How to Develop and Tell Your Story with Film

One of the most important parts of branding is telling a story. It’s about more than just telling your customers why your products are the best. It’s about showing them who you are and why they should trust you. By getting them invested in your brand’s story, you can connect with them more effectively, which increases your chances, not just of making one sale, but of keeping them as a customer over time. 

So how do you communicate that story to your audience? One of the most effective ways is with film. Here’s how you can develop and tell your story with film.

If you’re going to tell a story, first you need a script. This is what will guide your story and help you tell the one that matters for your brand. It doesn’t have to be a long script. In fact, if you’re posting it to social media, it probably shouldn’t be. Both Instagram and TikTok specialize in short videos—no more than 60 seconds. Twitter (ironically, the king of short form content) allows longer videos, but even they have a cutoff of 2 minutes and 20 seconds. If you do want to post longer videos to social media, you can always use Facebook, but remember, most people won’t stick around for more than a minute or two before scrolling past.

While your videos need to be short, concise, and to the point, they should also be meaningful. Know what point you’re trying to make, and get in there and make it.

To maximize impact, rather than cramming a bunch of information into a short space, it’s better to focus on connecting with viewers’ emotions. Make them laugh. Make them cry. Make them angry about something that your brand can help them fix. Make them excited about something that your brand can do, or is doing. This will help people get invested in your story.

Another way to tell your brand’s story is to give people a peek behind the curtain, so to speak. Introduce them to the team that makes your company run, from the CEO with a vision for the future, to the entry level employees who keep the cogs running. Show people what’s important to your company and your team members, and how that influences how you operate and who you are.

Interviews don’t just have to include just your employees. Talk to important people in your field, and have them share their insights. Talk to some of your satisfied customers, and have them share their experiences. The possibilities are virtually limitless.

Unfortunately, far too many business owners put a huge amount of money, time, and effort into keyword research, buyer persona, content, and SEO only to send users to a less-than-solid website. Does your site have crucial conversion points such as a newsletter signup, an easy-to-use contact form, and other downloadable resources? Do you have a dedicated landing page that is highly optimized for your keywords and ad copy?

Your goal is to keep visitors from “bouncing,” so your website must be in stellar form, with no distractions.

Remember, though, that film is a collaborative effort. In order to put it into practice effectively, you need a whole team of people who know what they’re doing, and how to produce quality video content. You need writers for the script. You need people who look good on camera—who can be dynamic and charismatic, and help people engage with your brand. You need camera operators who know how to frame a shot and make it look good. And you need editors who can put it all together into a cohesive narrative. All of these are highly skilled jobs. If you want to produce high quality content, it’s important to spend the time and resources assembling a team that can do them well.