Two Mistakes to Avoid in B2B Video Marketing
The truth is a lot of B2B marketing videos are ineffective. They can come across as predictable pieces of digital content that really don’t have their desired effect: driving growth for the company. The music is generic, the imagery is polished to a fault, and the content itself is generally boiled down to platitudes that do no good. The viewer is left unmoved and only slightly more informed than before, creating a missed opportunity for the company.
We’ve listed out some reasons that these videos fall short of their full potential:
The hyper-focus on technical setup works against the outcome. Often companies allocate a lot of resources to hiring production teams whose primary role is making the images as pretty/technically correct as possible. The overwhelming majority of dollars, in turn, is spent getting expensive equipment and people (lights, cameras, tripods, travel, etc.) on location to make sure the image quality is of cinematic quality (which is completely unnecessary for digital marketing) As a result key things are overlooked:
The interviewee is not natural or relaxed. This mistake is made in nearly every marketing video: the person doesn’t feel or look comfortable on camera (or an amateur actor does poorly delivered voice over). Admittedly, this is a really difficult thing to get right, and it requires talented filmmaking to pull this off. But when companies spend their resources focused on the technical aspects of a shoot and put big cameras and big lights in front of an unsuspecting interviewee, they are not giving that person much of a chance to be themselves, which is essential to a good video.
The imagery is predictable. Since most of the focus again is on the technical aspects of the shoot, there is very little effort spent imagining creative image/video assets that could be used to boost the story. The imagery is rarely customized to the interviewee’s personality and story. This means, the same generic b-roll of offices, products and people is used time and time again. Standing out from competitors is impossible when imagery is so predictable.
Music, editing, rhythm all become after thoughts (which should really be at the forefront of decision making). With all of the attention on technical aspects, a lot of customization becomes lost in post-production. Generally speaking, post-production is much slower with big, expensive cameras (you have to process the footage, color-correct the footage, balance levels, etc.). This means a lot of the time editing done by your team or by outsourced teams is spent just getting the footage to look good. There is little room for collaboration on various types of musical, rhythmic, and thematic elements. Traditional production teams have slow turnaround times and very little capacity to make various versions of the video to find the most effective way to package the story.
Traditional B2B video companies are production coordinators not storytellers. The reality is that the overwhelming majority of people making B2B corporate videos didn’t work in storytelling roles for Netflix, Discovery or National Geographic (except for Elemmir’s filmmakers, of course). Their work hasn't been shown in nearly every major film festival in the world (again, except for Elemmir’s filmmakers). So when companies hire a person internally or they outsource to a traditional production company, they are not paying them to be a storyteller. Instead, they are paying for production coordinators whose primary function is to make the image look correct (for why that is bad read item #1 above). Here’s some of the things that happen working with production coordinators instead of true storytellers:
The story arc is decided by non-storytellers. From the onset of discussing a new video, when working with production coordinators, their concern will be gear and logistics, not telling a good story (which is really hard and requires years of experience). As a result, they often stumble their way through building the narrative and rely on bad filmmaking techniques as a crutch.
The interview is conducted in a way that drastically limits the potential of the video. An interview is a powerful opportunity to get meaningful content to drive a business forward. In an interview, a human being, often a client or employee, has made themselves available to speak to the world about a company. That is a big opportunity! And unfortunately, when companies put a production coordinator in front of the interviewees, the conversation will feel forced and flat. If they work with storytellers who do the same kind of work at the highest levels (Netflix, Discovery, etc.), though, the person comes to life on screen.
The intangible ROI of the videos is lost entirely because the story does not speak to your wide ranging partners/network. When videos do not take the shape of tried and true good stories that touch on meaningful, universal themes, the potential value of the video is lost. Investors, new hires, new partners, and others should all feel motivated and inspired by a company’s videos content. When working with production coordinators, instead of true storytellers, this doesn’t happen.
Ultimately, every time a viewer watches videos like the ones described above, it is a missed opportunity for the company. These videos should reflect the fascinating nature of the work the business is doing. Afterall, it is not an exaggeration to say that B2B businesses are fundamental to modern society. They support and shape nearly every aspect of life. Take some of Elemmir’s clients as examples: Elemmir’s clients help nurses, local motorcycle dealers, mental health facilities, realtors, title agents, sports teams, coaches, etc. They help prevent injury in the workplace, and they are shaping the future and what it means to build community digitally. They are truly fascinating entities that are changing the way industries operate. So why would the videos not reflect this immense impact? Why not make something that connects to the viewer? Why not show something that actually does justice to the real value of the product?
