Video and Web

If your business was a movie… what would you put in the trailer? A studio movie is a multi-million dollar project, sometimes a billion-dollar project. With that amount of money on the line, how the film is sold to the public is more important than the production, probably more so.

The sales process starts long before the cameras are rolling. A significant factor in getting people interested in a film is who is involved. Who are the actors? Who’s directing? What has the writer done before? Even the budget can help pull people in – it’s difficult to resist going to see ‘the most expensive movie of all time’.

Once those decisions have been made, the movie goes into production. It might turn out to be great; it might turn out not so good. Whatever the reviews or the artistic merits, the movie is like any business project, it exists to make money for those involved.

Selling the movie.

A big part of selling the film is the movie’s trailer. It’s a two-minute advert designed to make you want to go and see the full movie. When you think about the millions of dollars at stake, it becomes apparent that this is a vital piece of film to get right. The movie might be brilliant, but if the trailer sucks people may stay away. Going to the cinema is an investment of time & money, people live busy lives, so they are choosy about how they spend their leisure time.

What do the professionals do?

So what do filmmakers put in their trailers? There are no hard and fast rules, but an excellent place to start is with the best bits. You might not want to give too much of the plot away, but that doesn’t mean that you should keep the good stuff back. How many comedy films have you been to see where you have already seen the best jokes in the trailer? It might spoil the movie a bit for you, but the studio has your ticket money – the trailer has done its job and made a sale.

It’s important not to put too much in the trailer. It’s not a mini version of the film, just something to get people excited. One approach is to use clips mainly from the first half of the film. This sets up the premise, to find out how it resolves then people will have to go and watch the film.

Finally, make sure to put the talent on the screen. If you have paid for A-list actors or a top director, then they will bring their fanbase. An actor’s best scene doing the thing they are known for, and a ‘Famous Director presents..’ title screen will get those in the know interested.

What’s in your movie?

So, back to the question at hand. If your business was a movie, what would you put in the trailer?

Following the principles used by the movie studios, you should make sure that you use your best bits. There is no need to be shy about the things that your company has accomplished, how great your products are, or the quality of your service.

Set up your premise. You don’t have time to tell the story of your business, so why not show the problems your company solves. Remember, you don’t need to show how the issues are resolved, just as long as there is a happy ending.

Promote the stars of your business.

Put your talent on screen. If you have experienced and qualified staff, you can show this in a video. If your company has a track record of ‘hits’ in your industry; perhaps innovation in products, or introduction of groundbreaking services; then you should let people know so they can make that association and see that you have some history.

One more thing, from time to time studios put comments from excited audience members who have just watched the film, into the trailer.

These snippets are usually filmed in the foyer after a preview screening, it’s a tactic used when the movie hasn’t got established stars and needs some positive word of mouth.

Your business can do the same with comments from your happy customers. Video testimonials are powerful because they are personal.

Take your trailer to the audience.

Once you have your business trailer, you don’t have a captive audience sitting down ready to watch a similar product to show it to.; but you can use many of the same techniques the studios use.

You can post your trailer on Social Media, on your website, send links via email to existing customers. You can show it on screens in your premises where you have some footfall. If you have the budget, you can even buy some airtime on TV and in the cinema.

If you don’t have that budget you have one advantage the movie studio doesn’t have. A film will have a release date and then has a limited time to make back those millions of dollars. Your business will hopefully have longer to make some money, and a trailer does cost a lot less to create than a feature film. So, If your business was a movie… what would you put in the trailer?

Further Reading:

Always video your speeches and presentations.