Marketable – Ep. 2 – Endless Iterations

About the episode

In this podcast, hosts Jeff Barry and Ryan Jones discuss the increasing need for multiple iterations of video content for different social media platforms, the challenges faced in production, and the importance of effective communication with clients.

Agenda

– The growth of iterations and their impact on production

– Balancing different aspect ratios and video lengths

– Communicating challenges with clients

– Predicting future needs for video content

Takeaways

Takeaway 1: The growing demand for video iterations on various social media platforms creates challenges in production and planning.

As new social media platforms emerge, each with different standards and requirements, there is an increasing need for different iterations of a given video. Ryan explains the complexity of creating various deliverables: “We need 16 by nine versions. For some we need one by one, for some we need nine by 16, which is Instagram sort of height and width. And then they need a version for all of them with burnt in captions, which means the subtitles captions are automatically toggled on.”

Jeff emphasizes the importance of understanding each platform’s requirements and being able to adapt the video content accordingly: “There is really significant differences in what works on one platform and what works on another platform. And I think getting to a place where you have the time, when you have the time, but to really be able to shape the storytelling for that product or that service for a specific platform.”

Takeaway 2: Balancing storytelling and flexibility is crucial for creating video content that can be repurposed across multiple platforms.

Ryan highlights the importance of creating a strong foundation for a story and maintaining flexibility in production: “If our core storytelling, our visual sensibility, and our sense of narrative are there from the get-go, we should be able to repurpose that in some way, no matter what the trend or the outlet of the moment is.”

Jeff adds that maximizing the shoot day and capturing evergreen material can help future-proof the content, allowing it to be repurposed for different platforms and trends: “We’re looking to maximize that footage years down the line. So that’s something we’ll talk about another time.”

Takeaway 3: Communication and collaboration between clients and production teams is essential for creating effective video content that meets the needs of various social media platforms.

Jeff urges clients to provide clear briefs and involve all stakeholders in the planning process: “The more that we know going into it, the better we’re able to execute that. On those crazy timelines, it was like.”

Ryan also emphasizes the importance of working with clients to understand their goals and target platforms: “We have to be able to have a clear conversation with our clients to understand where do you want this video to go? Is this just going to be on your YouTube channel? Are you wanting this primarily for Instagram and maybe you’ll use it for YouTube down the line?”

Insights surfaced

– The need for different iterations of a video has grown due to the rise of various social media platforms with different standards.

– Filming in different aspect ratios and lengths can be challenging and time-consuming.

– Effective communication with clients is crucial to understand their needs and expectations.

– Clients’ needs may change as they see the material, so it’s essential to be flexible and prepared.

– The popularity of social media platforms may change over time, affecting the priorities of clients.

Key quotes

– “We can accomplish a whole lot in a single day if we know what we’re getting into.”

– “We always want to be in a situation where we’re putting ourselves in the position in post-production with the client when they make these requests that weren’t necessarily in the original scope of work.”

– “We should be able to repurpose that in some way, no matter what the trend or the outlet of the moment is.”

– “We want to look at the frame in such a way that in the easiest way possible, we can go from that wide aspect ratio to a tall aspect ratio without having to cheat it very much.”

– “We don’t have all the time in the world to capture 1000 different takes for all the various social media platforms.”