Client Testimonial | Brand Intro Video for Odyssey Marketing Group

“With Drew, you are not just getting a cameraman. You are getting someone with the knowledge, experience and expertise to make a bold and impactful statement..” - Shane Doudy - Owner Odyssey Marketing Group

Introduction:

I’m Shane, I am a digital marketer and website designer out of Grand Junction and I went to Drew and his team at DLC Video Production and Strategy to film my first professional brand video. My company is Odyssey Marketing Group and I do marketing and website design for construction and home service businesses. Video is one of the fastest growing content mediums, and when done correctly, videos are some of the best creative assets you can acquire for your business. People want to see you, hear your voice, see your store, see your process, etc. You can use videos for ads, for YouTube, social media, your website and more.

I’ve understood the importance of video in marketing for quite some time, but it's a whole other ball game when you start your own company and find yourself having to be on camera, speaking to your audience. In my previous marketing positions, I was the account manager, but not the videographer or even the content writer. I was just project managing the video shoot. Flash forward to running my own company, I know I have limitations when it comes to recording and producing video content. 

Sure, a lot of us make TikTok’s, reels and stories all the time, maybe we even have a small YouTube channel, but as a marketer you have to be pretty flawless when it comes to production. When I make a reel or story for social media, I do a lot of ‘day in the life’ content that requires very little editing or camera work, it’s just to provide a raw and authentic look at my life. 

I came to Drew and his team because I knew they could create a highly credible and professional looking brand introduction video.

I wanted to make a piece that showed a bit of my personality and that explained my marketing and web design services in a way that was simple. Knowing my capabilities, and my shoe string production budget, I knew I couldn’t afford the software, cameras, and other equipment needed to make a high quality video. Let alone the expertise to use all of those tools and create a cohesive video!

That’s not all. Working with Drew and his team was an absolute pleasure. Not only did they master the recording and editing of my video, but from having Drew as my director I learned a ton about filming in a little over an hour's time! 

Here's my top 3 takeaways from working with a professional videographer for the first time! 👊

1. Don’t worry about the number of takes. 

I don't consider myself shy, I thought I could just read over my little script once and nail it in 2 or 3 takes. 

Nope, recording is a skill, unless you have an acting background or you were a news reporter it’s actually really hard to recite a script when the camera is rolling. Even if you are able to do it, it often sounds robotic. 

Drew was able to direct me by taking it one sentence at a time. That helped a lot. One of the things that he helped me on was to just keep going. I tend to say ‘um’ or ‘you know’ a lot in my speech. On camera that gets highlighted. I had a tendency to freeze up and stop every time I heard myself making one of those filler word errors, but Drew was able to coach me through that and build up my confidence each time. It was incremental, but every take got better, every take sounded more natural, more confident, and every take included less 'ums'.

2. Ditch your script

I like structure. I thought a script would be my best friend. It felt so forced. One of the things I wasn’t expecting to get from Drew was his feedback on making powerful dialogue and action statements. 

For example, many of us want to start a video with ‘hey guys’, ‘welcome’, ‘Shane here’, etc. One of the first things Drew taught me was don’t do that. It seems tempting to do that, I mean typically when you speak to someone there’s some kind of greeting. Drew explained that if someone is on your video, they kind of know who you are. I mean they found you, so instead focus on making a compelling hook to draw the viewer in to watch your video. 

When it comes to making hooks, Drew helped me not sound like click bait. We’ve all watched those videos where someone makes an overly bold claim to get your attention but then once you watch past 3 seconds their message falls flat. Drew helped me craft a hook that addressed a real problem that my customer base has. That is finding a trusted marketing partner and not just another big agency account manager. He helped me understand making personal appeals to my customers and their pain points. 

Then the rest of my video addressed how my marketing and web design services can address those help. With Drew, you are not just getting a cameraman. You are getting someone with the knowledge, experience and expertise to make a bold and impactful statement.

3. Drew and his team are awesome editors

It’s ok if you’re feeling fragmented, the end result will naturally flow. One of the things I was worried about was the fact that we were working one sentence or even one phrase at a time. Again, having the expectation of nailing it on the first take is unrealistic. I’ve made amateur videos with the hardest cuts you’ve ever seen and I didn’t want mine to be like that. Working with a pro like Drew and his team means you don’t have to worry about that. It’s really amazing how they can make a video naturally flow even though you feel choppy at times.

Summary

I really wasn’t expecting Drew to be such a solid director but he literally can do it all when it comes to videography. From one small business owner to another, you need a professional in your corner to elevate your videos. Not only do you get the production from Drew, but you get the strategy on how to make your video content successful in growing your business. Video isn’t a new content medium, and it’s competitive. Standout from your competition by working with someone like Drew who is a master of camera work, sound, video editing, production, direction, and video content strategy.  

Odyssey Marketing Group's Brand Intro Video

This article was written by Shane Doudy | Owner of Odyssey Marketing Group