When launching a new product, producing a new product launch video is a highly effective way of showing off what you’re about to share with the world.
Slick visuals, beautiful shots of your products and exciting use of your branding are all elements that contribute to an effective product launch video.
You may even be in a position where you feel ready to dive in and shoot the product. Hell, you’ve got your product, you’ve got a camera, what’s stopping you?
As much as we love the enthusiasm, let’s just take a step back for a moment. It’s all very well and good being in a position to shoot your new product launch video, but what exactly are you going to shoot?
Before you press record on your camera, it’s important to take some key aspects of your video into consideration before you get rolling. If you don’t have a vision of what you’re going to create and why you’re doing it, you’ll inevitably be disappointed by the final outcome.
Over the course of this blog, we’re going to cover four things to take into consideration for a new product launch video. These include;
- Messaging & Visuals
- Audience & Platform
- Deliverables
- Scale of production
After considering these four key elements, you’ll be in a strong position to dive in and film a killer new product launch video.
If in the meantime you want to sharpen your skills in how to film a product video, check out our how to shoot product videos like a professional guide.
Messaging & Visuals Of A New Product Launch Video
Before even getting the camera out of the box, it’s important to know what you want your new product launch video to say and what you want it to look like.
Product videos come in all sorts of shapes and sizes and are used in marketing campaigns for different reasons.
Messaging is key to any video. Videos are a visual form of communication. Yes, they have the power to look amazing (and we’ll get onto that), but when you’re launching your new product you want the audience to receive your marketing message. Not just to think; “oh that looks nice”.
Without getting too deep into the ins and outs of marketing theory, when developing your marketing plan you will have thought of the message you want your product to convey to your target market.
Whether this message is, “look how much time this product saves you” or “you’re the type of person this product was designed for”, this message needs to be crystal clear in your product launch video.
Even if your marketing plan is more complex than this, boil it down to the one main message you want to convey and build everything you do with your video around this.
You’re going for something short and snappy here so make sure your message isn’t lost within an overly complex video.
How Do You Want Your Product To Look?
Now we can have a think about the visuals. If you now know what you want your video to say to this audience, you can think about how it is going to do so.
For instance, if your messaging is focused on something quality-related, you’ll want your product to look really visually appealing.
This is where it is good to think of your product as the main model in its own TV advert.
Which are its best features?
Which are its best angles?
Taking this into consideration will mean as you start filming your new product launch video, you are only capturing visuals that add to the core messaging of your video.
Remember, we of course want the video to look good. But not just for the sake of looking good. It is a communication tool to share your core message through.
What Kind Of World Do You Want Your Product To Live In?
No, I’m not looking for the answer “a world where we’re all friends and we love each other all the time.” Although this would be amazing, the invented world of your product video set is a visual world.
This is where we really tie together the video message and the visuals.
If let’s say your product is a health aid, you don’t want the surrounding environment of the video to have connotations of unhealthy living.
(You wouldn’t see dumbbells sat on a bed of Doritos.)
The set you create for your product launch video gives the context to the product you’re selling.
The props and backdrop can go such a long way to lifting the image around your product. You go from a standalone product existing along in an isolated world. To a new item that lives in a universe that says so much more than just the practicality of what the product offers.
If you can create a world around your product that enhances the video’s core message then you are well on your way to connecting with your target audience.
The example below is a great example of how the set can create a world around your product that makes the messaging resonate very strongly.
Target Audience & Platform
So you’ve decided on the message you want your new product launch video to convey and you’ve considered how it’s going to look. The next big consideration is your target audience and how you are going to best reach them.
Going back to the message you want your product video to convey, this is exactly what you need to keep in mind when you think about the next consideration.
Who do I want to see my video?
The answer to this might well be your gran or the influencer on Instagram you want to impress with your content, but the real answer you need to consider is the person that you want your video to most resonate with.
This is pretty much the same consideration as the target audience of your product, however, video is a very specific medium. Not all of your target audience will be drawn in by video.
So this is where you’ve got to think about the sector of your target audience that is firstly;
- Going to be watching video content online
And secondly is;
- Going to react to video content online
Figuring this out may seem a bit dull and mundane, but what you have now is a very helpful link between the intent of your video and the end goal.
For instance, if I’ve got a bluetooth speaker I’m creating a new product launch video for and I want the message of the video to be;
“This speaker is unbelievable to use on the beach”
And I’ve also identified that it is young people into watersports that will react well to a video, I’m no longer just shooting this video with everyone who has ever been on a beach in mind, I have a specific audience.
This not only will help you when executing the style of the video, but it is vitally important for our next consideration.
How are you going to reach your intended audience?
Quite simply put, this consideration is all about the platforms you are going to publish your content via.
Your instinct may go to all of the platforms and there is no need to rule that out straight away. However, spreading the release of the video too thin can reduce its impact.
