This topic is a favorite of mine. It revolves around how to build marketing momentum and populate your content calendar with assets from your brand film. Because if you’re anything like me, you enjoy getting the biggest imaginable squeeze out of your marketing budget, and this is exactly how to do that.
For those unfamiliar with brand films, they typically range from 3-30 minutes in length and resonate with your audience through shared interests, experiences, and/or desires–ultimately fostering growth and lifetime repeat customers.
However, this article isn’t about how to make brand films. That’s a tale for another day. Instead, I’m focusing on how to collect and produce marketing assets from your brand film with little to no extra cost or effort.
The most common mistake I see people make with brand films is the failure to consider marketing efforts until it’s far too late. My goal here is to demonstrate how to maximize your production budget’s marketing potential in a way that also drives momentum into your film’s launch.
Pro tip: Understanding the marketing potential of your film’s content, and how to leverage it effectively, will also help you pitch brand films more convincingly to your team.
While most discussions on brand films are so lofty they lack practical application, authored by individuals disconnected from real-world results, this article attempts to break from that mold. My aim is to make what’s below as tactical as possible, drawing from recent success with films I’ve directed, produced, and marketed.
1. Short clips
My favorite piece of content, and the lowest-hanging fruit, is to post individual video clips from your shoot. Or even better, string several of those clips together to create highly dramatic or intense raw shots into 15-30 second videos–with music to match the intensity and mood of your edit.
Give your social media manager or videographer early access to raw footage from your film, and they will soon be showering you with praise and inviting you over for dinner to name their newborn child. If they are even halfway decent at their job, this new access to content will be like stumbling upon buried treasure.
Sourcing and licensing music for videos can be a nightmare, which is why Instagram Reels now allows you to pair popular songs with your video for free within their app. Because technically you’re “streaming” the song if you apply the song within their app, which will add MANY hours (if not months) back to your life and increase your video’s appeal, without incurring additional costs or time spent. I love this trick for its pure simplicity and effectiveness.
2. Behind-the-scenes content
Behind-the-scenes (BTS) content is especially effective on social media platforms, where you provide the audience with an exclusive glimpse into your film’s production process. Think of BTS content like a backstage pass to your favorite concert. By sharing BTS photos and video snippets–elements such as production stills, updates, outtakes, and bloopers–your customers will feel like they’re part of the process. This fosters anticipation and excitement long before your film’s completion and is the kind of groundwork that primes an eager audience, ready to engage with your brand and film as your launch approaches.
3. Quotes
Quotes tap into the power of word of mouth–and there is no marketing or sales tool more powerful than that. Accolades from satisfied customers hold far more weight than self-promotion.
Whether it’s endorsements from industry experts, influencers, or athletes; raving reviews from film festivals; or heartfelt testimonials from customers, this excitement will catch like wildfire. Word of mouth carries immense weight among your customers, as they tend to trust peer and professional recommendations far more than promotional messaging.
4. Screenshots
In marketing, our hunger for compelling photos is insatiable. Like me paired with a new bag of Cheetos Puffs. Screenshots from your film’s raw footage can serve as a valuable resource across all of your marketing channels. The best part is you can begin capturing these screenshots throughout the filming process, even before your film hits post-production, to kickstart your marketing efforts and begin building anticipation around your film.
5. Soundbites with animations
A fun and dynamic content strategy involves pairing sound bites or music from your film with animations. Podcasts love this option, where there’s a static picture with a dancing line across that image synced with audio.
The score of our most recent brand film received several awards, so we wanted to highlight the score in our marketing efforts. To do so, I overlaid laurels from the score’s accolades onto a screenshot from our raw footage. I then added a lively dancing line animation, a task that took me 5 minutes to accomplish (for free) using the Headliner app.
6. Interviews
Another avenue to explore is conducting interviews with people from your film, such as the director, an expert, or main character. A great way to conduct these interviews is through Facebook Live or Instagram Live, with a Q&A to follow–offering an authentic and accessible way to engage your audience. Podcasts are another great avenue to explore that typically provide you with high-quality promotional assets prior to your episode going live.
I’ve utilized a lot of content from director’s discussions after screenings, as well as podcasts I participated in, which adds credibility to what you’re up to—while providing you with free professional content someone else produces for you. Plus, this type of content gives you access to their audience, as well.
7. Premieres
I suggest submitting your film to festivals. Because for as little as $10-$30 a submission, you make it possible to gain “official selection” laurels that add legitimacy and enhance your marketing reach, attracting more potential customers. Festivals also provide you with an engaged audience and theater for a premiere for next to nothing.
At festivals, leverage every opportunity for content creation, including red carpet moments and airport pickups. Winning awards presents further content opportunities, whether through photos, trophies, acceptance speeches, or provided materials from film festivals. Festival content gets hands down the highest engagement across all marketing channels.
Although, you don’t need to do your premiere at a film festival. If you have a headquarters you can do it there. You can do it in your backyard, a local brewery or coffee shop, or talk to a local theater. Wherever it is, capture photos and video content at every screening you have.
Clearly this is not an exhaustive list, but hopefully it gets your wheels turning. Get creative and have fun with it! What else can you do to build momentum and compelling marketing assets for your brand film?
Building excitement early on and optimizing content creation will significantly extend the reach and impact of your brand film, while maximizing your marketing budget and forging stronger connections with your customers–driving long-term loyalty through both your brand film and promotional efforts.
Cover image: HBS