Partnership, Not Just Production
Beyond Siloed Thinking
When you’re a small B2B or B2G business, “doing more with less” is an operational reality.
That’s why I approach every video from the lens of the entire customer journey, not just specific slices of it. This way, you’re able to compound the impact a video has, and even consider how a video could be used in multiple ways, for different purposes.
Even if you are producing a single video, I approach every opportunity as a partnership, not just an output. Through the Discovery process, I look to understand your complete customer journey, and then approach every video from that perspective.
Why It Works
You can dive deeper into my Promise/Proof/Payoff framework, but the gist of it is that each video has main purpose, but should also contain other elements of the framework.
A Product Demo should lead to sales (Promises of what the product does). But it should also show the product outcomes in action (Proof), and help them connect that to a broader business transformation (Payoff).
An onboarding video should help customers quickly realize their expectations (Proof), but also demonstrate future ROI (Payoff), and introduce them to other products and services they could benefit from (Promise).
Training videos obviously turn customers into power users (Payoff), but can also contain expansion opportunities (Promise) and success stories (Proof).
A Unique Perspective
My background as a Technical Writer and Trainer means I understand tech, and how to communicate complex information effectively to a wide range of audiences.
Roles in Product Management, Project Management, and Leadership mean I not only understand the SDLC, but how the Customer Journey maps to that.
It’s a unique set of skills and experiences I haven’t encountered in many others. Add that I do video production, motion design, and voiceover, and it gets even rarer.
It All Starts by Understanding Your Customer Journey
After an initial consultation, it’s time to really dig in. This is the Discovery Phase, where it’s my goal to learn as much about your business, and especially your Customer Journey, as possible. This step is critical, and shapes every decision we make going forward.
Step 1: The Discovery Meeting
Time: 60 to 90 minutes
Who Attends:
Me and my AI Note Taking Assistant (so I can focus on listening and understanding).
Your team: This all depends on your company and structure. Ideally this is a small group (no more than 3 or 4) that understands the different aspects of your customer journey - sales, implementation, and support. For some, this is all the same person.
The Process:
I like to send a document prior to the meeting that lists the areas we’ll cover and types of questions I’ll ask. This prepares everyone and sets us up for success.
During the meeting, it’s nice to try to go through the different parts of the customer journey in order, but the reality is that we tend to jump around as thoughts and ideas crystallize.
If possible, we’ll try to establish baselines that we can measure against later: Sales Rates, Adoption Rates, Customer Support Metrics. Companies don’t always have these metrics though, so often initial gains are anecdotal.
Step 2: The Info Dump
Now it’s about me going away and evaluating the materials that you do have.
The goal is to understand the your company, your products, and your customers.
This may involve 1:1 meetings with various SMEs, but I know time is valuable and try to keep these to Slack/Teams/Email conversations when possible.
Step 3: The Analysis
What You’ll Get:
Clear understanding of your current customer journey strengths and gaps
Specific recommendations for video optimization opportunities
Baseline metrics for measuring improvement
Strategic roadmap for implementation
Timeline: 1 to 2 weeks total.
Cost: $0
Video Production
Now comes the fun part: actually creating the videos. Every video will go through the same process, all based on the previous Discovery work and agreed upon actions.
Step 1: The Script
This is probably the most important part of creating the video. Not only do we want to ensure we have all of the technical aspects correct, but we also want to ensure the messaging in on point.
We’ll meet to discuss the overall purpose and outcome of the video, and to dig into any of the functionality and features being included. The people involved from your team will depend on the video.
I’ll go away and write the script. This includes the narrative and any graphics (usually aspects of the product) we want to feature.
We’ll meet a second time. I find that once people actually see the script and get a clear picture we can have a much more focused conversation. Vital elements that nobody thought of originally bubble to the surface. Simple, task-oriented training videos may not need this, but all others will.
I’ll revise the script.
Most other changes can be handled through chat or email, and eventually we’ll get sign-off.
Timeline: Up to 1 week (depending on your team’s availability)
Step 2: The Video
To move into this step, I’ll need access to a sandbox or demo environment, preferably with realistic data, where I can run through scenarios. Because of my Promise/Proof/Payoff framework, every video will show the product in some way.
I record the voice first using pro level equipment in an acoustically treated room. (I use Ableton Live, a Roland Octa-Capture audio input, and a Shure MV7+ microphone.)
I then do screen recordings of the product in action, to support the video, using Camtasia.
I drop the voice and screen recordings into a Camtasia project.
I add motion graphics and other elements to the project to support the script and overall video purpose, and highlight specific elements.
I add background music and title sequences.
Sometimes I’ll use Adobe After Effects and Premier Pro to finish off a video, but usually Camtasia works perfectly. My videos focus on a professional look and substance: the product, the message, and the desired outcome. I steer away from unnecessary fluff like crazy graphics and overused “cute” animations that just add a whole lot of time and expense to a video, without adding value.
I’ll deliver a “Rough Cut” mp4 of the video for review.
Step 3: The Review
The Rough Cut is a fully realized video, but may still need some minor timing adjustments and graphics refinements.
With this video, you may see minor tweaks that need to be done, or you may recognize parts that need to be added or removed.
Because I handle all aspects of video and sound production, I can easily make all of those changes without having to coordinate with multiple vendors.
We repeat the review process until you’re 100% happy.
Timeline for Video Production and Review: 1 to 2 weeks
Partnership Investment that Drives Growth
I create video experiences that drive value over both the short and long term, and and focus on being an active partner to help improve all key metrics.
Realizing Short Term ROI
Depending on the type and focus of your videos you can achieve a great deal of short term ROI, such as:
Increased Sales Conversions
Decreased Sales Cycles and Salesperson LOE
Decreased Customer Support Time
Decreased Implementation Time
Increasing Your Customer Lifetime Value
But by focusing on the whole Customer Journey and utilizing the Promise/Proof/Payoff framework, you can realize a much greater Customer Lifetime Value (LTV).
