Does your video content pass the WIIFM test?
Posted by Catie Foertsch on Fri, Apr 17, 2009 @ 12:21 PM
Sometimes you'll come across a website video that's just not right. The video shows someone talking about their company - how long they've been in business, how their highest aspiration is to exceed customer expectations, how much they care about their customers... blah blah blah. You stop watching. You probably get irritated and leave the website. Because there's no WIIFM.
WIIFM, or What's In It For Me, perfectly defines why people watch video: because they expect to get something they want. WIIFM is entertainment, relevant information, a relationship, or a combination of all three. A no-WIIFM video presents content people don't care about, in a dull, static style by someone who's so boring you couldn't imagine having a social relationship with him. Or her.
Companies don't set out to waste your time with no-WIIFM videos. It usually happens because there's no plan. There's just a decision: We need a video. A script is written without an understanding of why the video is being made, or who's going to watch it, or what it should do. The company president is the person in the video not because he's warm and friendly but because he's the president.
So how can you add WIIFM to your video content? Lots of ways. Start with making it about the person who comes to your website, and not about you. Don't recite your mission statement. Do give good, relevant information, and do it in a way that's interesting to watch. This can be complicated, like choosing an editing style that supports the material and underlines your message. Or it can be simple, like making sure the person in the video looks at the camera and smiles. But most important - don't write your script or begin shooting until you understand WIIFM, and until you know why you're making the video, who you're making it for, and what you want it to do.