The Tribune

By D’Arcy Rahming

Just a short time ago it was easy to tell a locally-produced commercial from an international one. Any locally produced commercial was horrible. The same was true for cable shows. The sound was bad, the video was inferior, the scripting was awful and the actors were just terrible. And the cost to look professional was enough to make anyone cringe. In fact, I remember the first commercial videos I created. They cost me $14,000 and took over six months to edit and produce. All of that has changed rapidly.

Today, the same type of video is produced for a fraction of the cost. Not only that, editing takes days or weeks depending on the schedule, as opposed to months. Other factors, such as quality and acting, have been improved. All except scripting. Video has become an indispensable tool that no business can do without. Yet there are still many companies which have refused to embrace the use of video as an information tool. Mainly because they are difficult to write. And some of those that use video have very confusing messages.

Here are a few tips for writing a video script. First, remember that the first eight seconds are the most crucial. So rather than have a long introduction with all kinds of razzle and dazzle, make sure the viewer knows what this video is going to be about, and what problem it will solve for him or her immediately. We live in an era of constant interruption. So if you are trying to sell over the Internet or television, remember that the average attention span is getting shorter and shorter.

One of the most effective opening methods I have found for video has been to ask a question. I ran a series of 30 videos called: ‘Ask Professor Rahming’. These were Jujitsu martial arts videos that served a dual purpose. The first was to educate my students, while bringing awareness to certain types of crimes that were happening. And the second was to make myself operate better in front of a camera.

As part of my Mastermind group they noticed how “wooden” I was any time anyone put me in front of a camera. It was as if my personality was drained right out of me. So by having to make 30 short videos in 30 days, I eventually became more natural. You can check out my self-defense blog at http://StoplivinginFear.com and see examples of what I am talking about.

NB: D’Arcy Rahming holds a Masters of Management from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. A lecturer at the College of the Bahamas, Mr Rahming has clients in general insurance, retail, the health and medical fields, sports federations and financial services. To receive his marketing newsletter FREE http://darcyrahming.com