6 video marketing mistakes to stay clear of (according the creators of content)

In the beginning of making video clips, Pat Walls, the Founder of Starter Story, made the mistake of running with any idea that came to his mind. He ended up wasting many hours creating videos using plans that were later scrapped.
Thankfully, Pat learned quickly that good-thought-out strategies will help him save the time and result in more effective web content.

For this piece We asked professional filmmakers to guide you through the most common mistakes they make. One of them is chasing fame, talking too much or too quickly, attempting to be perfect or perfect, and spending too much on equipment before being comfortable in front of the camera.

You can hear from stars like Jay Clouse, Jay Acunzo Jay Acunzo, and Jayde I. Powell as they offer suggestions for avoiding the same mistakes that they did.

First mistake: not vetting your ideas

If you record videos but don't devote sufficient time and effort to creating them eventually slows the process and can cost you money.

When Starter Story's Pat Walls began creating videos, he made this very mistake. "So often, I'd have an idea then invest the next 10, 20 30, 30 hours to bring that idea to fruition as well as creating itediting, shooting after-production, editing, and everything else."

"I'd had saved lots of time and moved faster by dedicating a little bit more time to think about the best idea for my time," says Pat.

Since, in the real world, well-thought-out ideas frame how you'll present the video by way of the title and thumbnail while also keeping your budget effective and in control.

What should you do instead: Brainstorm and evaluate concepts prior to production

Take time to think of ideas. You can then commit to completing the ideas you have selected so that every shot in the video will bring your concept to life.

Start with "putting together a list of 20 ideas on a spreadsheet, then grading the ideas from 1-10. Then, sort them from the highest to the lowest in terms of their scores, and only pick the ones that are highest and discard all the rest away." suggests Pat.

A thing to be aware of here: instead of grading suggestions based on what that youthink are good, validate your ideas using:

• What relevance do they have to your ideal viewers
• They should be aligned with your experience or product you're marketing

Some of the best ideas are ones which combine both.

Spending time creating ideas can make it easy for you to produce videos that will entice viewers. Also, you won't have to rethink your ideas once they've been recorded.

Extra tip:Identify who you're making videos for

The success of any idea for video is largely dependent on its relevance for your intended audience So, consider: what do my viewers want to interact with?

Instead of assuming, investigate what kinds of questions your ideal viewers have related to your area of expertise.

Beginning with understanding the basics:

• For whom do you wish to make videos for?
• What are the topics that they look up or watch?
• Which channel(s) they watch videos on

Essentially, your ideal viewers are those you wish to sell your product to. Enter words describing them in an instrument for research on audience like SparkToro for you to discover their

• Demographics (age and gender)
• Who do they follow on social media
• What are they talking about

Then, look at the users you follow on video-driven channels like TikTok and Instagram to find out what kind of content they're publishing. It's not about copying their strategy but to find out the content and style of the content the ideal audience is watching and engaging with.

The second mistake: thinking that an online video can drive the business outcomes

No matter how good the idea you have, there's no guarantee your video will go viral. There's also no saying what results a viral video could bring to you, aside from an uptick in your follower numbers. Yet, Dan Bennett of Video for Entrepreneurs shares that most new video creators are looking to make their videos viral.

"Oftentimes when I meet with clients, especially at the beginning stages people are looking at video as something really expensive, that they've got to spend a considerable amount of money for. This video will be able to do all the lifting for them." Dan says. Dan. "It's likely to go viral. It's going to change the direction of their businesses. Although it happens once in 10,000 videos, it's not anything to take for granted."

What can you do instead: Be consistent

Instead of believing that that one viral video is all you need to be successful in the field of video marketing, make sure you consistently post videos that educate, entertain and, ultimately, boost sales. Dan recommends "putting together an entire body of work by creating several videos about the same subject, focusing on various aspects and taking an individual on a voyage [with youto take them on a journey."

A video engine like this keeps you on top of your target viewers in their minds. This lets they trust you, which is essential for improving business performance. The viral videos don't provide this, however, since people see it once and soon enough, they'll forget about it.

Mistake #3: Investing in gear before nailing camera presence

"We want to look like a celebrity, so we buy the fancy lighting, the costly microphone, and we purchase an expensive camera, or invest time or money in editing the footage to create flashy images, add gripping animation, colorful subtitles and emojis and B-roll, and everything else," says Jay Acunzo co-founder of Creator Kitchen and host of the Unthinkable podcast.

