Top 3 tips to consider before you go and make your next viral video…*

*A memo to clients

On location in Abu Dhabi for a genius Etihad Airways campaign.

Everyone who runs a company — whether as a solopreneur or part of a big corp — wants video ads. Everyone. We could get into a lofty debate about the higher art form of film (which I sort of do, here), but the truth really just comes down to basic numbers: video has the highest click-through rate of all digital ad formats. Period.

The truth is also that video ads tend to get less priority in a company’s creative roster. It’s not really that shocking given that a single video, for example, is by nature just that much more expensive to produce than a single image.

And therein lies the marketing conundrum I often find prospective clients in: they want videos (desperately), but just don’t have the budgets.

Listen, this article is not about undercutting myself or any other filmmaker out there. Far from that. My aim, rather, is to tell you that you can have your cake and eat it too (the proverbial cake here being a video, of course). You can have it all, honestly, if you just change a few of your expectations about what kind of cake you’re after. And no, this won’t make it a shittier cake — nay, far from it. I’m about to argue that by changing your expectations of the kind of videos you need to be producing, you may not only be able to produce more of them (win!), but also more of the better kind, like, you know… the ones that actually convert (double win!!).

So, before you go ahead and commit to producing that much-needed video for your funnel — or straight up just give up trying because you think you can’t afford it — you need to read the following. From a seasoned filmmaker, to a desperate client seeking video.

Here are the 3 things you need to consider before you go and make your next viral video:

A behind-the-scenes look of helping grow one of Facebook’s biggest marketing gurus.

1. Let go of going viral

I’m going to say it straight up: before we can move on with any kind of appropriate sanity here, ditch the idea of going viral. Seriously. Just let it go. I cannot count how many times a client has come to me saying they would like a viral video. As if such videos were small orders delivered upon genuine intent. Trust me, no one knows the recipe for a viral video. No one can predict when a video will go viral. And even with all the digital marketing wizardry in the world — with keywords, SEO, custom audiences, and such — you still can’t guarantee virality. I know, it sucks. Trust me. Or not. Take it from the Godfathers of viral videos themselves, you know, the marketing legends behind the viral videos like Squatty Potty and Chatbooks, as the Harmon Brothers say: “Viral is like catching lighting in a bottle. It’s incredibly hard to do and equally shocking when you do it. So take pressure off of yourself.”

Here’s what you do when you take pressure off of yourself and stop requesting viral videos: you stop wasting money and actually focus on your hero, the client. Your client doesn’t need a big production, or a unicorn shitting rainbows (sorry, Squatty Potty). When a client says to me they want to go viral, I usually expect a lot of money to get thrown at a big production that’s more fan fare and craze than anything else. Too often, these videos lose site of their client’s needs and even worse, leaves the client without enough budget to spare to actually put any proper ad spend behind said over-priced video (remember: the golden ratio of ad spend for a video is about 30% of your total budget).

So, this is where I introduce the next tip to consider before making that ‘viral’ video of yours: constraint.

2. It’s okay to have a small budget

We’ve all heard it said before, but it bears repeating: creativity flourishes in constraints. That includes financial constraints. The truth is, more money does not mean better videos. A better camera and higher resolution will also NOT make for better videos. We’ve all seen million dollar ads that have flopped. Likewise, we’ve all seen shoddy smartphone videos that have gone viral on YouTube. It might sound unfair, but I think that’s the great equalizer of filmmaking: our art lies not in the superficial (believe it or not), but in the connections it ignites. And hard as it might be to hear (or say, as a filmmaker), connection is actually quite cheap, SO LONG as it’s damn authentic (That magic word! More on this below…).

So, with that said: it’s okay to have a budget. Even a small budget. But (CAUTION! PAY ATTENTION!) just PLEASE don’t cheap out on where it really matters: Story. Or, if you prefer you can call this: ideation. Or, development. Or, scriptwriting. Or whatever you want to call it, really. Basically, it’s the very first step before you ever pick up a camera. That part. And it’s amazing how many clients will forego that part in order to ‘save’ time and money; Or, how many times I’ve been hired to shoot with that hopeful email that reads, ‘We’ll figure it out as we go’. Sure, that approach works… sometimes. But the truth is also that the Squatty Potty and Dollar Shave Club homers of video ads have had more than a bit of thought put into them. They were genius concoctions of more than just a single brain. They were created out of an exchange of ideas and dialogue. And you too can strive for better, more creative videos if you allow for this process to occur.

So, next time rather than focusing your attention on the latest gimbal craze, or 8k resolution footage shot on a Red Camera, save some of your energy and budget for what really matters: the story.

Case Study: I don’t even want to say how much budget this video had behind it (read: barely nothing)… and yet, it got the client enough click-throughs to make it their highest converting ad of the year. Not bad for shit!

3. Ditch the brand

Last, but very not least. This point more than anything is something I find myself repeating to clients over and over: Ditch the brand! It may be overmuch to say at this point as we have long entered an era of ad-speak oozing ‘realness’. Authenticity is, after all, the buzzword of marketing (the irony of which should not be lost in the age of Instagram). Nonetheless, for some reason it bears repeating: be real.

Be real!

And please, ditch the brand (so to speak). You don’t need a video to flash your logo, or recite your company pillars in order to be an authority in your space. Carhartt nailed this on the head with their video featuring Jason Momoa. Not once was the brand name mentioned. Instead, the ad took viewers on a soulful journey about a man (sure, a very famous and sexy man, but still, just a man). People connected. Because the truth is, they don’t care about your name, your logo, or how many followers you have; what they care about is feeling as if they could aspire to be your friend. They want to identify with what you’re doing, plain and simple. And if they connect, they will hound you down.

So, before you go make your next ‘viral’ video: don’t worry about how you’ll look. Worry instead about how your clients will feel. Make damn sure of that, and I guarantee your creative dollar will go further and convert better, every time.

Case Study 2: Etihad did a brilliant job of keeping it real & low key in their latest marketing campaign where they flew 20 of us filmmakers out to showcase their home city, Abu Dhabi. Major ad campaign win.

With these 3 tips in mind, hopefully you’ll learn to generate (more) amazing videos that also, consistently convert better. That way, you can definitely have your marketing cake and eat it too.

Pssst… If you’re a coach or entrepreneur struggling to bring in traffic - Here’s a tip for the next video you should be making for your funnel. Caution, it actually has to do with YOU. Read on here.