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With 54% of consumers expressing a preference for brand-related video content, and an anticipated 80% surge in internet traffic from video by 2024, the trajectory is clear – video is the language of the future. However, as you embark on this journey, a crucial question looms: How do you manage a videographer effectively, especially if you lack direct video experience? The success of your entire video initiative hinges on the answer.
Having coached companies both domestic and international in hiring, training, and implementing successful video strategies, we understand the common concerns that arise and the solutions around these.
In fact, we coach businesses on mastering the They Ask, You Answer methodology, a marketing and sales framework and philosophy that includes video marketing as one of it’s core principles.
In this article, you will learn the intricacies of managing a videographer and by the end of the article, you’ll have everything you need to make sure your videographer succeeds, even if you don’t have video experience yourself.
Let’s get started!
What Makes Managing a Videographer Different?
So, here’s the deal. Back in the day, most companies farmed out their video production work.
You know how it goes—big bills, not much to show for it, and videos that could double as everyone else’s.
Not the best strategy.
Now, the smart move is having your own in-house videographer.
When you have your own videographer, you’ll find that your team can pump out more videos and the style will better fit your brand. But, (and there’s always a but), managing a videographer is a bit of a juggling act.
See, you’ve got this growing hunger for video content, but you also need to be real about how much your videographer can crank out.
If the balance isn’t right, you’re looking at missed deadlines, a dip in video quality, or even worse, your team losing faith in the power of video.
And hey, it could take a toll on your reputation as the team’s go-to manager.
Your job involves more than just checking out their video-making skills. You’re also looking at how they handle feedback, manage projects, and share their smarts with the rest of the crew.
The way you handle all these factors is what’ll make or break your video projects and the team’s trust in your leadership.
So, let’s get real about the challenges ahead and figure out how to make your videography team a roaring success.
How to Evaluate Your Videographer’s Performance
You might not be the sole reviewer, but when it comes to giving the final nod before hitting that “publish” button, you’re the go-to person.
Now, you might be wondering, “Am I even qualified to review videos? What makes a video ‘good’?”
Well, think about your favourite movie or TV show.
What hooks you in? Is it the storytelling? The characters?
Now, think about stuff you don’t like. What turns you off?
That gives you a good starting point. But to truly evaluate your videographer’s performance, you’re going to want to dig deeper.
Performance can be evaluated across three areas:
- Content
- Production
- Talent
Content Evaluation
When it comes to storytelling in a TV show or movie, it’s a clever device to leave a cliffhanger at the end to keep the audience coming back for more. In sales and marketing, it’s the exact opposite.
A great sales and marketing video should clearly lay out the question being asked by the customer and be up-front about how to solve that problem, leaving no additional questions unanswered. In short, the big questions you should be asking yourself when you’re reviewing a marketing video your videographer submits are:
- Is it a sales or marketing video?
- Is there a clear story?
- Is there a hook within the first 10 seconds of the video to capture viewers’ attention?
- Does the introduction provide more context into what the viewer can expect to see in the remainder of the video?
- Do the segments fully answer the main question the video is meant to answer?
- Do we have enough segments in the video to answer the question completely?
- Does our call-to-action make sense for someone to take the next step in our sales process?
- Does the call-to-action make sense for where someone is on their buying journey when they’re watching the video?
- Does our outro leave them with a warm, satisfied feeling?
- Does it answer a question our viewers are actually asking?
- Did we anticipate other needs they have?
- Were we helpful?
- Did we tackle the problem from all angles?
- Did we establish ourselves as experts?
- Did we cover the right amount of information? (Did we stay on topic?)
- Did we stay unbiased throughout the entire video?
- If not, include timestamps of where the biased information occurs.
- Does the talent come across as likeable?
- Does on-camera talent convey a feeling?
- Does it come off as believable or is it cheesy or forced?
Production Evaluation
From a production standpoint, your finished product should be clear, simple, and on-brand.
