Video storytelling is one of the most powerful digital marketing tools to cut through the noise and connect with your audience when you have a well-thought-out plan. It’s a roadmap that can guide visual marketing professionals through the process.
But not every video storytelling project is successful. Do you wonder what goes into the most successful ones?
The key to more video marketing success is to have a better understanding of the process, video people, and the medium.
For these answers, tools, and tips from video marketing professional insiders, AMA Philadelphia reached out to Katherine Bex, Assistant Professor of Instruction at Temple University, Klein College of Media and Communication, and Ron Cohen, Creative Director at Out of the Blue Group, and Ed Seiders, Director of Business Development at 20/20 Visual Media for insights gained from over a decade in video marketing, storytelling, and production.
Why Video Storytelling Matters
The average person is exposed to about four to 10,000 ads a day, according to goadfuel.com.
“We’re so marketing savvy from being exposed to it,” explained Bex, that we tune out the advertiser’s and marketer’s message.
The video cuts through the news when “you know who it is you’re trying to reach,” Bex said, “and how to make an emotional connection with them in an authentic, relatable way.”
Businesses using video as a marketing tool have climbed to 91 percent, according to Wyzeowl’s Video Marketing Statistics 2024 report with 87 percent of marketers getting a positive ROI.
That doesn’t surprise Seiders, who has been in video marketing for over 20 years. “We’ve seen that most businesses capitalize on video content to get their story out to their audiences.”
Want to Learn More About Video Production, Smart Budgeting, and Video Success?
Mid-level visual marketing professionals, video agencies, or those involved with video creation and decision-making, you are invited to participate in the AMA Philadelphia September Executive Circle in-person expert panel discussion. Engage in high-level conversations, develop a roadmap for video production success, and gain valuable insights, tools, and tips to harness the power of video storytelling for B2B and B2C markets.
If that’s you, mark your calendar. Reserve your spot.
Join us at our next Executive Circle to learn the “Secrets of Video Storytelling Success” on Wednesday, September 25 from 8:30 am to 10:30 am at GK Motion + Studio – Get-Kinetic.
You will learn:
- Realistic budget expectations and how to communicate that to video teams
- Understand how to select, inform, and collaborate with video storytellers
- Tips and tools for both the selection and preparation of visual marketing professionals
- Advice on ways to maximize ROI in visual assets
- Video trends to watch
There is no selling before, during, or after… just a chance to join the lively discussion, exchange ideas, ask questions, and gather useful information to inform decision-making. It’s also an opportunity to meet your next potential business partner or grow your network.
Come to be engaged, empowered, and inspired!
Meet Our All-Star Expert Panelists and Moderator
Panel Moderator
Katherine Bex knew from her first creative project in kindergarten she was destined to become a visual storyteller and pursue a path in advertising. Her work on the agency and client-side led to teaching in academia. Her passion for higher education grew from her fun, innovative digital campaigns for the business school at Drexel University which led to her attaining the 2010 Philadelphia AMA Marketer of the Year Award.
Now an Assistant Professor of Instruction at Temple University’s Klein College of Media and Communication, Katie inspires and supports students in creative thinking. She’s proud to have received the 2024 Junior Faculty Teaching Award and enjoys sharing her experiences in advertising and marketing.
With over 15 years of experience, Katie brings a blend of creativity and analytical skills to her work. She’s a proud member of Beta Gamma Sigma and holds a Master of Science in Digital Marketing from Temple University’s Fox School of Business.
Expert Panelists
Ron Cohen with over 25 years of experience, has crafted compelling videos and TV spots that resonate with audiences. From technical expertise to storytelling mastery, Ron’s passion for impactful visuals shines through. His work has touched lives through healthcare stories, pharmaceutical programs, and documentaries. Ron’s ability to connect with subjects and create engaging narratives has earned him numerous awards.
Ed Seiders is a seasoned Director of Business Development at 20/20 Visual Media. With over 20 years in the industry, he has seen it all from production to business strategy. His ability to talk to anyone and find new ways to connect and cultivate relationships has helped 20/20 Visual Media to grow to new heights. Ed’s curiosity about the world and people helps him and his team get to the heart of the stories they tell.
