Among our many talents at SLOtography, one of them just so happens to be working with other local businesses to create brand videos. Honestly, if it were up to us, every local brand (whether product or service-based) would have effective brand videos in their library of content. Maybe you’re on the fence about capturing a brand video for your business, or you’re just curious about the overall process. Either way, step inside this recent video branding experience we curated with CREW Wealth Management. We’ll talk about what was important to CREW during this project, while also giving you some insight on the what and why of taking your brand identity to the next level with video content.
What is the purpose of a brand video?
We’re guessing you already know that brand videos are a powerhouse piece of content marketing for your business. We’re also guessing that you are savvy enough to know that brand videos should be posted on your website and social media channels. But, outside of that, what is the purpose of a brand video?
In essence, brand videos are connection tools. They are a way for your audience (clients, new or existing) to form a connection to your brand. Taking the viewer inside your brand experience through an immersive piece of content. Giving your potential clients the ability to learn more about what your brand stands for on an emotional level and feel a sense of connection before they commit to investing with you.
Why is a brand video important?
Communicating your brand effectively is all about blending social cues and emotional narratives. You’ve probably heard the phrase “people buy from people”, or “people buy from people they know, like, and trust”. Showcasing your brand values through video builds that know, like, and trust factor. Essentially, bridging that gap between you and your audience.
That very idea was an essential part of working with CREW management. They are a boutique-sized local firm located in San Luis Obispo. However, their competitors are primarily corporations that operate on a national scale, in addition to other local firms. So, CREW needed brand videos that effortlessly showcased who they are and how they can help. Giving them an edge over their competition by accelerating the know, like, and trust factor through content marketing.
Brand messaging through video
We knew heading into our project with CREW that as a small boutique firm, their time and their efforts are best spent with their clients. They needed an expert who could lead the project while offering a guided approach. But we also highly valued their feedback. After all, they know their brand better than anyone, so collaboration was key to making the magic happen.
We stepped into the role of creative director while keeping things moving and offering CREW the space to provide input and feedback as we worked together. All the while curating brand videos centered around their ideals. Small businesses like CREW are constantly wearing all the hats and juggling all the things. When they had the opportunity to bring in someone to work with on their brand videos, we offered them as much trust and support through our process as they do with their own clients.
With our approach in place, we focused on ways to recreate their client experience. Long-term personal relationships are at the center of the experience that CREW offers its clients. Going into this, we thought about ways to reflect that sense of care and trust through their brand video. The first way was to focus on our location. Incorporating coastal and local drone footage offered a reflection on CREW’s pride of being based in San Luis Obispo, just like their community.
Additionally, CREW’s commitment to its clients is genuine. They create authentic long-term relationships with those they work with. We found that their company video should contain a reflection of those relationships for viewers to get a true sense of who lies at the beating heart of CREW. Meetings, casual office moments, and team collaboration are all a reflection of the relationships they strive to build and were highly important to showcase in their company video.
Enmeshed in those connections are the dynamic personalities behind CREW. Individual brand videos were also created for viewers to get to know more about advisors on a deeper level. Doing so offers potential clients insights into the person behind the title.
Our approach to working with CREW
Filming back to back can be downright exhausting. Keeping the energy high throughout this project was important to its success, especially when it came to allowing personalities to shine. To keep that momentum going, we filmed across multiple days, which helped avoid camera fatigue altogether.
In between filming, we shared rough cuts and preview clips with the team at CREW. Doing so kept everyone engaged and excited about the project, but also offered plenty of space for feedback. Additionally, spacing things out allowed us to get to know the team at CREW. Getting to know them on a more personal level gave way to creativity and ideas and propelled this project forward. In the end, CREW came away with brand videos that were thoughtfully designed, customized to their needs, and fully aligned with their brand.
