The main question to ask yourself about your next video project is what will your audience be feeling when watching your video. This matters because we are emotional beings. We make choices based on how we feel at a particular moment in time. When watching a brand video we are continuously reacting to it on an emotional basis.
What Your Audience Is Feeling Matters
It is important to remember that our emotions can influence our next action, not just logic. We make buying decisions on what makes us feel good for example, does the product enhance our perception about our lifestyles. We are continually trying to make decisions that satisfy our emotional needs. This means that you really need to think about how your video makes your audience feel. Ask yourself how are your audience feeling when they are watching your video content. Does your video content make your audience feel sad, happy, angry or surprised? Is this the emotional reaction that will inspire them to follow your “call to action”?
The Main Emotions
There are various classifications for emotions. In the 1970’s the American psychologist Dr. Paul Eckman identified 6 basic emotions.
- Happiness
- Sadness
- Fear
- Disgust
- Anger
- Surprise
Since then there have been further studies and one study now lists 27 emotions. Alan S. Cowen and Dacher Keltner PhD from the University of California, Berkeley led the study, which was published in the PNSA (Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences).
The range of emotions we have can now be defined as complex. However the truth is as emotional beings we react to emotional stimuli. It is clear to me when we are planning a video we need to think about the emotional impact it will have.
Planning For Emotion
When planning your video content you need to think about how your audience will be feeling when watching your video. The overall video planning must include an emotional overview. Think about every element of the video project including visuals, sounds, storytelling and mood and how they contribute to the emotional narrative. What emotions will effectively sell/promote your idea, product or service? If you only want the viewer to take a simple next step what emotional reaction is likely to inspire them to do that.
Keeping It Real
Viewers can spot “fakes a mile away nowadays” so keep it real. Thinking about the emotional reaction to your video content is not about misleading your viewers. Your emotional content should reflect reality and should be an honest portrayal of your story. Do not be afraid when telling your brand story to highlight some failures. The honest portrayal of some failures shows your audience you are human. The key is to honestly show how you overcame those failures and succeeded. When telling your story your viewer will only engage if they believe what you are telling them.
Challenge Your Audience
“The first and simplest emotion which we discover in the human mind is curiosity.”
Edmund Burke
It is important to think about how your audience will be feeling when watching your content. Do not be afraid to bring them on an emotional journey when telling your brand story. In your video content arouse curiosity, surprise them, introduce sadness and most importantly bring joy and happiness.