A market that keeps getting bigger and bigger
In the past few years, new video technology has opened up job opportunities for a new type of professional videographer. Some kinds of videotaping, like sports events or stage presentations, require a very skilled videographer. Other kinds of videotaping, like taping people for a dating service, legal depositions, insurance matters, and most social events, require a good understanding of the equipment, experience, and the ability to work with many different kinds of people.
Almost all kinds of services can be sold and are in high demand. Video presentations are used more often now for all kinds of sales presentations, insurance claims, real estate sales, all kinds of training materials, and many other things. The only thing that really limits the market is how many different ways the videographer can sell his services.
Finding people who need what you have to offer
People who get along well with others and have a good personality will do much better in this field. Since many people, groups, or companies may never have thought of using video for their event or presentation, the trick is to make people want to use video by selling it to them.
Along with advertising, the best way to spread the word about your services is through a group of friends and acquaintances.
Advertising can be used to reach people who want to buy services for social events, like weddings. It can also be used to reach people who want to buy business services. Advertising in the Yellow Pages is also a great way to get known in your area. Direct mail will also work well if it is followed up with in-person and phone sales calls.
Churches, hotels, restaurants, florists, jewelers, clubs, and other businesses and organizations that serve the social market can also get new leads. It will be a big plus if you can get your name out to as many of these companies as possible. It's easy to keep track of your own social events. Check the social pages of your newspapers for information about upcoming marriages and engagements. You can then compare the names to those in the phone book and mail your brochure or flyer to the right people.
You might even think about focusing on a certain market, like legal videography. Find out what the laws are in your state about videotaping for legal purposes before you get into this market. They vary a lot from state to state. Getting involved with a court reporting service could be a good way to start. In states where it is legal to do so, many of these services now also record the deposition in addition to writing it down.
Start a direct marketing campaign in a wealthy neighborhood to sell videotaping services of valuables for insurance records. This could be a good market.
In your sales presentations to different businesses, you should emphasize how video presentations can save them time. By making video presentations of homes instead of driving potential buyers all over town, a real estate agent can save hours of time that can be used to make more sales.
You might be able to get your business off the ground by bartering. For instance, you might want to videotape one or more catering events for a caterer in exchange for a recommendation from the caterer. You might get a free brochure if you videotape a social event for free for the owner of a graphic design business or for a printer.
How your video-recording business works
It will be pretty easy to start up in terms of how it works. Depending on your budget, you can buy equipment outright, which can be quite expensive, or you can rent it, finance it, or pay for it over time. If you don't have a lot of money or aren't sure if you want to keep this business going long-term, it would be best to rent instead of buy. You can rent all the basic equipment you need to record almost any event, like a camera, player, color monitor, lights, and sound. You can even rent the equipment you need to edit, or you might want to use an editing service at first. Helpful would be a van or station wagon to move the gear around.
Other costs will include basic office supplies, a phone and answering machine, a professional brochure or 2- to a 4-page flyer, business cards, etc.
Long-term, it probably makes the most business sense to focus on one thing, like social events, business services, or something else. However, it may be best to go after all markets during the first year. This will help you make money faster and figure out which market you like the most.
It can be hard to work on social events. It will be very helpful to know about social etiquette and how to act at a certain event. Make sure you also know who is really in charge of the event. Depending on the people who attend, each event will have its own little quirks. It could be that one relative needs to be taped more than another. Those in charge will be able to tell you what to do.
This is a great business to start from home, for sure. As your business grows, you may want to rent a design studio. Once you have the basic equipment in place, most of your income will go to the bottom line, unless you rent equipment. Because of this, it is often possible to make a profit quickly.
Even though it may be necessary to give credit to well-known businesses and groups, you shouldn't give credit to social events. Even hotels and restaurants don't usually do this, and most people think it's a pretty risky thing to do.