If you could increase each customer’s LTV by just 5 or 10% YoY, what would that mean to your business, your investors, your rate of growth?
Reduced Customer Churn
Higher Rates of Product/Feature Adoption
Increased Customer Satisfaction
Increased Customer Share of Wallet (more products/services bought over time)
Customers Who Champion Your Product
Increased Reference-able Customers
A Reputation for Delivering on Expectations
All of these lead to an increased Customer LTV, and a much easier path to YoY revenue growth. Constantly having to find new customers to replace revenue lost from high churn is way more expensive and extremely hard to maintain. Eventually, you’ll run out of prospects. Decreasing churn and increasing the LTV takes care of that.
Pricing Structure and Options
Because of the long term value the Customer Journey Experience Videos provide, I believe in being transparent about my pricing. I also believe in providing options to meet your time and budget constraints to help you with your long term goals.
All Prices are in Canadian Dollars (CAD), subject to my availability.
One Video at a Time
Who It’s For:
Those with time and/or budget constraints.
People who want to dip their toe in and see a final product before diving in.
Companies with an already extensive suite of videos that need to fill some specific gaps.
What You Get:
Customer Journey Session and Analysis.
A single video, focused on a specific area, that maximizes the Customer Journey analysis.
What It Costs:
Cost is based on the finished number of minutes per video.
For most videos, the cost is $1300 CAD per finished minute. (So a 3 minute video would cost $3900 CAD.)
For training videos that are very task oriented, the cost is $1000 CAD per finished minute. This is just walking through the steps, not explaining any concepts.
Extra Stuff:
Discounts kick in at 5 (5%), 10 (10%), and 20 (20%) videos. So videos 5 to 9 will have a 5% discount, videos 10 to 19 will have a 10% discount, and videos 20+ will have a 20% discount.
There’s no time limit on the discounts. So if it takes you 5 years to get to 5 videos, you still get the discount.
After 30 days from delivery, all changes/updates to videos are billed hourly at $80 CAD per hour.
Journey Bundles
Who It’s For:
Those who have taken the Self Assessment and have a specific area they want to focus on.
Companies that have some videos and want to fill specific gaps.
What You Get:
Customer Journey Session and Analysis.
3 or 5 Videos at a great discounted rate (see below).
A pool of up to 8 hours of time you can use on updates to videos more than 30 days old. So if you add a new feature, or change an interface, you’re covered. Good for up to 1 year.
What It Costs:
Cost is based on the total finished number of minutes, minus the discounted amount. Before discounts, this is $1300 CAD per finished minute for most videos, or $1000 CAD for task oriented training videos.
3 Video Bundles: 10% discount on total finished number of minutes.
5 Video Bundles: 15% discount on total finished number of minutes.
Extra Stuff:
40% Due up front, based on estimated total number of finished videos. Remainder due on delivery of final video.
After the 8 allotted hours of update time are used, all changes/updates to videos are billed hourly at $80 CAD per hour.
BEST VALUE!
We’re Joined at the Hip
Who It’s For:
For companies with long term goals and lots to get done.
Those who like long term partnerships with a vendor that’s an extension of their team.
What You Get:
Up to 33 minutes of finished videos per quarter, giving you maximum flexibility. Unused minutes can role into the next quarter.
A pool of up to 24 hours of time each quarter that you can use on updates to videos more than 30 days old. So if you add a new feature, or change an interface, you’re covered.
Quarterly checkins to ensure priorities are still aligned and to discuss any market, product, or company changes that might affect the roadmap.
Free video hosting on my Vimeo account.
A vendor with a much deeper understanding of your products and customers, which leads to faster turnaround times and more targeted videos.
What It Costs:
$11,500 per month (23% savings!), billed monthly.
Extra Stuff:
Minimum 3 month commitment required.
Training task videos are calculated at 75% of the total time, so a 2 minute video only counts towards 1.5 minutes of the 33 minute total.
Once the engagement ends, any unused video minutes can be used within 3 months.
The allotted 24 hours of update time expire at the end of each quarter. However, once the engagement ends, any unused hours will remain and can be used for up to 1 year.
Start With Our Self Assessment Tool
Take the Customer Journey Video Assessment
Discover gaps and opportunities in your current approach:
Take the Self Assessment - 5 to 10 minutes, 24 questions, immediate insights, no obligation.
You’ve got to start somewhere, but where? Is it in your Product Demos, your Onboarding, your Training? You might have a gut feeling, but the Assessment Tool is designed to help solidify your thoughts, and maybe give you insights you didn’t think about.
What you'll discover: Clear Priority Focus. Discover which type of video (Product Demo, Onboarding, or Training) will have the biggest impact on your business right now, so you stop guessing and start with what matters most. It’s not designed to replace the full discover process, but rather to give us a place to start the conversation.
Ready for Strategic Partnership?
Schedule Your Customer Journey Video Consultation
After taking the self assessment, book an initial consultation to discuss your specific results and opportunities.
In this initial session, we’ll talk about your customer journey at a high level, what some of the challenges are that you’re facing, long term goals, and how Customer Journey Video Experiences might fit in to you overall strategy.
Having been on the other side of working with consultants and vendors, I know how important it is to find someone you trust and feel you can work with. Pretty much every contract or consulting gig I’ve had has resulted in either me being hired full time, or the gig extending far beyond the original agreement. I take these partnerships seriously, and strive to produce as much value as possible.
No obligation. Valuable insights whether we work together or not.
Contact Information: james@articulateartisans.com
"Customer Journey Video Strategist helping small tech companies optimize conversion, onboarding, and retention through strategic video experiences."