Video is one of the most powerful tools at a marketer’s disposal. According to Hubspot, 78% of people watch videos every week, and 55% of people watch videos every day. Google reports that six out of 10 would rather watch videos than television. You might already be embracing these trends, creating videos that explain your products and services. But you might be missing out on one of the greatest video tools of all: a brand film.

WHAT IS A BRAND FILM?

Brand films serve to visually and audibly tell a story about who you are. They’re a window into your company as a whole.

Brand films used to be called “corporate videos,” but naming evolved to better reflect the true nature of the product. Brand films should be engaging, educational and entertaining, telling the true story of your brand and why it’s different from others.

Content consumers prefer to see from your business

Whereas other videos show what you do or what your products are, brand films focus on addressing the who, how and why.

Professionally and almost imperceptibly, well-executed brand films address questions such as the following:

What makes your company tick?
What’s the story behind your logo?
How do you help others?
Who are the faces behind your brand?

This brand film we created for Sea Hawk Paints, for example, is inspirational. With passionate voiceovers from the owners and shots that showcase employees, you get a sense of who this company is, where they came from and what motivates them.

Sea Hawk Paints | Brand Film from Farmore on Vimeo.

BENEFITS OF A BRAND FILM

Why is it important for consumers to know who your brand is and the motivation for what you do? Here’s why your business needs a brand film.

1. To Create an Emotional Connection

The human brain processes images 60,000 times faster than text, making it easier for your audience to become immersed in what you’re communicating and generate an emotional connection much more quickly. A brand film is your mission statement in action. It shows what you represent much more than black-and-white words on a page.

Building an emotional connection makes your brand more than just a logo. It helps humanize your brand and gives it life. A study conducted by neuromarketing experts found ads that are purely emotional in nature perform twice as well as those with only rational content. Building an emotional connection with your customers and potential customers is vital to setting you up for success later in the sales journey.

2. To Stand out From the Crowd

Your products or services might be similar to others in your industry — and you’ve probably fine-tuned your pitches for what it is that makes them different. But no one else has the same brand story as you. No one.

Using a brand film to tell the story of your company — who you are, what motivates you, how your brand came to be — is so different from every other brand’s story that you can’t help but stand out from your competition. Just be genuine and let your story do the selling for you.

3. To Build Trust

A brand film allows your audience to see the genuine nature of your company. It also gives you the opportunity to build trust and a connection to your audience that you didn’t have before.

Communicating your brand values helps build trust in your brand, especially if your values resonate with your customers and potential customers. An Accenture study found that 63% of consumers globally prefer to buy goods and services from companies that stand for a shared purpose that reflects their personal values and beliefs, and are ditching those that don’t. Brand films can help increase your relatability with your consumers.

4. To Reach More Consumers

It’s no secret video is one of the top shared pieces of content on social media. According to Wordstream, social video gets shared 1200% more than text and images combined. If your video resonates with your audience, it’s likely they’ll feel comfortable sharing it with others. This gives you the opportunity to engage more potential customers with your message. This organic targeting means your content will naturally reach the right people if its message is effective.

5. To Be Found More Often

On a more technical and tactical level, brand films can help give your site’s optimization a boost — and allow you to be found more frequently by searchers. Search engine algorithms prioritize videos. In fact, they prioritize them so much that an Insivia study found a website is 53 times more likely to reach the front page of Google if it includes video.

Being found more on search engines equals more visitors to your site. CXL found that video can increase organic search traffic on a website by 157%.

THE RECIPE FOR A SUCCESSFUL BRAND FILM:

AIM FOR AUTHENTICITY

Your brand film will not be successful if it is — or comes across as — disingenuous. And in order for that authenticity to shine through, you need to be really confident in your brand.

Joffrey’s Coffee & Tea Company Brand Film from Farmore on Vimeo.