Too many moving parts in a video can be distracting for the audience and can take away from the goal, which is to better educate the customers in your industry.
Typically, a one-camera shoot will get the job done, and simple graphics and b-roll (or secondary footage) can help better tell the story.
When you’re evaluating your videographer’s production on a high level, ask yourself:
- How does it look?
- Colour is balanced; there aren’t unnatural blue or orange tones throughout
- Colour isn’t oversaturated so that it looks unnatural or diluted so it looks washed out
- Shots are clean and the talent is the main focus
- You don’t find yourself wondering what’s in the background of the shot
- Broll helps tell the story in a way that makes it easier for the audience to understand
- Broll clips are original, and shot of our team.
- If broll is stock footage, it’s appropriate and believable
- Broll stays on the screen long enough to make sense
- Colour is balanced; there aren’t unnatural blue or orange tones throughout
- How does it sound?
- Can you hear what the talent is saying?
- Is there a balance between the music and the interview track?
- Does the music overpower the speaker?
- Is the music appropriate for the brand?
- Does it match the same tone as the rest of the video?
- Does the sound contribute in a positive or negative way to the experience of watching the video?
Talent Evaluation
The other side of the coin involves assessing the videographer’s overall performance in their role, but where do you even start with such an evaluation?
If you’ve never stepped into the shoes of a videographer or collaborated closely with one, figuring out what constitutes a high-quality performance in this role can be a head-scratcher.
How do you gauge whether your specialist is cruising along the path to a stellar quarter?
You can do this by holding:
- Fortnightly 1-1 Meetings
- Quarterly Evaluations
Fortnightly 1-1 Meetings
You may want to consider conducting hour-long fortnightly one-on-one sessions between team members and managers. In preparation for these meetings, team members are tasked with addressing the following questions:
- What’s on your mind?
- Any potential issues on the horizon?
- What have you been focused on over the last two weeks?
- What are the top two things you need to accomplish over the next two weeks?
While these questions might seem broad, they provide team members with the opportunity to articulate their experiences thoughtfully.
If you’re working with a business coach, the last two questions can be tailored to focus on tasks aligning with your company’s priorities for the quarter or specific metrics that the videographer aims to enhance before their next performance review.
How do you respond to some of the answers that might come from the questions?
Well, the first piece of homework to read as a manager of these specialists is The Coaching Habit by Michael Bungay Stanier.
This book will help you frame your discussions around questions with your specialists to help them self-discover how to solve their own problems.
Quarterly Evaluations
At RedPandas, every team member undergoes quarterly evaluations, a crucial process for setting personal priorities in the upcoming quarter. When it comes to the videographer, we’ve designed a performance evaluation template, covering four key aspects:
- Desired results are an accumulation of the end product of the tasks. For example, one of the desired results for a videographer would be publishing eight to twelve videos each month of the quarter. This is a tangible result that is easy to measure and is one of the basic duties of the videographer position
- Functional accountabilities are the key accountabilities of this functional role. These three to five key accountabilities are what this functional role owns
- Key competencies are the most important abilities/skills a person should have to be successful in this functional role. These are the skills needed for a videographer to not only make the videos, but also to manage their workload and be the most trusted voice for video inside of a company
- Core values define the company’s culture and personality. Team members that share these core values can be trusted to make good decisions that align with the company vision
Scoring across these sections empowers you, the manager, to gauge the specialist’s performance. The goal is to cultivate a team of “A-players.”
Quarterly evaluations not only unveil strengths and weaknesses but also guide you in supporting the specialist’s continuous growth and role development within your company.
So, what’s next?
Now that you know how to manage your videographer, it’s time for them to start shooting, editing and publishing videos.
But what videos should they produce first?
There happen to be seven videos that help sales reps close more deals, so these should be the videos your videographer should be starting with.
🔎 Read: Seven Types of Videos to Help Sales Reps Close More Deals
