Making Casual Business Videos on a Dime

Making Casual Business Videos on a Dime

By Christine H.

It might seem like a contradiction in terms to talk about a DIY corporate video. After all, shouldn’t we listen to the adage “you have to spend money to make money” on some things? Of course! When it comes to making a polished, sleek video about your business, you should hire a pro–someone to make the production value big and beautiful.

However, with the rise of YouTube, social media, and video marketing, not every single video that you put it out needs to be worthy of screening during the Super Bowl. Video is a great way to get more eyes on your content. It could be a way to expand your social media marketing on Facebook and Instagram. It might be a casual series that you set up in your office to help your followers better utilize your service or product. For example, if you sold crafting supplies, you might have a series where you show how to make something new each month. You might use video content as a fun way to introduce the team in a dental office, or as a temporary effort to promote an upcoming event.

In any case, it’s easier than ever to make worthwhile video content for your business. Here are some tips to elevate it from a home video into something more hip and snappy:

Pick a Consistent Place

The background for your video can make or break the attempt. This is especially important to think through thoroughly if you plan on making regular video content. Having a consistent backdrop will bring everything together. So, what should you choose for your background? Well, the simplest and safest answer is a blank wall. Avoid pictures in the background, or any awkward variances. But remember that a textured or colored background can work to your advantage. Just remember if you use a blank wall to manage the shadow.

If you have a camera with good depth of field control, you might want to get adventurous with your background. Depth of field will ensure that the foreground is in sharp focus while everything in the background is blurred into an indistinguishable scene. All the same, you’ll want to carefully choose your background, like selecting a good-looking lobby or a good view of your busy beehive of workers.

One more note: it’s great to have that place be a consistent area, especially if you’re doing a series. That’s why it can be really nice to have an out-of-the-way place. (That’s also great for managing sound, by the way.) So, think about having, say, a garage or warehouse corner where you can be alone, and which you’ve set up to be a multi-purpose area.

Easy Lighting Tweaks

The first thing that any professional photographer or videographer does is ensure good lighting… and there’s a reason for that. Most of the time, effective lighting can be immediately achieved by balancing lighting from two or more sources. This prevents harsh shadows. Diffused light will reduce shadows and give you consistent illumination. In order to achieve this, you can get a reflector, or a softbox, neither of which is very expensive. Don’t forget about magic hour (twilight), or the blessing of a cloudy day. Both grant nicely diffused natural light, if you can get the timing right. However, again, if you’re planning a series, you might be better off with lighting that you can control easier than the weather in order to get a consistent look.

Prioritize Sound Quality

Did you know that in almost every study that’s been done, audiences are more picky about their sound quality than they are about the image? If the sound is tinny, patchy, or echoing, it can be wildly distracting. However, it’s a commonly neglected aspect of casual videography. Invest in a good-quality mic, like this one, instead of just utilizing the one on your phone.

Find a Comfortable Spokesperson

When you’re looking for your spokesperson, you’ll probably find that it’s harder than you’d initially thought. Some of us freeze up in front of a camera. Others can’t stay focused. So, if you were thinking that it’d be great to get the boss’ face on there, but they’re woefully stiff on-camera, be flexible! Find someone in your office who can be at ease in front of the camera.

You can help with this, too. Flatter them, joke with them, and laugh at your mistakes. When you’re having fun in front of the lens, it will be a much more fun video to watch!

Post-Production on a Dime

Post production is an area where you’re going to have to find a happy medium. You can spend days cutting and re-cutting the video. You can also pay tons of money for programs with features that you don’t even know how to utilize. However, in order to have a casual feel to your videos, you really don’t want to do all that much processing. Cut just enough to keep it clean. Balance the sound, and give a proper amount of time for intro and outro. Often, you can find software that’ll cover the basics within your normal Windows or Apple operating software. You might also look into Adobe’s amateur options or Corel VideoStudio.

Keep it Brief

Speaking of your intro and outro time, remember to keep any video that you plan to put online brief. It’s amazingly difficult to hold people’s attention for more than a minute. Do a few dry runs, and you’ll learn that you can’t get through all that much text in a minute or less, and you don’t want to sound rushed. Use visual aids when possible, and re-write the script as needed in order to stay concise.

Let’s Chat, do you have any tips for creating business videos?

April 20, 2018April 21, 2018

My Son Is My Husband’s Brother!

Congratulations al-Malik Glorian Blake on your induction into

Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated

You are continuing the legacy of your father Gregory Blake and great, great Uncle Arthur Milburn.

induction-into-omega-psi-phi-fraternity-1979 — Gregory Blake, Spring 1979

We love you very much and wish you many years of happiness and success as you continue on in life as your father’s newest Fraternity Brother!

Disclosure – this post contains affiliate links to Amazon.com which means, I will make a few cents if you make a purchase, however, it will not add to the cost of your order.

