Five Kinds of Talent to Cast in Your Next Business Film

If you’re thinking about creating a business film to showcase your company’s expertise, the first step is to determine your story. Want do you want to share about your company, and how? The next thing you’ll want to consider is who will tell that story. A voiceover paired with cinematic footage is a simple way to get your message across and can be very impactful. Sometimes, it’s even more impactful to put a face to your business with on-camera talent.

But who do you want that face to be? It really depends on your message, your desired tone and who your audience is. We’ve worked with all types of talent from real employees to actors. Here are five kinds of people to feature in your next business film and tips on when to use them.

No one knows your business better than the people who run it. Featuring a key stakeholder in your business film can be very effective because your customers are getting information from a place of authority. People value an expert opinion and your key stakeholders are the ultimate experts in your industry.

This is a particularly impactful route to take if your business has an endearing and interesting origin story. Did your founder build your business from nothing into an empire? Let them share that story. This is a great way to give your brand a personality and show off the passion behind what you do.

When we created this Kickstarter video for wearable tech company Seam Technic, we wanted to showcase the credibility of the company’s founder and lead designer. To do that, we followed him around his studio as he explained how he product was developed and what it is. After all, who knows better than him?

People do business with people. While a stakeholder is a great way to show authority on a topic, your potential customers are most likely not doing business with them directly; they’ll be doing business with your associates and team members. Whether your employees are building the tools you are providing to your customers or working with them to find their perfect home, it gives them peace of mind to get to know who is on the other side.

Showcasing the people who make up the company also creates a personality for your brand. Are your employees quirky techies or charismatic extroverts? Show off what makes them a great team.

The key message for this video we created for Lincoln Electric is that the people behind their company are makes them reliable. To get that message across in this short video, we filmed cinematic portraits of the employees who work in the manufacturing facility and laboratories at Lincoln Electric. They are the people responsible for ensuring every tool and product that is produced is perfect.

If the goal of your business film is to recruit new talent, let them meet the people they’ll be working alongside in a video that shows what it’s like to work at your company from the perspective of a current employee. We used this tactic in a video for Living Realty that you can watch here.

Studies show that more and more, people turn to their peers when making purchase decisions. In fact, a large percent of consumers seek out customer reviews and insights before making a purchase. This is in part because they feel that they can trust their peers. Leverage the trust-building power of your satisfied customers by featuring their testimonial in your business film.

The key to making these videos a success is authenticity. Make sure to find clients who have benefitted deeply from your product or service and avoiding scripting or altering their words.

Your customers aren’t the only external sources you can ask to speak on behalf of your business. Influencers are becoming more and more common in brands’ marketing strategies and it’s no surprise—these Instagrammers and YouTubers have hundreds of thousands of eyes on them already, giving your reach a boost right from the start.

Take the time and do your research to determine who is a good fit for your brand. Influencers all have their own brands and it’s crucial that their brand values, target demographic and areas of interest align with yours. There’s nothing worse than having influencer-driven appear as blatant paid promotion. They need to be just as excited about your product as you are.

In this example, the enthusiasm is definitely mutual. We asked our friend, competitive eater and YouTube influencer Furious Pete to take part in a wing eating competition for restaurant St. Louis. Can you say match made in heaven?

We love telling real stories about real people. However, sometimes the job calls for professionally trained performers. This is a great opportunity to create a character who embodies your target clientele and that they can relate to. This has been the tactic of many successful brands. Apple used Justin Long in their Mac vs PC ads for years because he embodies the cool, creative tech type Apple is looking to attract, especially when juxtaposed with the old-fashioned and neurotic personification of their competitor PC.

Whenever you’re using external talent, your shoot will often require more planning and creative work to produce. You’ll need to create a detailed character description and set aside time for casting and script writing. During production, you’ll need plenty of time with your talent on set to make sure you achieve your vision.

No matter what type of talent you end up working with, it’s always useful to have an experienced team working with you each step of the way. To get in touch about your video project, contact hello@signaturevideogroup.com today.

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