Avoid These Mistakes When Creating Powerful Stories for Your Organization

I have been creating stories for many non-profit organizations for almost 6 years. I have gone through plenty of trial and error. If there are any tips that I can provide to help you avoid some of the headaches I had to face, then reading this post will surely do you good.

Our Justice Coalition 2014 video was one of our toughest challenge to write a script for. Every year, I feel like there are so many hurdles to go through, because of the nature of this organization. The Justice Coalition is an organization helping innocent victims of violent crimes. Often , we interview victims, whose loved ones were either murdered or violated. But, in the end, we always come out champions! Nevertheless, I will go through some of the mistakes I made and how we were able to find the solution, so that you can easily avoid them when creating your own amazing stories.

Mistake #1:

BE AWARE of your customer's competition. I have been making video for the Justice Coalition (JC) for almost 4 years. Part of the many things they do in Jacksonville, FL is to provide Victims' Advocacy in the courtrooms. The organization was started by a local BBQ restaurant owner about 20 years ago, after he and his staff were robbed at gun point 7 times. Because this man took a stand against crime and started the organization, I was convinced that it was the only victims' advocate agency in town, but that wasn't the case. Others began to spring up through out the years that are state and individually funded. The question for me now remains, "Why should a donor contribute to the Justice Coalition as opposed to the other agencies?" Here's the answer: While the other agencies provide an 8-5 service, the Justice Coalition works around the clock. So, making sure that we pointed the viewers to services that the Justice Coalition offered, other than what transpires in the courtroom, was highly needed.

SOLUTION to #1:

One of the ways to help the viewer see how the Justice Coalition team gets involved outside of the courtroom with their client was to re-enact a scene where Ann Dugger, Execute Director of the organization, is at a press conference offering a cash reward to find the murderer of her client's wife (based on a fictional story). That scene played a very powerful visual. Not only do we show the JC team along the side of the victim before they ever step foot in the courtroom, but we see the law enforcement agents endorsing the organization by standing along Ann's side.

Mistake #2:

NEVER EVER assume that you are only working with one individual in the organization. Sometimes, you need a larger team to get the creative juices flowing. When I started doing videos for the Justice Coalition, I would only interact with Ann Dugger, because I knew that she was the visionary in the organization. But, as time went by, I got to meet the rest of her staff team and learn more about what they knew regarding their organization/ donors/ clients.

SOLUTION #2:

Meeting the rest of the team got me to learn more about Rebecca Dugger, director of business development. When she joined the creative team, I was clearly able to see the different approach she brought to the table. While Ann Dugger, a sweetheart of a woman, brought the compassion to the story through the testimonies of the victims, Rebecca brought the sensitivity of the major donors, who are comprised of men and women in the political and governmental realm. Our last two videos had the presence of law enforcements, senators, and state attorneys to help enhance the credibility of the organization. Rebecca knew that even though it is great to see the testimonies of the victims, the video also needed to carry the support of highly esteemed influencers of the city, who can look into the camera and agree about the impact the Justice Coalition is making.

Mistake #3:

ALWAYS go into details with your customer concerning the script. This is the area, where I fell the shortest in. When I started Name Sake Pictures, organizations would simply hire me to tell their story at a very low cost. But as my rates increase, so does the responsibility and accountability to make sure that I stay on track with the story. That is just perfectly fine with me! My team and I love a good challenge. So, making the vision clear to my customers is now critical. At one point, it wasn't. But now, it is. Because I let this transition slip under me, I ended up re-writing the script 4 times.

Solution #3:

The solution to this mistake really goes back to the first two. Because I wasn't aware that there were other agencies in town similar to the Justice Coalition, I needed to include a scene, like the "press conference", to show the viewers of the other areas that the Justice Coalition helps with. Although I completely agree that we should include stories of powerful testimonies, I had to realize that having endorsements from strong Jacksonville leaders is just as crucial for these types of videos. Having a staff member, like Rebecca, can help you work through the details and into a compelling story.

Life is a learning curve of experience. For the most part, it is trial and error. But, if I can facilitate that trial in your life, man, would that make my day! :) So, if you like what you read, like my company on www.facebook.com/namesakepictures, and share this valuable information in social media group! Thanks again for reading.

7 crafty ways to reduce the cost of your video

Let me start off by saying that most of our customers are recurring customers. They also consist of non-profit organizations. Every year, they hire us to make videos that target the heart of the organization and can deliver a good call-to-action at the end. This shouldn’t be any different for small companies that want the same results, more money.

So here we go!

7 things to help keep your video cost low:

1.) Help with the script. Content is important. Both you and your video producer need to be on the same page when it comes to the message. Tell him/her your vision and write down some of the narration. Keep in mind of the story structure: beginning, middle, and end.

2.) Keep the filming to one location ONLY. Yes, I capitalized the word ‘only’. This will help reduce drive and set up time.

3.) Keep your interviews to a max of two people. I make exceptions to the rule for my long-term customers…because I value them tremendously. We do not take a long time filming, and it lowers the risk of having untrained people in front of the camera for too long.

4.) Offer someone in your team, with a great voice, to do the voice over. I often choose the one with the most passion, because the emotion is projected better in the recording. This will prevent you from hiring a professional voice person.

5.) Get a 2-min video versus anything longer. This will cut down on edit time drastically.

6.) Recycle previously used music. This will prevent your editor from searching for new ones and will reduce the purchase of one.

7.) Provide your editor with pre-recorded, visual content, for b-roll and all. This may be tricky, because they may not match your video’s resolution or aspect ratio. Perhaps, photos would work best. I have to be frank in saying that we don’t do that at Name Sake, because we prefer to keep the same style of filming and the same video configurations. Though, we certainly welcome pictures.

There you have it. These tips will help you save hundreds of dollars. If no other production company is willing to come down on their rates using these, then contact us. Videos are fun to make. The stories you can tell are endless. Whatever content you decide to work on, get it done! Plan ahead to measure the results you are wanting your video to do for you.

Visit us online: www.namesakepictures.com and contact us for a FREE consultation.