Five Tips for Finding a Good Video Personality

Building your brand through video is quickly becoming a favorite method of outreach for companies hoping to grab that coveted 18-35 demographic. Unfortunately, not every office is filled with talented speakers that enjoy spending time in front of a camera.

Instead of making your existing staff uncomfortable, finding a good, identifiable personality might make more sense. Not only can they do wonders to enhance your brand’s public image, hiring a talented video personality provides some level of consistency to your video production.

Ideally, this person would be capable of filling key roles in a variety of situations, including everything from promotional material to corporate training. The time and money you potentially save in the long run by eliminating repetitive recording sessions with a less-experienced person at the helm will more than make up for the fee of retaining video talent as either an occasional contract laborer or even a full-time employee.

Below are a few tips to help you find the right person for the job.

Is Your Talent Passionate About Your Product and Brand?

While not every candidate will be as much of an expert on your business as your existing team, there is something to be said for finding a video personality who is passionate about your business. For example, if you run a mobile game development company, you will likely find far more success working with people that actually take part in mobile gaming.

Likewise, it takes longer to produce consistently good video content when the person in front of the camera has no idea what they’re actually talking about. This applies whether your business deals in bicycles or home improvement products. Knowing the subject matter and having a passion for it goes a long way towards making your presenter come across as genuine and knowledgeable.

Don’t Hire Based on Looks Alone

Too many video endeavors start the hiring process by looking for beautiful people. Whether your on screen talent is a man or a woman, looks will only get your video production so far. Appearance certainly matters. You should hire someone who is willing to present themselves in a manner consistent with your brand, but hiring someone because they are pleasant to look while hoping you can “work with them as you go” on the actual delivery is a risky strategy.

Find someone who can deliver your message with a practiced approach to presentation, regardless of what they look like. You don’t have time to ask someone to speak up and slow down (or even speed up) while the cameras are rolling. All performers require some direction, but the great performers learn quickly and adapt to your needs without needing constant reminders.

Stuttering, mispronunciations, and general poor delivery can make or break a video campaign. People want information delivered quickly and smoothly.

Will People Connect with Your Performer?

Think about your target customer. Who is more likely to view your videos while making a buying decision? Are they stuffy boardroom types or trendy hipsters in skinny jeans and scruffy beards? The person you have on screen should be relatable to the people you’re trying to attract.

I know not every company out there wants to have someone in a tank top with piercings in their nose representing their brand, but there is a time and a place where this type of image is exactly what you’re going to need to make the connection.

Your videos tell the story of your company. Do you want that story to be told by your investors or your customers? If you love money, you’ll go with the customers, every time.

Does Your Video Personality have a Following?

This isn’t so much a tip as a general consideration. If you plan on running a video campaign on YouTube, it might actually help to find someone that has a following already in place to help connect an audience with your videos. The average YouTube viewer can spot advertising a mile away – anything you can do to compel someone to give your video a shot (or better yet, to share it with their friends) is a plus.

That said: If you just want to have a series of instructional videos created to help customers understand how to use your product, then it really doesn’t matter if the performer is a recognized personality or not. Many companies go out of their way to find a minor celebrity to give credibility to content that really doesn’t need notoriety to sell.