Sharing on Video Just Isn’t For Me… Or Is It?

Over the past week, on four different occasions with four different prospective clients, we’ve heard the same thing. Two men, two women, four completely different businesses. They called us reaching out for help in their content marketing, and in each instance, they shared the following, almost word for word… “I know that I should get in front of a camera, shoot some video, and tell our story. I just don’t want to. It’s so uncomfortable… and it’s just not me.”

Friends, that’s the point. It IS you!

When you step in front of the camera and start to talk about the things you’re passionate about and the ways you can help impact the lives of your customers and clients, people pay attention. When you start to share your expertise and tips that will make their lives better, they listen. When you begin to open up about what gets you excited about your work, and even some of the challenges you face, they connect. As Simon Sinek shares in his book Start With Why, people buy WHY you do what you do, and video is a fantastic tool for sharing your why with your audience.

So what’s holding you back? Here are three barriers to creating video that clients are sharing with us and some simple ways to change your mindset…

It’s not going to be perfect. You’re right; it might not be. Let it go. If there’s one gift that came from this pandemic, it’s this. Collectively, we’ve traded pretty, perfect, and polished for genuine and authentic. Every day we’re connecting with each other on video through Zoom, Teams, and Meet, and through that process, we’ve gotten used to seeing each other through a different lens. We’ve gotten real and honest with each other and traded pretentious for something a little more simple. It’s been a win for all of us, and has opened the door to sharing on a more intimate level.

The best part of all of this? You have a video camera in your pocket – there’s no more technology barrier for you to use as an excuse. Grab your phone and a tripod if you’re so inclined, choose a cool background, hit record, and go!

I don’t know what to say. Yes, actually, you do. As an expert in whatever it is you do, you have valuable insights to share. What’s holding you back isn’t that you have nothing to share – you just aren’t asking the right questions to help yourself brainstorm. Here are ten questions we would recommend as a launchpad:

1. What are the most common challenges I hear from clients/customers?
2. What are 5-10 valuable tips that I could share with a client or customer?
3. What challenges/wins have I personally experienced that others would find value in?
4. How did I get my start in this field, or how did we launch our company?
5. What are 3-5 ways that I add value and help clients/customers every day?
6. What’s a topic that I am an expert in that I could share about?
7. What are the features/benefits of a specific product/service we offer?
8. What are 3-5 things I wish I knew earlier in my career or our business growth?
9. What are the most valuable things I’ve learned in the past year?
10. What am I the most excited about for the year to come?

It’s uncomfortable. You’re right. It might be. Again… let it go. We started this list by agreeing that perfect is not the goal. We’ll end it by agreeing that creating content like this, and putting yourself out there, might be uncomfortable. What else is uncomfortable in life? Going to the gym, going on a first date, apologizing to someone, taking risks, and allowing yourself to possibly fail… and yet, all of these uncomfortable things lead to something greater. Recording yourself on video isn’t any different. If you put yourself out there, as uncomfortable as it may feel, good things will come back. Let your palms get a little sweaty and your heart race a little bit… it’s ok. Plus, you can always delete it and record a new take.

Call-to-Action
If you’ve been on the fence with this whole video thing, here’s a gentle nudge to knock you off the fence. We see the results first hand every day. For the clients who are leveraging video in their marketing, the engagement and results are off the charts. So what are you waiting for? Take that first step outside of your comfort zone and share something that will add value to someone else. From there, the rest will come…

Curious?
Curious about Simon Sinek’s book Start With Why? You can find it here. We love it and it has helped transform our approach to marketing and creating real customer connections!

Ready for more?
OrangeBall Insights has always been a place to share ideas, explore our purpose and leadership, and chat a little bit about marketing. If this resonated and you’d like to receive weekly ways to bounce higher every day, subscribe here.