Make Your Business Video
Script
A Three-Minute Pleaser
Want to create an
online video highlighting your company or your
expertise that people delightedly watch and tell
others about? Unless you have some amazing
visuals to show that require little or no
commentary, your key to success is a dynamic
script.
"Dynamic"
means that you move the viewer from point A to
point B:
From one opinion to an opposite
one - or a viewpoint more nuanced than at the
outset
From fearing something to
welcoming it
From being baffled by an
idea to getting it
From mildly interested
to convinced
Elements of a Video Script With
Impact
You may have
heard or read that video scripting should
involve storytelling, and that the basic formula
for a story is three parts - the beginning,
middle and end.
Abstractly that's
true, but if you use that schema to structure a video,
you'll most likely end up with a tedious song
and dance. Online video should aim at the
sweet spot of 2.5 minutes in length or less -
never more than three minutes except when you
have an audience who already knows you or is
unusually committed to learning about your
topic.
Instead of
beginning, middle and end, a business video
should have these four structural components:
Hook: A
statement, question, challenge, drama or
quandary that pulls the audience in
Thesis:
The main point, which can be stated in one
sentence or less
Development:
Illustration or support for the thesis, with
examples, reasons or details
Close: A
conclusion that wraps things up with
considerable impact
Very often these
elements unfold in exactly that order, but
occasionally in a short piece the exact thesis
does not become clear until the end.
The close often
circles back to the beginning, either explicitly
or implicitly, and it may involve a surprise, a
twist or a request that the viewer take a
particular action. Here is one of my
videos where the end echoes the beginning:
A top-notch
video, one people want to share, involves some
sort of emotion, something that makes viewers
care. That feeling might consist of
suspense, uncertainty, pity, worry, wondering,
humor or enjoyment of a new point of view. Here
is a video in an entirely different style where
I heighten a controversy and invoke a dream some
people share instead of simply describing how I
live:
Even in the
following more descriptive video, you'll notice
my frequent (and very deliberate) use of emotional language:
If you're not
comfortable thinking of emotions in relation to
business, think of this in terms of tension and
relaxation. For example, before/after,
problem/solution and myth/reality all involve
agitation giving way to calm.
One more video
script writing tip for business: Follow the
time-honored principle of writing teachers to show,
not tell, why people need you or what
you're selling.
Sound exciting
and challenging? Maybe I can help you.
What Makes Me a Good Script
Writer
My credentials in
writing dramatically and concisely for business
videos include the following:
More than a
decade writing groundbreaking
articles and opinion pieces for well-known magazines,
which demand topnotch storytelling and
impose a rigorous word count
Two books on
magazine writing, one of them a Book of the
Month Club selection, that described my formulas
for compelling article crafting
A
public television show pilot that I worked on with a veteran TV
production company
Two decades as
a copywriter and publicity writer, finding
headlines and dramatic angles for both exotic
and quite ordinary businesses
A raft of public radio
commentaries that aired on the Boston station
WBUR and NPR's "Marketplace" show,
each 2.5 to three minutes long and requiring
excruciatingly precise editing
If I have never
worked for you, you might qualify for a half-hour
introductory consultation at a special rate,
during which time I can help you brainstorm for
video ideas featuring your business.
If you have a
content-heavy web site, a long-standing blog or
an archive of newsletters, then you can ask me
to rummage through those and propose several
video script ideas. (Contact
me and we'll work out the terms for
that.)
You might also be
able to hire me to write a business video script
for you. Describe
what you do and who your audience is, and
we'll determine whether or not I'm a good match
for such a project.
I hope you
enjoyed my videos and tips and wish you all the
best in finding a creative way to promote your
business!