If you’ve got budget and time constraints, which let’s face it, pretty much everyone does. Then focusing on the platforms that are going to have maximum impact, rather than just blindly uploading to any website you’ve ever stepped foot on is usually the way to go.
There are two main things to address here;
- On which platforms will your message be best received by your target audience?
- How do you need to adapt your video to be optimised for these platforms?
Which platforms to post to?
There are so many possibilities here. Your website for starters, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, that forum you go on until the early hours of the morning talking about conspiracy theories. There is a lot to consider.
As I already mentioned, the answer might be all of them. If it is, that’s fine. Your overall marketing strategy might demand it.
But the main thing to ask yourself at this point is where is your new product launch video going to have the most impact?
If you can justify using a platform in line with this question, then go ahead.
But if you don’t see the merits of using it. Don’t feel bad about not being on there. You know your audience and by now you know how you’re video is going to connect with them. Meet them where they are.
We have a dedicated blog on video content for social media – read more here.
Optimising Your Product Video
Beyond the notion of doubling down on the most impactful platforms, there is also a practical reason for this consideration.
That is the optimising of your video edits.
Once you’ve decided on the platforms that your product video is going to be on, just using the same version of the video on each is not going to cut it.
Each platform is optimised in different ways. Whether that be the dimensions of the video (e.g. square, portrait or landscape), the length of your video or more generally the style of the edit.
Simply posting the same version of your video to every platform is wilfully accepting that your content is not going to perform as well as it could do with tailored edits.
On a very simple level creating a landscape, square and portrait version is a must to ensure you are at least giving the platforms what they want.
(This regularly updated blog is a brilliant reference point for the latest platform dimensions)
This way you can hit YouTube, Instagram feeds, Instagram Stories, TikTok and Facebook in their preferred format, giving you the best chance possible to get that all-important reach you are after.
This doesn’t have to be as hard work as you think if you’re using a platform that can post to multiple platforms for you.
Beyond that, considering how content is consumed on each platform will impact how you cut alternative edits.
YouTube tends to attract viewers who want to watch longer content with a more informative slant. Whereas TikTok is all about pace and grabbing attention quickly.
Style is another consideration well worth thinking about when editing alternative versions. Style is as important as the specific dimension and length.
Even try multiple versions that you can roll out at different points or in different ad sets to test what resonates with your audience.
This is something we’d absolutely recommend and will take your new product launch video from an impressive little release to something that will have long-lasting impact and ultimately get the results you want.
Now, can you see why choosing your platforms is important? Making a nice video is wonderful, creating video content that has an impact is the real golden ticket. With just a bit of extra thought and time put into the process, you can make this leap.
Side note; have you considered still photography at the same time? If you’re going to go to the lengths of creating a world for your product to live in. When capturing beautiful video content, why not spend a bit of extra time snapping some product photography whilst you’re at it?
This might not even be your main product photography, but some cool behind-the-scenes snaps go a long way for supplementary marketing campaigns as part of your new product launch.
Just something to think about 😉
What’s the scale of your new product launch video?
Sorry to be Mr Monopoly here, but both time and money are very important considerations when shooting a new product launch video.
As much as we’d love all product video shoots to be equal, the fact is that there are many variables involved.
But the main thing to consider here is;
how much time and money are you willing to invest in the project?
Time will impact how technical the shots are you can execute, the detail of the set you can build and the time you can spend editing those funky transitions and cool effects.
Money will impact the quality of the set you can build, the lighting you can employ and the quality of camera you use.
The main tip here is to identify your limitations and constraints early in the process.
If you don’t have much time or money to invest in the project, keep it simple. You’ll find the execution will be so much better if you work within your limits rather than try fruitlessly to work beyond them.
Quite literally write a list of all the things you practically need to put in place to pull off the shoot. Whether this be the props, the space or the time, this will allow you to put together a helpful production plan.
As is often said, a tight brief and clear contrictions let the creativity flow as you know exactly what you’re working with. This is so applicable when it comes to your new product launch video.
What if this is all a bit too much?
Well, the good news as always is that the Glacé Media team are always here to help.
At Glacé Media we love diving into new projects and are fully set up to knock out tip-top product videos.
If you’ve got the initial vision for your new product launch video but just need some help in bringing it all together, that is exactly where we can come in.
After producing a whole range of product videos ourselves in an array of different styles, we are fully equipped to complete the above for you and even go beyond!
Don’t hesitate to drop us a message, even if you just want to hear our thoughts on your ideas. We’re a friendly bunch and we love collaborating on projects.
But now it’s over to you. We fully encourage you to dive in and get working on your new product video. You’ve spent all of this time developing the product so it absolutely makes sense to give it its moment in the spotlight.
Whether you go it solo or work with us to do so, there are so many possibilities. It’s time to get creative!