The goal of the film is to communicate your brand story and highlight who you really are. Communicating who you are cannot happen if you are unsure about either of those aspects. That’s why making sure you have a good grasp on your brand’s definition is paramount to starting the process of creating your brand film.

This brand film for Joffrey’s Coffee & Tea Company is true to their brand’s personality, showing what’s most important for them: quality coffee sourced responsibly, their partnerships with communities and their relationship with the military.

CHOOSE A COLLABORATOR

You’ll need to have a close working relationship with the agency or team that creates your brand film. Interview at least three potential partners before making a decision, and choose the one that most resonates with you. You need to have confidence in your collaborator before beginning this journey.

Take time during this process to look at past work these firms have created. Is their work professional? Does anything seem “off?” Do you feel as though they can accurately reflect your brand story?

Quality isn’t the only characteristic you should look for in a potential partner, however. You also need to feel at ease with their approach. You should feel that they are knowledgeable and will keep you informed on the process. Trust your gut with this decision.

PLAN DURING PRE-PRODUCTION

Once you’ve chosen the right collaborator to tell your brand story, you need to work together on a plan for telling your brand story. We cannot emphasize enough how important a plan is to creating a quality video. Pre-production — the work that happens in the planning phase — is vital for a successful execution.

International Diamond Center Brand Film from Farmore on Vimeo.

During pre-production is when you will define your key messaging. What do you want viewers to take away from your film? What emotions do you want them to feel? Establishing these specific takeaways will provide direction for the script and the execution.

Focusing on your mission, not only for your brand but also for the brand film, will allow you to craft a compelling story. Viewers are drawn to storytelling, and brand films are the best place to connect with your audience in this manner. This brand film we created for International Diamond Center, for example, tells a story of the founder’s hard work and perseverance that led to his success.

Additionally, pre-production will determine the desired length of your brand film. Remember that although there are multiple elements to showcase, keeping it simple is important for effective communication. Brand films should still be concise and communicate just one or two main points.

EXECUTE THE SHOOT

The planning of the brand film and the execution of the brand film are equally important. The shots that are taken, the actual footage captured, the actions or inactions highlighted — these are what help make up your brand film’s essence. This is the time to put your planning into action.

Welbilt Brand Film from Farmore on Vimeo.

Pre-production has already determined many of the shots you’ll need to capture during execution, but there is always the unexpected that happens during shoot times. Having a flexible team that can roll with any circumstance is important for creating a great brand film.

Execution doesn’t always mean something grand. The goal for this Welbilt video, for example, was to showcase their reputation and stature and highlight their far reach, and we achieved this by focusing on the smaller aspects of the company. These more focused shots tell the story of how giant Welbilt was built piece by piece, with precision and attention to detail.

MAKE NECESSARY EDITS

Editing is a necessary part of the brand film process, but it should be fairly straightforward with a proper plan and execution. Most of the hard work is behind you now, and editing just makes that hard work sparkle.

Volt® Lighting Brand Film from Farmore on Vimeo.

During the editing phase is where you showcase most of the emotion in your brand film. Choosing the right music to match the emotion and making sure voiceovers strike the right tone and cadence are so important to allowing the overall feel of the video to shine through.

Timing is everything during the editing phase, and that’s what your collaborating team will focus on. They must make sure every scene matches the music and voiceover — and is timed perfectly to not only communicate the desired message but also stay in tune with the rest of the video.

You want your brand video to feel seamless, not like a series of disjointed shots. In this video from Volt, you can see how smooth the transitions are, with every piece in this short film working together.

CREATE YOUR OWN UNIQUE BRAND FILM

At the end of the day, no two brand films will be the same because no two companies are the same. Your brand film might be playful or more professional. It might be inspirational or sensible. No matter who you are, brand films give you the opportunity to be unique and showcase what really makes your brand stand apart.

Brand films are so important to showcasing your company’s originality, and Farmore is here to help you do just that. Give us a call to get started on your brand film today.

THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO CREATING A BRAND FILM