April 18, 2018April 17, 2018

Women Who Write Books & Blogs an Interview with Beverly Powers

Most of you know that I started blogging as a way to fill a void after the death of my grandmother, who had raised my sister, Gloria and myself in the projects of New Rochelle, NY with limited funds because she was a maid.

However, we never felt poor, quite the opposite, as my grandmother gave us everything that we ever needed and a few things that we wanted but never to spoil us. She did this at the age of 55, after raising 6 kids to adulthood, and we three had a great relationship.

After I graduated from Delaware State College I taught school, 1st and 3rd grades, but never made enough money to support an apartment, a car note and food! Anywho, I was frugal, which I had learned from my grandmother so we always shopped discount or thrifted, as a matter of fact, my sister was employed by Goodwill at the time of her death which was untimely as she was only 29 years old.

Gloria’s birthday was April 10th and had she lived, she would have been 55 and not a day goes by that I don’t think of and miss her terribly, please read my dedication to her on a previous blog post.

Well after my grandmother passed at the age of 98 in 2009, I was still very thrifty with my shopping and social media was in its infancy of how we shared our daily lives, at first it was on Facebook, then YouTube and then finally blogging. I loved to write and had been doing so since childhood so it was very natural for me.

Long story short, my blog was discovered by Ronni Cohen, Executive Director at the Delaware Financial Literacy Institute and then I started teaching blogging for them at local libraries. Now here we are 6 years later and I am still teaching, however, no longer for free, but at DelTech Community Colleges and I also offer one-on-one training sessions as part of my business ABlake Enterprises.

Eventually, I want to write a book, but haven’t gotten there yet, however, I have many friends who have including Podcast guest, Beverly Powers. Click the pic below to listen to my interview with Beverly on how she got started writing, first Children’s books and then novels. Beverly also started a blog and explained how she gets the inspiration from God to write her posts.

Let’s Chat > Are you interested in turning your blog into a book or just writing a book?

April 15, 2018April 17, 2018

See It – Believe It – Achieve It! 🤗 The Power of Prayers

When I worked in an office I sat in a cubicle like most others, however, unlike most others the walls of my cubicle contained more than family photos, I hung scriptures and inspirational messages.

I have always believed in the power of prayer; if you see it, believe it, then you can achieve it.

The bulletin board in my home office also contains inspirational messages and scriptures, which I believe are very important in achieving one’s goals.

After starting my day reading scriptures from the Holy Bible, I sit in front of a bulletin board that contains cards, pictures and these messages of encouragement.

Now when I look up from my keyboard and see pictures of my sister and a card that she gave me in 1985, I know that her spirit is alive and that she is providing me with the inspiration to keep me going forward.

I also keep one special picture of the boys from a trip to Orlando as it shows that they feared nothing even at a young age. It is an important reminder to me that there is nothing to fear because God Always Answers Prayers!

What’s on your bulletin board?

April 13, 2018April 5, 2018

Mophie Powerstation Plus XL Review

Mophie Powerstation Plus XL Review by the Delaware Blogger

As a Blogger who is always on the go, oftentimes attending all day events, so much so that when I walk into a room the first thing I look for is an electrical outlet, even in church on Sundays.

Sometimes the choir is on fire and I want to capture it all on Facebook Live, however, the last thing I want to happen is for my Smartphone to die before the end of the selection.

When I was contacted by Verizon Wireless for a new product review, I immediately chose the Mophie Powerstation Plus XL and it definitely came in handy at The State of Our Union: Black Women and Girls in Delaware event at Delaware State University sponsored by NCBW100.

On an early Saturday morning, my girlfriend, Donna and I drove down to Dover for what turned out to be a very informative, educational and enlightening event. We arrived late, however, was right on time to listen to the “Living Room Conversation” which featured several women speakers including our friends Nicolle Surrette and Taria Prichett and thanks to the Mophie Powerstation Plus XL, I was able to live stream Nicolle’s entire presentation and still have plenty of power left for a lot of pictures afterwards.

We also arrived in plenty of time to hear the announced acknowledgement of my “big sis” Esther Rich, founder of Special Touch Card Creation, who was chosen this year’s New Castle County Chamber of Commerce Ambassador of the Year.

The mophie powerstation plus XL is an external battery with over 48 hours of power, easily connects to an Android or iOS Smartphone and it fully charged my phone in less than 2 hours.

The Rose Gold and White Aluminum finish was nice and Donna really liked the color especially since she is a member of AKA Sorority and their colors are pink and green, however, it is also available in Space Gray.

The mophie powerstation plus XL is made for iPods, iPhones, iPads as well as all Android devices, cameras, headphones, gaming devices and Smart watches, with a suggested retail price is $99.99.

Specs: