7 Mistakes Photographers should Avoid on Promotional Videos

Being a photographer on today’s market is tough. Simply clicking best pictures isn’t enough to make you stand out from the crowd.

It’s about time you catch the trend train of video marketing. Recent reports suggest that professionals with a promotional video are more likely to get hired.

But, the point isn’t just to make a promotional video, it’s to make it right. There are various key elements you should look into and/or avoid if you’re making a promotional video as a photographer. Here are 7 things you should completely avoid if you want people to watch your promotional videos.

#1. Avoiding to Write the Video Concept (Making a video just to make a video)

This is generally the case with most first timers. They simply avoid writing a video concept. Don’t be that person who just makes the video for the sake of making a video.

You need to have a structure and concept for your video if you want to communicate effectively with your audience.

Remember, this is important:

You want your viewers to feel like you are talking with them, not at them.

Writing a video concept will help you figure out the manner in which you want to communicate with your audience, list down the aspects of your skill or business you want to focus on, and so on.

#2. Making your Video too long (Engage within 10 seconds)

Did you know that maximum people only watch first 5 – 10 seconds of the video? So, that’s your window. You must grasp your audience’s full attention within this time frame.

Do not waste time with lengthy introductions and mediocre photos you took when you were just starting out. Dazzle your audience anyway you can. Keep your content as engaging as possible, especially within the first 10 seconds.

Another thing to avoid is making your video too long. No one wants to see 100 different client photos you took, and no one cares about your struggles on the road to becoming a photographer. The point being, only include relevant contents. If you’re showing off your past works, make sure they are the absolute bests.

#3. Not Making the Video Appropriate for Target Audience (Tailor it for the platform)

Knowing who your target audience is and tailoring the video for the particular platform is highly important while making promotional videos.

While it might seem best to reach out for everyone, your target audience might entirely miss the point.

For instance,

If you’re a wedding photographer and want to extend your reach for similar jobs, then your promotional video had better include wedding photos, breathtaking steals of the bride, and so on. Showcasing your photography skills with the pictures of mountains and open fields might not be the best idea here.

Likewise, it’s equally important to tailor your video for the specific platform. If you’re making a short promotional video with the intent to make it viral on vines, you only have 6 seconds. Similarly, you need to choose a platform and set time limits associated with the channel.

#4. Not Including Closed Captions

Closed captions will help you get your message across, and your audience will have a better understanding of you and your skills. As a photographer, you might feel the need to awe your audience with the use of some fancy words. But, if you haven’t typed it on closed caption, your audience might never quite understand it.

Closed caption makes your video look professional and well groomed. Plus, this allows your audience to watch your video in places like offices, library, etc.

#5. Not Focusing on the Single Message

Focusing on a single message is a key to make sure your audience watches the full video. Do not overstuff the video with irrelevant contents. For instance, if you are looking to do more wedding photography projects, then include previous wedding project photos in your video rather than fashion shoots you did with some pretty models.

You should stick to the point and make your video around that specific content.

#6. Not Calling Out your Call to Action

The main reason most promotional videos flop is because viewers don’t know what to do at the end of the video. And if viewers simply watch your promotional video without acting on it, then the conversion rate is zero. Making all your hard work of making a promotional video, useless.

The whole purpose of your promotional video is to drive action. Whether you want your viewers to like your facebook page, get in touch with you or anything else, let your audience know what they are supposed to do at the end of the video.

#7. No Focus on Promoting

You have probably spent a lot of time in making a promotional video, but you need to understand that promoting your video is just as important.

Put it up on all your social channels, website, and do not hesitate to ask your family, friends, and relatives to share it with others. Higher your audience reach is, more fruitful the promotional video will turn out to be.

Conclusion

If you can remember all these tips while making your next promotional video, then your promotional video will be nothing short of best.

Now the real question is:

How are you going to make it? On which platform?

If you don’t have answers to these questions, we have got just the solution for you.

PICOVICO – An online video maker, is the web tool favored by most photographers. This online video maker allows you to turn your pictures into videos with 4 easy steps, where you can easily add photo captions and music to make your promotional videos more attractive.

Checkout PICOVICO for photographers to understand more about the video themes the platform has to offer and gain further information.