I was having a conversation with a friend the other day, and we were talking about what makes a video great, and what makes it terrible.
He said, "The best content tells the best story." And I had to wholeheartedly disagree. I used to believe that, and while I still think stories offer the most impactful content, I no longer think they're the most valuable.
When it comes to our jobs, business owners aren't looking for a great story, they're just looking for something that gets them more people through the door. Oftentimes though, as filmmakers, we just want to produce something beautiful, that will stir up emotions, and look great.
But the big problem with that content is that it usually gets a few hundred views and zero calls booked.
At the same exact time that this is happening, some random guy shoots a shaky, awfully lit video, it hits a million views, and he's able to swim in a pool of gold coins. How could this possibly be?
I spent years in my friend's boat, obsessing over the details, making sure the emotional part of the story was there, and mulling over each piece of content for weeks on end. And while it was certainly an important part of my journey, it made me wonder why businesses weren't jumping all over it. I was making great videos, what more could they want?
As I came to find out after a few dozen talks with local business owners, they want a tool, not a video. Long winded, beautiful stories certainly have their place in a content funnel, but there are so many other things that need to come before that. Long, storied videos are a great way to build customer advocacy, but if you don't already have a ton of customers who are aware / intersted in your brand, the long video means jack...
Most video creators start their careers wanting to make art, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. But if you're a business owner spending your hard earned money on video marketing, art is not the goal. Sales are.
So what is the secret ingredient that actually makes content valuable? It's one thing. Literally just one.
Does the audience get something out of it?
That's it. That's the whole secret.
Value for your followers can come in a ton of different forms:
Now think about the last 10 pieces of content that you actually watched while you were on social media. I'd be willing to bet that most of them were shot on a phone, without a huge crew of lighting technicians or producers or writers.
High quality content is not inherently valuable. In fact, there is no content is inherently valuable. The only person who can decide if your content is valuable is the person who watched it.
If someone finds your video and gets value from it, they trust you, they follow you, and they're much more likely to eventually buy from you, or at least refer someone who does.
That's the entire journey. And it only starts if the content delivers something worth watching.
If you're curious about what better content might look like for your business, shoot us an email and we'll be in touch. We've helped 7 figure businesses transform their lead generation tactics with a single shoot.