Demo Video Success Secrets
By Steve Yankee
If you don't have a demo DVD --or you've got one that isn't doing
the job --don't feel like the Lone Ranger. A good demo is a rare
commodity in our business, simply because we're like the shoemaker of
legend.
Many times we're simply too busy making shoes for other people to take
the time to put shoes on our own (barefoot) children. Well, if you want to
run with the big dogs instead of staying on the porch, you've simply GOT to
take the time!!! Because a good demo tape, properly planned, produced and
distributed can win you a lot of profitable new business.
So what IS a demo DVD, anyway? Contrary to what you might think,
a demo DVD is not a random collection of snippets and scenes from video
productions you've already shot and sold. Even though we've all cut and
pasted and used these types of videos before, for all intents and purposes
it is
NOT a real demo DVD. Because "Demo" stands for "demonstration." It does
NOT stand for "a miscellaneous collection of unrelated scenes."
The first mistake --you're moving too fast!
The first big mistake most producers make is to hurriedly throw a
demo together because a client wants to see it --right now. The second
biggest mistake is to grab unrelated or imperfect bits of video footage
--bits that don't convey the message you need to relate to your prospect or
suitably showcase your production quality --and hope, somehow, that it will
suffice. It used to, back in the days when being a video producer was the
only qualification you needed to work on a video; but video is no longer a
voodoo technology; most everyone owns a DVD player, if not a consumer camcorder,
and has the basic knowledge of how videos are put together.
Far and away, though, the very biggest mistake you can make when
you assemble your demo is to center the attention on yourself...and
NOT your client.
Your demo MUST be client-centered!
Let me elaborate. I've talked to hundreds of video producers. Many
of them wonder why they're not bursting at the seams with profitable jobs.
Most of the time I believe it's due to a common fault: too many video
producers focus their marketing efforts on themselves, their own talents
and equipment, and on what they're selling...and NOT on the prospect and
why he or she is buying.
I've been harping on this subject for a long time now, so by know
you ought to know what I'm saying. Your demo MUST use what I call
client- centered marketing to get people to come knocking on your door
after seeing it.
Client-centered marketing is simple. All you have to understand is
the difference between features...and benefits. Features are about you and
your product or service. Saying "we use 3-chip broadcast quality cameras"
is a feature. Benefits are the specific results that your products or
services offer to your prospects.
It would be far better to tell your client that their production is
captured flawlessly, in perfect color and sharp focus --which is the
benefit of using a 3-chip camera...than to tell them you use 3-chip
cameras, and letting it go at that.
Are you with me so far? Good. Because I want you to make a real
point to remember that whether you're making a new demo tape or writing a
sales letter or talking on the phone to a new prospect --you must use
BENEFITS to sell to their wants and desires.
And that's the First Commandment of making a dynamite demo:
focus on the client's benefits of using you as their video source...not on
the features of you, your equipment or your company.
Here are the other six commandments you need to follow:
II. Your demo video must be planned properly. Creating an effective
demo is not a one-day job...it'll take some time to create and execute
a video program that'll really do the job you want it to do...to reach the
audience with which you wish to do business. It doesn't help to show
wedding scenes on a demo tape aimed at corporations...or vice versa. So
always keep the needs of your target audiences topmost in your mind.
III. Your demo must be produced carefully and exemplify your
very best work. No glitches, no bad camera moves, no bad edits. Simply the
best you have, presented in a logical sequence.
IV. It should contain testimonials from satisfied customers! You
need benefit-oriented testimonials to defuse any prospect anxieties while
simultaneously enhancing your credibility.
V. Your demo tape MUST have a call-to-action! It MUST offer
something to make the client respond, and respond NOW! It (or the note or
letter that goes along with it) should contain a limited-time discount
offer, a coupon good for a dozen free duplicate copies of the finished
production, or some value-added benefit that makes the prospect reach for
the phone to call and book you...NOW.
VI. Your demo must be packaged properly. A hand-written label
and a cardboard sleeve just won't cut it in today's competitive
marketplace. You need to consider printing on the DVD...nice Amaray cases with printed inserts...anything and everything that will set your DVD
apart from your hungry competition.
VII. You must get your demo in front of the people who you
want for your customers! Like any marketing tool, a demo DVD is useless
unless you get it out there working for you constantly. So who should get
it?
ANYONE that you contact --or who contacts you --who requests more
information about your company and your video capabilities! Mail it,
deliver it yourself...but get it out there where it can be
seen...appreciated...and responded to.
Remember the value of good & proper follow-up.
Now your demo may be the demo to end all demo videos. But
you've got to remember that people can be lazy or unwilling to commit to a
video project. And while your demo will certainly get their interest, by
itself it's usually not enough to get them to call you. So you've got to
realize the value of proper follow-up. That includes phone calls,
postcards, and even a second or third sales letter if required.
Get started by writing down your goals.
I suggest that you sit down with a pen and notepad and write out,
first of all, your goals for your demo video. You should be as specific as
you can be. Are you looking to increase your sales with this tape by, say,
20 percent? Are you looking to close on half the jobs you get a chance to
bid on? Are you looking to enhance your credibility...have an opportunity
to work on those higher-priced productions...get more wedding work...or do
you want to accomplish a combination of these goals? Whatever your goals
are, write them down and keep them in mind through every step of the
creation and production process!
You should also note down who will be receiving and watching this
demo tape. Who is your main audience? Are you in the wedding video
business? The brides-to-be and their mothers are your primary audience and
you should be targeting them with a wedding-specific demo tape.
Are you looking to attract new corporate clients to get new product
presentations, safety training productions, videotape live events and sales
meetings, produce corporate capabilities videos?
Is your main market churches, schools or educational facilities? Is
it legal firms who you want as new clients for your deposition videotaping,
your "day in the life" programs, your witness preparation services?
Or...is it all of the above? I believe it's very hard to produce a
DVD that appeals to the broad audiences that most small video
businesses or independent producers work with...but here's a clue. If
you're one of the mixed breed --which includes most of us independent video
producers who market to several different audiences --doing weddings on the
weekends, videotaping the occasional seminar, doing a deposition once or
twice a month --you can get around trying to cover too much ground in your
demo by making a sort of general opening video, and then dubbing in a more
specific program.
In other words, customize your demo to fit the prospect. If a
business is looking for a program on a new product or service, for
instance, you can give them a copy of your 'general' demo and then follow
it with a dupe of a new product presentation of which typifies your best
work.
I would caution you about mixing what I call 'retail' and
'business' productions. If I were a VP of sales for a large company, I
wouldn't be too impressed with your wedding video skills...and if I were a
groom-to-be, conversely I wouldn't be very interested in seeing how well
you lit and shot that mammoth construction crane or a new automatic
widgetmaker!
You might be better off with TWO demo DVDs...one for the typical consumer,
one for the typical corporate dweller.
And while we're talking about planning, remember to keep your demo
attractive, to-the-point and short! Unless you have a dynamite story line
or way-cool visuals, your demo should be from three to six minutes in
length. Get in there, get your point across, wrap things up and get out!
Excerpted from Steve Yankee's Master Video Series program
Secrets of Producing A Dynamite Demo
Available from:
Oak Tree Press
9 King Philip Ave
Bristol, RI 02809
VOICE (401) 253-2800
FAX (401) 396-9132
