Page 62 - SKU-000506274_TEXT.indd

Chapter 3 Creating Informative Videos 41

extended product guide or demonstration, where you use the medium to provide a
closer look at what your product is, what it does, or how it’s made.

The key is to give potential customers everything they need to make a purchasing
decision, without the benefit of an actual hands-on demonstration. If you’re selling
aquarium pumps, show the pump in action in a typical aquarium. If you’re selling
drum sets, show a pro drummer putting your newest kit through its paces. If you’re
selling clothing, show people modeling your outfits. It’s the YouTube equivalent of a
direct mail catalog, with all the benefits that sound and moving pictures present.

I like how the big automakers use videos in this regard. They use the video medium
to deliver virtual test drives, interior tours, product overviews, and the like; it’s the
next best thing to going to the dealership to take a look and a drive, with the added
benefit of being able to watch it all over and over again on your computer screen.
As an example of how this works, check out the video test drive in Figure 3.1, from
the folks at BMW (www.youtube.com/user/bmw/).

Figure 3.1 An informational video test drive for a BMW M3 GTS.

Know, however, that you still need to take a soft sell approach. Any overview video
you produce has to take a subtle approach; you can’t whack viewers over the head
with your sales message. Just present the facts, show them what you’re selling, and
then let them take the next step.
In this respect, an informative video is more like an infomercial than it is a com-
mercial. It’s a soft sell, not a hard one; it’s the information you present that makes
the video useful and attracts viewers.

Producing an Informative Video

Information videos can be simple to produce or quite complex. It depends on the
type of video you’re creating.