The luxury of time is not with us. Consumers just don’t have the time or attention span to ponder over the content. Oftentimes, if you want them to feel an emotion or think a thought, you got to create a world for them in which their life narratives do not stop- but continue on in your brand’s story. Think of the movie “Inception”: when they plant a dream, it is literally creating another dimension of possibility in the dreamer’s mind. One primary avenue is through excellently crafted videos.

Videos are not static, they are direction-setting, and tone-determining- powerful tools to shape consumers’ perceptions of your brand. It is said that consumers are often deeply attracted to your brand if they feel its personality resound with theirs or consists of values they aspire towards. Let’s face it, when it comes down to words, a deeply moving prose or poetry may not move a consumer as it should- simply because he or she are at a loss to its meaning. However, a short video production for instance does not merely impacts video critics; the intended emotions and mental impressions- to varying degrees- get to all the audience.

Now that we are convicted about the power of videos, what are the elements all effective videos share in common?

 

1. They all have a focused campaign objective.

If you have too many targets, you end up not scoring the goal. An effective video has a purpose- either to tell the brand story, introduce new products, appeal to people to come for an exhibition etc. The point is, what do you want your video production to achieve?

 

2. They all have a strong consistent take-home message.

For instance, the Paco Rabane (2017) perfume brand makes videos consistent with this one message: the brand makes you faint for delight. The singular idea is that its perfume’s allure always wins out over strong sexual attraction.  Thus, the aim is to invite viewers into their brand story.

 

3. They utilise a differentiated messaging in order to attract a larger consumer base.

The Tecnogas brand produced a video (2018) that did not hard sell their product- an oven- but instead weaved it into a heartwarming narrative that celebrated the ups and downs of a couple’s relationship. Tecnogas tried to differentiate its brand from others by portraying itself as an affectionate partner in one’s life journey and memories- through the settings and visuals of the video execution.

 

4. They are clear about the habits and desires of their target audiences.

Tai Hing Restaurant Hong Kong focuses on cultivating a more glamorous outlook to draw in the younger generation That is why, upon having their milk tea drink added in to the beverage list on Dragon-Air, they wanted to use this moment to respin their brand as exciting and sensational to the young. Thus, the kind of content marketing in the Tai Hing Canned (2014) milk tea’s ad combined the sense of trepidation from a Mafia boss and his new weapon-invention to tie a sense of adventure with its branding.

 

5. Lastly, the power of these videos lies in each step of executing the video.

This means the conceptualisation and direction, the selection of the cast, the fashion wardrobe, the scriptwriting- all the way to the discussion on which scenes should remain or be left out! Just consider the Tecnogas video: don’t you find the cast wearing a simpler style when they were younger (earlier scenes) versus when they were older (later scenes)? Clothing can be visual symbols of either innocence or innocence lost.

 

The good news is, you can work with a video production house like Hamilton and Sherwind in order to better quality for your video content creation, discuss the different video directions with us as your branding agency, and fit all these within a good timeline! Contact us for a free consultation today.