Structuring Your Video Content with Nick Creedon

Getting in front of a camera and recording yourself for the sole purpose of sharing it with your entire network can feel daunting, to say the least. I get it. But in today’s world, video content is such a huge part of connecting with people that you can’t let yourself miss out just because you’re unsure of how to start.

I sat down with video content expert Nick Creedon to narrow down some key ways you can structure your video content creation to make it seem, first of all, far more approachable, and second, actually effective!

To get started, Nick helped break down some of the most common myths and hesitations around video content. Here are four of the most common barriers that stop people from creating their own video content, or from creating content that’s just missing the mark:

1. Finding the time. People are busy and they tend to put video content at the lowest priority they can, but in reality, this is just an excuse to put off doing something that seems scary. There’s always time to make a 60-second video, and even those of us who do find the time, we often struggle to stay consistent. We might make one piece of content and then never get back to making a second.
2. Fear of the imperfect. It’s intimidating to see yourself on camera and so people often put off creating video content because they feel like they have to look their absolute best, primped and polished before they can record anything. Nick shared some excellent advice here and it was that the more authentic your video is, the more people will connect with it. Being real is relatable, and relatable material sells.
3. No videography experience. It’s far too easy to convince yourself you’re incapable of creating great video content simply because you’re not a pro. But that’s the farthest thing from the truth! You don’t need any video, editing, or recording skills to snap a quick video on your phone. Again, authenticity sells, and you don’t need studio lighting or perfect cut-shots to look professional.
4. Fear of the unknown. Being unsure of how your content will be received, what people will think of you, or if it’ll have any impact at all is certainly a blocker for many people. Venturing into a new stream of marketing opens many doors, and the advice Nick gave in response to this was twofold: First, practice makes perfect. Second, new ventures open new opportunities. You never know what your next lead will respond to.

When we see videos of people we admire, we instinctively compare ourselves to them and their seemingly less impeccable video content skills. The truth is, these people that we admire had to start somewhere, and they likely started exactly where you are today. What we don’t see is the incredible amount of video content that didn’t make the cut, the countless hours spent pep-talking themselves in the bathroom mirror, and the mess left behind from all the outfit changes.

We all have to start somewhere, and when you start at the beginning, there’s nowhere to go but forward. It’s all about gaining confidence through practice and repetition.

So, how do you get started? Nick shared a really insightful tip on getting over these hesitations and preparing yourself to film:

• When you’re getting ready to film a piece of video content and you’re mulling over everything you want to say and the message you want to get across, it really helps to talk through it first without the pressure of the camera.
• Whether you talk through it in a casual conversation with a friend or you “rehearse” behind the scenes, verbally putting a message together really helps you visualize the end product. Once you’re able to run through your message a couple of times, you’ll feel a lot more confident just talking about it generally that when it comes time to set up the camera, it won’t make all that much of a difference.
• You might even take it one step further and ask a friend to sit behind the camera and listen while you record. This way, your video comes off naturally engaging because you’re talking to a real human, not an imaginary audience of strangers.
• The last and probably most important piece of advice I got from Nick was that imperfections are actually the things that make video content perfect. Everything you do that comes naturally is what makes your video relatable, authentic, and trustworthy. If you’re dolled up to the nines reciting an obviously rehearsed script, you’re going to come across as distant and unapproachable, which is not at all helpful when it comes to connecting with new leads.