Why Your Message Has to Come Before Your Video

Most owners who call me about video want to start with the camera. Which kind, how long, which platform. Those are fair questions. They're just the wrong first questions.

Here's the short version: video is an amplifier. It makes a clear message louder. It also makes a fuzzy message louder, and more expensive. So the work that matters most happens before anyone presses record.

Why should your message come before your video?

A video can only say what you've already figured out. If you don't know exactly who you're talking to and what they need to hear, the camera can't figure it out for you.

When the message isn't clear, you see it in the footage. The person on camera rambles. The video tries to talk to everyone. It covers five ideas and lands none of them. Then it gets posted, it doesn't do much, and the conclusion is "video doesn't work for us."

Usually video wasn't the problem. The message was.

When the message is clear first, the shoot gets easier. You know what to film, what to cut and how it should end. Everyone on set is working toward the same thing.

What do you need to know about your ideal customer before you film?

You don't need a 40-page persona document. You need a real picture of one person: the customer you most want more of. Before I film anything, I want to know:

• Who they are. Not an industry or a demographic. A person, in a situation.
• The moment they're in. What just happened that has them looking for someone like you?
• The question in their head. What do they need answered before they'll take the next step?
• What worries them. The doubt or fear that makes them hesitate.
• What earns their trust. What would make them think, "This is the right person for me"?

If you can answer those in plain words, you're ready to plan a video. If you can't, that's the work to do first, and it will help far more than your video.

What does this look like in a real video?

Here's a short video I made for the law firm Stutes & Lavergne. It features personal injury attorney Jeanette DeWitt-Kyle, speaking straight to camera from her office.

Notice what it doesn't try to do. It's short. One attorney is speaking, in her own space, with her name and her practice area on screen. It isn't a tour of the firm or a list of every service. It's a chance for a potential client to see and hear the person they'd actually be trusting with their case.

That kind of focus doesn't come from the camera. It comes from deciding ahead of time who the video is for and what that person needs to feel by the end of it.

What questions should you answer before you film?

Before any shoot, I work through these with the owner:

1. Who is this video for? One kind of customer, described like a real person.
2. What question does it answer? The one they're already asking.
3. What should they feel or believe at the end? Usually some version of "these people understand me, and I can trust them."
4. What's the one next step? Call, book, apply, read more. Pick one.
5. Where will it live? A homepage, a landing page, a follow-up email or social. That shapes the length and the opening.

If those five answers fit on one page, the shoot will go well. If they don't, you're not ready to spend money on production yet.

What happens if you film first and figure out the message later?

It's the most expensive order to do it in. You pay for the crew, the gear and everyone's time, then try to find the message in the edit. Sometimes there's a decent clip in there. Often the one thing your customer needed to hear was never said, because nobody knew to say it.

Then you either post something that doesn't really work, or you shoot again. Either way you've paid twice, once in money and once in momentum.

How do you know your message is ready for video?

Try this quick check:

• The ten-second test. Could a stranger tell what you do, and who it's for, in about ten seconds?
• Their words, not yours. Does it sound like how your customers describe their problem, or like industry talk?
• One idea per video. Can you say what this video is about in one sentence?
• One clear next step. Does the viewer know exactly what to do when it ends?

If you can say yes to all four, you're ready to film. If not, that's normal. Most owners are too close to their own business to see it clearly. That's exactly where an outside view helps.

Frequently asked questions

How long should a business video be?

Long enough to answer one question for one kind of customer, and no longer. A short clip can do a lot when the message is clear. If you can't say what the video is for in one sentence, length isn't the problem yet.

Do I need a full script before filming?

You need a clear message, not always a word-for-word script. Know the customer, the question, the two or three points that answer it and the next step. Some people speak best from bullet points. The message is what has to be locked.

Can't we just fix the message in editing?

Editing can tighten a good message. It can't invent one. If the right words were never said on camera, no edit will put them there. That usually means a second shoot.

What kind of video should I make first?

Start with the question your best customers ask most before they hire you. Answer it on camera, in plain words, from the person they'll actually work with. If you're weighing a homepage video, read Does Your Business Website Need a Homepage Video? next.

Where should you start?

Start with the message, not the camera. Get clear on who your best customer is and what they need to hear. Then make the video that says exactly that.

Jordan SellersMarketing strategist and fractional CMO for owner-led US companies. 15+ years in marketing strategy. More about Jordan

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