Based on a conversation with Rami Kalla, CEO of Point in Time Studios, Inc.
How do you help brands tell their stories through video?
First, we listen and try to understand the brand. We try to understand their messaging, their goals, and who they are as a company. It’s important for us to recognize what they provide, and how they solve problems for their customers.
Steven Cubby says, “first seek to understand, then be understood”. You can’t create content without first understanding the customer.
Once we understand the brand identity, we pull all the tools from our toolbox to see how we can help the company reach their goals. Whether that be a promotional video, culture video, a VR experience, 2D or 3D animation. Each solution varies by client, as we work to find the best way to get the message across while remaining on budget.
After deciding on what project type works best for the message, we dive into creative. That includes long meetings with our Producers and the client’s team. We brainstorm together, like throwing spaghetti on the wall to see what sticks. We work on the story and how to deliver it, keeping in mind the client’s goals.
There are a lot of variables that go into telling the story. It is not an easy task to tell a brand’s story in 30-seconds. Sometimes clients have a list of 10 points they want to get across in a single message.
These types of advertisements are not effective.
Our favorite way to get a message across effectively is to choose just one point to get across in the message. Attention spans are becoming increasingly shorter over time, and the message needs to come across as quickly as possible before we lose the audience.
The true art is in getting the message across in the shortest amount of time, in an impactful way.
What do you make sure to incorporate every time you tell a brand’s story?
The one thing that we try to incorporate every time we tell a brand’s story is the human element. Sometimes clients get caught up in the message or trying to sell a product, and they forget that people buy from people. There are three reasons that people buy from you:
- They have to know you.
- They have to like you.
- They have to trust you.
What video does so well, when it’s done well, is it evokes emotion. Trust is earned from incorporating that human element into the videos. That human connection paired with a great message will help customers open their wallets and want to do business with you.
Do you have any helpful video storytelling tips?
- Listen and get all of the information.
- Be concise and get to the point.
- Don’t try to fit too much into a short video – if you want more content, make more videos!
- Understand your audience.
What is your favorite storytelling video that Point in Time Studios has worked on?
A company called Brooklyn Bedding. The company was owned by two brothers and they wanted to showcase their origin story and how they started their company. One of the brothers started selling mattresses out of a truck and was known as ‘The Mobile Mattress’ guy. 20 years ago, you could call at any time if you needed a mattress, and he would show up at your door in 15-minutes, give you some options, and you could pick one out. In fact, they just sold the multi-million dollar company with multiple warehouses, but they started from humble beginnings.
I really loved the story, so for the video, we rented a truck, took all the lettering off, and had him driving and telling the story as if it was back in the day. I just wanted to capture the essence of that story. It was amazing working with them to help tell their story.
