New Series - Help and How-To for Online Video by Fliqz CEO, Benjamin Wayne
Fliqz CEO, Benjamin Wayne, does a lot of writing for many different publications on the subject of online video (of course). We're going to begin posting his articles in segments on the Fliqz blog for those of you interested in vertically relevant and niche online video tips, help topics, and how-tos.
We're posting the articles in segments because some of them are rather long. If you're interested in a full-length version of any of these pieces let us know by leaving a comment to the post. We'll also have PDFs on the Web site soon.
The first of this series is Video for Real Estate, here's your first segment:
Real estate professionals have long understood the power and effectiveness of video in selling property. Virtual walkthroughs and video tours immerse the buyer in the experience of the property, and result in shorter sales cycles, higher conversion rates, and better qualified prospects. Yet despite its effectiveness, the cost, complexity, and availability of video solutions has meant that very few properties ever benefit from the power of video.
In an era when many real estate professionals host their own websites to showcase properties, and where buyers and sellers alike are highly attuned to the online consumption of video, cost and technical complexity have been the major hurdles to the effective use of this emerging medium. And yet, two important developments – video-enabled digital cameras and plug-and-play video service providers – are now putting cost-effective video solutions within the reach of all real estate professionals.
Whereas, even a year ago, capturing video meant engaging a professional production team to the tune of thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars, today any individual with a digital camera can capture highly-effective professional-looking video footage with a simple digital camera provided they follow a few simple rules:
1. Shoot with lots of light – video is much more sensitive to light than still images, and the more light you have when shooting, the clearer, smoother, and crisper your final video will be. Daylight is best, but if you have to shoot in artificial light, make sure that work in conditions that are as brightly lit as possible.
2. Don’t zoom or pan – zooming in or panning (moving the camera from side to side) tend to be very hard on the eye. If a horizontal pan is important to your shot, move very slowly and keep the camera as still as possible.
3. Keep the camera steady – whenever possible, use a tripod or set the camera on a desk or counter. If you must hold the camera, lean against a doorway or brace your elbows to keep shake to a minimum.
4. Fill the frame – try to fill the entire frame with the subject. Online video tends to be shown at sizes that are much smaller than the average television, so for maximum impact, get as close as possible to the subject matter.
5. Keep it short – videos with a duration of two minutes or less tend to have much higher viewership and completion rates and tend to be more impactful than videos with longer durations.
Come back in a few days for the next segment of Video for Real Estate.