He has taught as an adjunct teacher at his alma mater, Temple University, and has been on various civic, industry, and nonprofit boards. He has been involved with nonprofits that provide services to those with special needs, mental health awareness, and LGBTQ+ rights.
Insights for Video Storytelling Success
The Video Storyteller’s Lens
Video storytelling is a passion and a mission for Seiders. “For me, it’s all about the people.” Getting to the heart of their stories “brings us together.”
It helps people who are struggling to not feel so alone. “If I can help tell stories of how other people deal with obstacles in their life, whether it’s cancer, depression, or ‘living in the closet,’ not being their true selves,” Seiders believes that would allow the forgotten to feel seen, heard, and understood to strengthen society.
“I’m passionate about using video to direct films because I work with people who are saving lives,” said Cohen. For him, video marketing is crafting transformative, life-saving stories. “The most rewarding part is seeing the impact our commercials and videos have on patients who are alive today because they saw our commercial.”
He has gained this perspective from working with some of the leading healthcare and pharma organizations, like Temple Health, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Mainline Health, Penn Medicine, and Johnson & Johnson.
Video Storytelling Success
“When you have the right people, in the right place, asking the right questions to tell a story, video can be very powerful.” Seiders said it comes down to pre-production and understanding your client’s needs. “As a vendor, it’s important for us to know our client as much as we can. We want to be an extension of their team, so we try and learn what they do, how they do it, the people that they work with, and who are the main voices behind the organization.”
“Successful video projects come from digging and trying to understand what stories move the needle for an organization.”
-Seiders, Director of Business Development at 20/20 Visual Media
How do you find the deeper story?
His recent “Little League Baseball World Series – #11” story gives you an insider’s view of how to uncover the deeper meaning. “The baseball World Series takes up most of the month of August on ESPN. You can watch the games. They’re wonderful and fun to watch.”
Consider the lesser-known story behind the players and teams. Delving into their journey is “where we come in to do those human-interest pieces like this one that ties into why #‘11 is so significant within Little League and the World Series. It’s a retired number that honors the sacrifice of one of the youngest firefighters to perish in 9/11.”
To reveal those gems and capture what Little League is all about, what they promote to our youth, they “double down on the values” which underly the organization. “It’s not all about winning,” Seiders pointed out. “It’s about learning, growing, and understanding. So, we go beyond just the fun game coverage that you might find on ESPN.”
Winning over your audience and guests
People have a short attention span. They are jaded. You need to find something that excites or compels them. “What we do with our storytelling is find the beginning, middle, and end of a good story with a great hook,“ explained Cohen. Then build upon that and come full circle.
In some health-related stories, there isn’t always a happy ending, so “you can’t wrap everything into a perfect bow. It’s not always easy. It’s not always clean. But you can find the element of interest that perks up their interest and helps the audience connect and engage with the people being interviewed.”
He explained the process. “We find the interesting element of the story and the compelling visuals.” Cohen used the example of a woman who was grappling with a disability, psoriatic arthritis, who had limited hand mobility. Before the treatment, she could barely move her hands.
“We had to figure out what visual footage conveys to the audience that now she has a full range of motion and how her life has changed.” There were shots of her creating art, scrubbing down her dog, and chatting with the family. The last footage was her daughter swimming across the pool. Afterward, she was able to applaud loudly to cheer her on.
The other thing is “to get people comfortable in the space, whether it’s a client, or doctor who is giving you a half hour and doesn’t want to be there.” Cohen advised meeting with them ahead of time to break the ice.
“So, by the time video guests show up on the set and there are two cameras, lights, and a makeup person futzing over them, they are no longer intimidated. They can open up and share their story.”
-Ron Cohen,Creative Director at Out of the Blue Group
Informing and preparing video partners
Video marketing success also hinges on educating your clients about the process noted Seiders. “It’s about getting to know and understand what clients want to do, want to tell, and their purpose for creating the video.” He then hands it off to his production team “to tell those stories in the most captivating, engaging way.”
Seiders often encounter clients who “don’t really understand what goes into it and what you need in terms of logos, animations, supporting visuals, and anything else that we might need from them to tell their story. People don’t know what they don’t know,” he said.
