How often do you laugh at a video on social media or read a news story and want to take action? Whether it’s a video of a cat falling off a roof or a petition to stop a historic building being demolished, the publisher’s objective is always the same: get the audience to react.

When you react to content, it means it has evoked an emotion. If content has significance we are more likely to share it with others, making it an effective marketing tool. Think about the last time you shared content. Chances are it evoked a stronger emotion than the average content you browse.

 How do we evoke emotion in video?

As video producers we interview people off-camera in order to extract the content relevant for the video we are creating – whether it be a corporate video, promotional video or television commercial.

There are two main considerations when focusing on emotion:

1. What emotions do you want the viewer to feel and how would you like them to react?

Content cannot be half-hearted. As a content publisher, you must be clear on what you want the audience to feel and how you would like them to react before producing it.

2. In order to get the desired effect from the audience, you must consider what emotions you would like to extract from the talent (person being interviewed).

For this to happen, you need to work out exactly what content is needed and how to extract that content. This could be through the style in which it is being filmed or written. Or, it could be through the questions asked in an interview with the talent.

The producer must create, guide and direct the content in order to convey the importance of their content. If they don’t believe in the content, there’s no way a viewer will either.

Filtering the drivel

There is an abundance of accessible content available to the consumer. This inevitably leads to the audience becoming blasé and maybe less reactive.

Average content today may have made an impact 10 years ago. Media producers must now strive to create excellent content on a consistent basis.

Simple, no?

Not always! Often the talent is nervous and uncomfortable being filmed. This can be resolved through on-the-spot guidance from the producer or from professional training. Also, not everyone is passionate about their job. This is obviously a big issue when looking to convey emotion, particularly when interviewing someone about their business. They are looking to convey the right emotions.

“People don’t share commercials; they share emotions”, says marketing expert Scott Stratten, who has amassed over 80 million views for his clients.

The importance of emotion is relevant for all mediums, whether you are producing a video, podcast or copywriting. Sarah Mitchell, runs workshops on effective business writing and explains more on how to use language to create an emotional connection.

For more information regarding training and guidance in how to use emotion in content production, feel free to get in touch.

Photo credits:

Feature Image: Hartwig HKD – ‘Hope Arriving’

Image 1: Xavier Donat – ‘Confessions of a street photographer’

Image 2: Grand Canyon National Park: Ranger Guided Hike To Cedar Ridge – 0106