Thursday, December 17, 2009

Website Video Length


A couple of weeks ago I showed up at a business to shoot a video for there website. They had e-mailed me the script and a link to a video they had scene and liked. The script was typed out 3 pages. I explained the video was to long. "Why?" they ask, and continued "It is full of good information the public will need." So let me explain in this post. A consumer will shut down between 2 and 3 minutes. Advertising online is a new medium but video advertising is not.

There is a reason a television commercials are 30 seconds or 1 minute and no it's not just because that's what TV stations want to sell. The fact is the consumer wants to know about your product or service, but the time they are willing to stay interested in it is limited. They are not interested in your industry history or your family life. Unless of course your name is Tiger.

So plan well and don't be redundant when you are working on a script make strong points about the benefit they will get from your product, why it is better than what they will get elsewhere and do it in under 3 minutes. I think I am getting close to my time limit with you so...Gotta go.

4 comments:

  1. Jim

    Excellent tips on shooting videos. I am in Sarasota Florida and just bought my first minidv canon FS21 camcorder. I did not choose the HD for a simple reason. I want to get some experience first, and I've read at many places that editing is a bear with HD. Plus I don't have the computer yet to handle HD editing. I will be shooting video in XP for best quality of course. I have seen many Canon FS21 video on YouTube and the colors and quality are more than acceptable. So with some experience, I will move up to HD soon. But I'm glad I found your blog. Great advice. All the best.

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  2. One thing I've noticed when people are using these smaller cameras is that they fail to use lighting. You can get a fairly inexpensive kit that will dramatically increase your quality. At minimum you should add light to a face (300w to 650w with soft box attachment such as a Chimera) when shooting an interview or kick up the exposure in a room by aiming a larger (1K) light into the ceiling when shooting B-roll.

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  3. Jim great tip here. I know that if I am watching a video, and they start rambling, I shut if off. I am learning a lot by visiting your blog. Thanks a bunch. All the best.

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