Let’s try a test – Go to YouTube, find a commercial or marketing video and click to watch it. Now turn off the sound and watch the same video again. You’ll probably notice it changes. Its likely harder to follow or less impactful. The tone or the meaning of the video may change. Whether you are launching a product or pitching a new video game, sound plays an important role in marketing videos. Because of the impact sound can have, it is important to consider sound in the early stages of video production.
Sound Recording
Have you ever watched a local TV ad where the person is either yelling at you or there is so much background noise that you can’t understand what they are saying? These videos didn’t take the steps to properly and professionally record sound for their video. Their message doesn’t come across clearly. And therefore one could argue what was the point of the time and expense of producing the video in the first place. Proper sound recording requires good equipment, a talented sound engineer, and paying close attention to the surroundings during recording. Consider background noise like airplanes passing over, cars driving by, people talking, cellphones ringing or buzzing, air conditioners humming, etc. If you pause and just listen to the room you are recording in, everything you hear will likely be preserved in your sound recording.
While there are tools for cleaning up audio recordings, the best results come from recording it without those flaws.
Voice Talent
Even the best equipment and recording conditions can’t make up for poor voice talent. Professional voice artists train their voices to deliver content which is clear, enunciated, and toned to elicit a specific emotion. They provide more than just a cool voice. In a given script, there are hundreds of unspoken pauses, inflection points, and tonal changes which directly impact the message. The same piece of copy can be read in several different ways resulting in different meanings. A professional wields these unspoken tools to increase the effectiveness of the message delivery.
Music
Human beings are drawn to music. It has the power to elicit thoughts and emotions, to bring back memories, and resonate in our heads. Scientists have studied the ability of music to activate portions of the brain not commonly used. If you’ve ever gotten a song stuck in your head (whether you liked it or not), then you understand the impact that music can have. When wielded properly, you can add this same resonance to your marketing video.
The most common source of music in many marketing videos comes from stock libraries online. The tracks are searchable, quick to come by, and relatively inexpensive. The downside is that you may hear the same track used in one of your competitor’s videos, and therefore it lacks the unique connection with your brand. Its important to consider the copyright regulations for a given track. Stock websites will offer levels of licensed use stipulating what you can use the tracks for. YouTube scans content uploaded to its site for possible music copyright infringement and temporarily disables content until proof can be given that the uploader has the right to distribute that media. For most music tracks, copyright laws state that any public or commercial use of that content, even internally, without proper usage rights, is technically illegal.
The best way to get completely original, brand specific music to accompany your marketing video is to have it professionally composed. This could involve recording a music track performance or digitally composing the music from scratch. For large marketing campaigns with wide distribution on various media channels, this method is often cheaper than properly licensing existing music tracks. And you are leveraging the power of that specific track all to your own brand. So when a person next to you on the subway is humming your song, in essence your brand is resonating with them.
The R.E.D. Team
www.rapideyedigital.com
www.rapideyedigital.com/blog
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