Video

Interview Films that Connect with Your Customers

Thanks for traveling with us the last few weeks as our team took a deep dive into different types of films. If you want to learn more about using film for your product or service, see the

Explainer Film
Branding Film
Product Film

At the end of this series, we will be releasing a FREE field guide that will help you with your overall film project, so be sure to look for that!

Today we will discuss when and how using an Interview Film can help boost your brand’s credibility in the marketplace.

We know that peer-to-peer product and service recommendations provided online outperform traditional advertising. Consider these statistics:

• 74% of consumers rely on social media to inform their purchasing decisions.
• More than eight-in-10 global respondents (83%) say they completely or somewhat trust the recommendations of friends and family. Two-thirds of respondents (66%) say they trust consumer opinions posted online.

Influencers are a form of peer-to-peer influence and they are an integral strategy for marketing and digital houses today. When you use an interview film that has an individual vouching for your product or service, you are in effect, leveraging their influence.

How an individual has used your product or service, what their experience has been with your team, and where they have seen their business improve as a result of engaging with you are all topics that can be covered in an interview film and used to influence the viewer.

3 Tips to making outstanding interview films

Make sure it is believable

Are the people you have selected for interviews convinced that this product or service really performed the way they said it did? Are they positive that it will be beneficial to their colleagues? If so, it is up to that interviewee to convey that belief to the audience so others can share their opinion. There is nothing more convincing to a viewer than a person or organization that is 100% sold out in belief to a product or service.

Make sure that when you select interviewees, they believe in your product.

Seems like a simple prerequisite for a great interview film, but you’d be surprised at how many organizations pick interviewees only for their efficacy behind the camera and not based on their conviction about a product or service. Does your interviewee need to have good in-front-of-the-camera skills? Yes. But belief will always convey more than simple camera skills.

[inf_infusionsoft_inline optin_id=optin_15]

Skip the script, but not the practice

Yes, we really just told you to skip a script for the interview film. We want the interviewee to respond authentically and be present in the moment. Believe-ability is enhanced when the interview film looks more like an actual conversation than a scripted monologue.

“Practice” in this case will look a bit different than practicing a script. Provide your interviewee with some sample questions prior to the actual day of taping. Let the interviewee mull over the questions, but encourage them not to write out scripted answers. On the day of the interview do a few “practice” takes to get them loosened up and more natural. Make sure to tape the “practice” takes. Do multiple “official” takes.

When you pull together the film, it may be that some of the practice takes are better than the “official” ones, so use those!

Lose the talking head

It may be an interview film, but it doesn’t have to be only a talking head. Integrate B-roll, visuals, and multiple camera angles to make the film more engaging. Use background visuals and the location to engage your viewer. Make sure that you have chosen a distraction-free environment for the location of your video—one that can engage people on screen and who will be viewing the film later.

Layer in elements that support and reinforce the message of the testimonial. Is there a location that the interviewee or a person they reference? Cut out to that. There are a myriad of ways to emphasize the points the interviewee is making. Use visual creativity to help get their point across.

Activity

Review these 2 interview videos and list their strengths, weaknesses, and the items that resonate with you. Describe why they work (or don’t work), and how the elements of the films could be used in your company’s own interview video.

Valley Forge

Circles

Still not sure how to progress with a Interview Film? Contact us today and we can help!