Problem with this? A fancy camera won't allow you to convey your main idea effectively until you master camera presence. Take into consideration how you present yourself on video, the energy you bring to your presentation, and how you present your message.

"Because it is the case that effective video marketing is about] getting good at using a microphone and on camera, and if you're not able to achieve that, all of the stuff is worthwhile until you've mastered the ability to stand in a chair or stand in front of a camera and present," Jay points out.

What can you do instead: Master camera presence

"Put yourself on a deadline and create enough video content to get better [in front of the camera] before spending any amount of time or money or budget (team or yours) in an effort to get more proficient at incremental work," advises Jay. Check the recordings you've made for understanding:

• What to do with the camera
• Which non-verbal cues can be engaging?
• How do you organize your presentation to maximize impact

Then go back and implement your changes to the content you record.

Fourth error: talking too much

When you talk too much and you're not aware of it, you'll divulge a wealth of information -- confusing viewers and losing them altogether.

The founder of The Em Dash Co and host of Creator Tea Talk, Jayde I. Powell has had to deal with the same. She explains "Oftentimes what happens is that as a marketing professional, I want to communicate the message or the story across so badly that I don't remember whom I'm talking with and what type of media they are consuming or why they consume it."

However, over time, Jayde has realized, "A large portion of my work as a creator of content and a content marketer requires me to gather a great deal of data and transform into content that is new, and also to make it easily digestible."

What to do instead: Plan your content However, you shouldn't be over-planning it.

• Make sure you have a refined opening line.
• Remove sentences that do not contribute to the overall idea
• Add or remove details based on the viewers' knowledge of the topic

It ensures that the information you share is easy for your readers to comprehend and is relevant to your viewers.

5th error: talking too fast

Apart from being conscious of how long you're speaking be aware of how fast you're pacing the way you speak. If you're talking too fast and you're making it hard for people to follow. However, if you speak too slowly it could lead viewers due to boredom. In either case, a lack of thought dilutes your video idea's impact as it fails to give viewers enough time to process the information you're providing.

The public speaking coach Nausheen I. Chen shares she often spoke too fast. "Maybe it was tension, adrenaline or the pressure of creating super short videos for socials, but it just seemed as if I was on 1.5x speed the entire duration."

"In fact, I planned for everything except my ability to speak. I planned for the content as well as the lighting, background, the place," Nausheen recalls. "But it's true that you can possess the top cameras with the finest lighting and maybe even the top images, but if you don't know how to show your camera with the right energy, in case you're unsure of how to change your speed and make those pauses, your message will disappear."

What to do: Review your pace and write down your pauses

Sin #6: Struggling to achieve the perfect result

"When I started my journey with video, the mistake that I'd make all the time was trying to achieve an ideal video while thinking that I could," acknowledges Jay Clouse, Founder of Creator Science..

The pursuit of perfection can be impossible and stressful as you second guess everything you do. In the end, it hinders your ability to be the person you are on camera.

"Because when you start striving to be perfect, you raise to ask: what is the perfect?' "And what you probably end up doing is comparing your work with someone else's work that has been working on this longer than you do. You then try to make this derivative and memetic rendition of what this other person did. "[Butyou're not going to be able to make it the same way." Why? "Because they're likely to have greater experience, and additionally due to the fact that they're creating their own videos."

What to do instead: Find your style

This can be said but not accomplished. However, Jay advises to be a bit loose with your camera in order to bring out your style. "[This way,] you don't appear too unnatural. And you're not going to attempt to emulate someone else's style."

It all starts with internalizing the concept that there is no need to duplicate anyone. You should instead, "Make the video that you want to make, the way you would make your own," Jay points out. Be aware that finding your style takes the time. Therefore, Jay Acunzo's suggestion of recording numerous videos as often as you can to nail camera presence can be helpful in this regard as well.

Make high-converting videos today

In a nutshell, make time to think about your video ideas. Develop your story telling, speaking and presentation techniques for cameras. Make sure to organize your content with a script pointing out:

• What will you talk about
• What you'll do to cover it
• If you're able to take a few pauses
• The way you'll change your pace

And if scripting gets time-consuming, use 's AI script generator. Here's to making videos that get your viewers hooked to the the end