All you need to capture fantastic and authentic video at your next trade show is a smartphone and a twenty-five dollar microphone.
People love to watch videos, and they love to share them. According to Facebook Media, in just one year, the number of video posts per person has increased 75% globally and 94% in the U.S.
The key to creating a good social media video is an infectious and engaging personality that comes across on camera. They should also feature someone with whom your audience can relate. A trade show is filled with that kind of people.
Attributes of a good video:
It should engage the viewer and be informative.
It should be shorter than five minutes (2 minutes is ideal).
It should feature the product, not the person demonstrating the product if it is a product demo.
It should show not tell.
It should have a clear call to action at the end.
It should include keyword tags so people can easily find it when searching on the Internet.
Note: Pay attention to the background. Is your company name/logo in the background or the booth next to yours?
Even if you don’t have time to plan and execute a video shoot, you do want to be prepared for moments of inspiration. You never know when an enthusiastic customer is going to walk into your booth and start singing your praises. This very thing happened to OtterBox at a trade show, and they were lucky enough to capture the moment on video.
What are some other content ideas that make for great shareable videos?
Attendees talking about why they decided to attend the conference.
Attendees talking about what they are learning and the value they are getting from the conference.
Attendees discussing why people, not at the conference, should attend next year.
Speakers sharing additional details, insights, or thoughts about their presentations.
A “question of the day” that attendees answer.
Note: Send these types of videos to the show organizer once you’ve cleaned them up. The show organizer just may want to post them on the show website, which gives your company more exposure.
Don’t be too stuffy with your videos; it’s okay to have some fun. Especially with that last suggestion above. You could ask attendees about their favorite restaurant in the show city or what kind of pet they have. You can then create a video montage of all the answers. You could also use the answers to create a blog post on restaurant recommendations for the next time you are exhibiting in that town, or create an infographic of industry leaders and their pets.
A note about comedy: Comedy is difficult to pull off and it can be very subjective. There is no secret formula when it comes to funny. If you are not sure yourself, then it’s best to stick with fun and forego funny.
Remember, you cannot create a viral video, you can only create a video that might or might not go viral.
