Okay, so you have a pretty decent little business happening here, and you’re starting to grow a following on social media. And then an inevitable and horrifying realization arrises. “Oh god… I just heard that I should be filming myself and posting it… But I don’t know how to do that, what would I say..?? Oh geez…”
Hey, hey, hey. Easy now, my friend. I gotcha.
This is how to video yourself for social media.
Filming yourself really isn’t as hard as you may think. As long as you can be patient with yourself, be honest, and stay in the moment while you’re recording – all will be well.
And as an added bonus, doing this is going to build up your self-confidence, how well you know yourself and how well-spoken you are.
The reality of the social media world is that the people who follow you want to see you – and I mean really see you. Think about it – if you’re following an influencer or a YouTuber, you’re seeing them – and only them. You’re following them because you want to see and hear them.
Let’s pause for a moment and reflect on the fact that it isn’t any different in local business. Take myself for example. I post what I believe are the most amazing photos and videos, with perfect colour grades and beautiful stories – and they do alright.
But then I throw up a photo of my face or a talking head video about something I’ve been thinking about and it performs 3-4x better in the likes and interactions department.
I worked hard on the photos and videos that I shared – and they just do alright. Then I don’t even do anything, just share something of myself and everyone’s all over it!
Well – social media is just that – social. According to Oxford, social can be defined as the following:
adjective
1. relating to society or its organization.
“alcoholism is recognized as a major social problem.”
2. needing companionship and therefore best suited to living in communities.
“we are social beings as well as individuals.”
noun
1. an informal social gathering, especially one organized by the members of a particular club or group.
“a church social.”
2. social media sites, applications, or accounts.
“follow all our socials for the latest updates!”
If we look closer into these definitions of the word, we’ll find that at the core of everything social, the common thread is humankind.
People socialize with other people, not photos and videos of inanimate objects. And when we pull back the layers even more – imagine if you were at a party, okay?
Now image you’ve been wanting to talk to this guy, Frank – because you like his mindset, perspective on the world and the type of work that he does.
Now imagine that you start a conversation with him, and everything’s going pretty well (actually, he’s a great conversationalist, so he’s asking questions about you mostly).
A few minutes go by, and then you start to ask Frank about his work. He then proceeds to remove his right shoe, and hold it up to your face. You feel awkward, and try to rephrase the same question 2 or 3 more times, while he continues to just hold up his shoe, maybe giving 1 or 2 word answers.
You wouldn’t be very interested in Frank anymore, would you?
You’d probably go home early and start to question certain things… Wouldn’t you?
That’s where we’re at when we’re dehumanizing our brand on socials. So, let’s not do that. As people, let’s remember that we are in fact social creatures, and we are indeed on social media.
As such, we look to others as mirrors. We see the best and the worst of ourselves in their words and actions. We need those interactions – so, might I suggest that you give your audience what they’re after, and I’ll do the same for myself.
Now, in this realm we have to be realistic – and yes, sometimes we do need to sprinkle in other things to share (enter images and videos of inanimate objects).
Since I’ve painted my picture so eloquently and you’re seeing what I’m seeing now, let’s dive into my top 5 tips on how to film yourself better – so you don’t feel super awkward and cause more damage to your psyche than you already have.
1. Write. It doesn’t matter where or when you write, or even how much you do. Just write. Choose your medium. Use paper pads, or sticky notes. Get a little notebook or start a word document, a Google Doc, or something else I’ve never heard of. And then just get it all out.
Write about your opinions. Write about your likes and dislikes, about what you do best and what you could improve upon.
Once you’ve written enough, you’ll get to a point where you can start to take little snippets of what you’ve said, and distill them down into talking points for videos.
2. Choose a setting and props. Depending on what industry you’re in, you’ll want to choose a setting as well as any assistive props that will help tell your story or share your message.
If you’re a car salesman, sit in a car or stand beside one. If you’re a massage therapist, hang out in a room with a bed, either with a client or not. This list can go on and on – but you get the idea.
3. To start, just hold your phone. We don’t have to get fancy here – hit record and go. One of the best quotes I’ve heard as of late is “there’s nothing to it but to do it.” So, that’s it. Just start.
4. Use a teleprompter. If you aren’t good at remembering talking points and then distilling them down into a minute or so of information – then you’ll want to use a teleprompter.
Luckily, because your phone is a screen and a camera in one, you can download an app for that. There’s plenty of them out there. Upload your script and away you go.
5. Be honest with yourself. When we’re filming ourselves, we need to get really honest and completely drop the ego. Is this good? Would I like watching this if I came across it and I was interested in the niche that I’m talking about?
Don’t think so much about what people think of you, be honest and make things that you love. If you like it, many others will too.
So, that about does it! There’s my top 5 secret tips and tricks for filming yourself. Remember, try to do this as regularly as possible, and don’t be afraid of speaking your truth. Be yourself, and your audience will love you for it.
Pay attention to feedback and interact with what your audience is communicating with you about. There’s going to be a lot of answers to questions you may have regarding the right content direction to take. Look for the signs, and adjust as you move along. Just begin, and the rest will fall into place.
OH and I almost forgot this **BONUS Tip. Buy a LAV mic. A LAV mic is one of those microphones that clips onto your shirt. They make all sorts of tiers of these – mine is made by a company called RODE and it cost about 100 bucks, but there’s cheaper ones as well.
It’s just a tiny little mic on a wire that plugs into your phone – if you’re on an iPhone, you’ll need an adaptor too.
Having good sounding audio is one of the best things that you can do to improve the quality of your videos and increase retention rates.
And as always, if you’re in Barrie, Orillia, Muskoka, Toronto or any of the surrounding areas, four32 MEDIA is always here to help. If you’d like to work with a team of professional story tellers who can share your message, we’re always ready to talk about that.
To Your Success,
Jay Ashcroft
Four32 MEDIA