He often gets calls from business owners saying, “‘Well, my competitor just did this, so now I need to do it.’ “But they don’t really have a strategy or a plan in place. They’re just doing it because they feel like they need to do it.”
He knows for a video project to be successful, it must be mutually beneficial for the client and the end users, their customers. That means informing clients, managing their expectations, and building reciprocal partnerships based on these principles:
- Cultivate cooperation and collaboration and be willing to work to make it successful
- Align strategies and objectives of their organization
- Be flexible on both sides: vendor and video partners
Video Trends to Watch
Short-form videos are the low-hanging fruit Bex pointed out, “because our attention span has severely shortened. If you don’t grab and hold attention in the first six seconds,” she said, “people are scrolling on. Today you see a lot of reels that have a teaser. They pose a question and don’t answer it until the end of the 30-second video.” The challenge: How do we convey our message in a much shorter time frame?
Bex has discovered another video trend from recent projects and what she has read that heroic stories are gaining traction now that we’re moving past the pandemic. “We are looking for a hero,” Bex said. “People love to hear motivational narratives with a human story arc capturing our universal shared experiences, especially “about coming of age with a mother and daughter or father and son.”
Cohen also sees social trends in videos that skew toward shorter pieces. Five years ago, his mix was mostly broadcast, TV, and radio. Now he does “a ton of Pandora radio and YouTube pre-roll ads” that play before the video, some for only 15 seconds.
Recently, he did a two-minute “hype video,” as his clients called it. They combined old footage with new, layered fast-paced transitions and graphics, and dubbed dramatic music tracks to put it together. “Our clients wanted bold and we gave it to them,” Cohen said. “Our art director took it to a whole new level.”
Artificial Intelligence’s Impact on Video
“In the marketing and advertising field, we are all heavily affected by AI and concerned where it’s going to take the industry, how things are going to change.” Bex fervently believes, “You must embrace AI to get ahead. If I’m working with a brand and I’m not utilizing artificial intelligence, I’m going to be left behind,” she noted.
But what will set apart advertisers and marketers “ties back to authenticity in video storytelling. We need to consider how can we create an authentic voice that resonates and fosters an emotional connection while maintaining the mission. I can’t underscore that enough.”
Bex revealed how big brands like Heinz have figured out how to leverage AI in their video campaigns with transparency.
“They said they ‘we’re going to use artificial intelligence to draw a picture of a ketchup bottle.’” As she dug deeper into the campaign, she explained the surprising results. “All the renderings using the visual art AI platforms drew Heinz ketchup bottles.” This led Heinz to incorporate it into their advertisement. Their core message: ‘When you think of ketchup even artificial intelligence thinks of Heinz.’
“It’s about using artificial intelligence to enhance the message, not to become the message.” Her distinction is worth noting. “AI is great for getting those beginning ideas. Where do I start? What would I need?”
If you want to put together a video budgeting package, Bex pointed out, “you can ask AI to please evaluate this from the perspective of a brand to get another set of eyes,” like an editorial assistant. “I’m fine using ChatGPT as a basis of ideas, where to start, or to discover what I might be missing, utilizing smart prompts to gain a different perspective.” It helps advertisers and marketers to work smarter.
But what alarms Bex, and should concern all creatives, are the “staggering statistics.”
“In a few years, the whole internet is going to be the voice of AI because people are using it to build content, solely relying on AI as the ‘human voice.’ I believe that the authentic human voice is going to be what differentiates brands.”
-Katherine Bex, Assistant Professor of Instruction at Temple University’s Klein College of Media and Communication
Want to learn more about the secret to successful video storytelling projects? Join us at GK Vidio Studio. Reserve your seat today at our next AMA Executive Circle Breakfast to learn the “Secrets of Video Storytelling Success.”
Why not share with a friend or invite your team to level up your video storytelling success!
Lynda Dell is the AMA Philadelphia blog editor and content strategist. She is also a collaborative copywriting partner for B2B K-12 learning, Edtech, health brands, training, and nonprofits. She turns the complex into clear, compelling stories with content that connects, cares, and changes lives. When not writing, she’s exploring the Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton Township, NJ, hiking, and listening to leadership podcasts.