you feel confident enough and plan accordingly you could do this yourself or hire a professional to make it a stress free and dare I say it, a fun experience! The professional will help you brainstorm ideas for the content, sort out a venue, do all of the editing and present the final work in a consistent format.  They will put you at ease in front of the camera and advise you what to wear and how to perform.  All you need to do is turn up with a couple of outfits and appropriate props (bearing in mind your company colour palette).

Your professional will immediately help you to relax in front to the camera, and work with you to accurately and imaginatively reflect your business objectives, values and message. In advance of the shoot you’ll discuss particulars like target audience, your end goal (to sell a product, increase brand awareness etc) and budget. The final result will be a high impact body of work that can be utilised in any number of ways.  

People will always respond better to visuals than text so place yourself in the best possible position to benefit by creating responsive, versatile digital content that will convert to sales.

It’s as simple as that.

Want to know more - see here