Before we work together there are some things that you really need to know.
- Introduction
- The Collaborative Process
- Branding
- The Marketing Funnel
- Attention Videos VS Conversion Videos
- Call to Action!
- The Social Media Platforms (Top of the Funnel)
- Email Newsletter (Middle of the Funnel)
- Website/Sales Page (Bottom of the Funnel)
- Posting Content
- Conclusion
1. Introduction
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To get started, here are a few things that you might not know about me. Hi, my name is Zach.
I’ve been making videos and doing photography since I was in high school. That’s almost 16 years ago now. I’ve been doing video and photography professionally since 2016. I also ran a non-profit filmmakers society for 9 years in which I developed a lot of the organization’s branding and marketing. Through all this experience and also from constantly studying marketing strategies, I’ve learned a lot about how to produce the best content, but even if I produce the most amazing video and photos, there are things that are critical to the success of a client’s marketing that have nothing to do with the work I do and I’ve realized that many people either overlook these things or are simply unaware. Some businesses really need to tune up their marketing before they’re ready for videos. I’ve written this manual to highlight all the things that should be worked on in order to have an effective marketing strategy and hopefully answer any questions you might have. Producing high quality videos and photos for your business is an investment and I want to make sure that your investment is a worthwhile endeavour. I will be covering all the things that we need to consider together to help you achieve the success you want with your business. |
2. The Collaborative Process
The reason I want to share all of this with you is because marketing and content creation is a very collaborative process.
The first step is to get to know you very well. I will be looking at all of your current marketing material, your website, your social media, and anything else you might have available. If we haven’t already, we will have a call where I will ask questions to get to know you and figure out your goals.
After everything I learn about you, I will then be ready to brainstorm ideas for content. From the idea, to shooting, to editing and the final product, I will involve you throughout the process to ensure you’re happy with the direction we’re going.
The process doesn’t end though with the finished content. There are other important things to consider when we released the content online to make sure that it’s a success. These are things that I will cover later on in this manual in the part about releasing content.
To begin though, the process starts with you and your branding.
The first step is to get to know you very well. I will be looking at all of your current marketing material, your website, your social media, and anything else you might have available. If we haven’t already, we will have a call where I will ask questions to get to know you and figure out your goals.
After everything I learn about you, I will then be ready to brainstorm ideas for content. From the idea, to shooting, to editing and the final product, I will involve you throughout the process to ensure you’re happy with the direction we’re going.
The process doesn’t end though with the finished content. There are other important things to consider when we released the content online to make sure that it’s a success. These are things that I will cover later on in this manual in the part about releasing content.
To begin though, the process starts with you and your branding.
3. Branding
Good marketing starts with good branding.
Branding is more than just a logo. Branding is about consistency. People trust consistency. Branding is the consistent choices that reflect an identity. It may be a personal identity or a company identity. When an identity extends and includes a group of people whether it’s your employees or customers, that identity becomes a culture.
Branding is ultimately about feeling. Your brand is how people feel about you and this feeling is what really sells your product or service.
I love this quote:
Branding is more than just a logo. Branding is about consistency. People trust consistency. Branding is the consistent choices that reflect an identity. It may be a personal identity or a company identity. When an identity extends and includes a group of people whether it’s your employees or customers, that identity becomes a culture.
Branding is ultimately about feeling. Your brand is how people feel about you and this feeling is what really sells your product or service.
I love this quote:
“People will forget what you said. They will forget what you did.
But they will never forget how you made them feel.”
- Maya Angelou
But they will never forget how you made them feel.”
- Maya Angelou
When I craft a video and shoot photos, I want to express the identity and culture of your business as accurately and profoundly as possible. I aim to capture the feeling of your brand to make you unforgettable.
The better your branding is, the better I can make content.
The best clients I work with are the ones who already have solid branding and they have codified their branding into a company Brand Style Guide which they provide me and it makes it really easy for me to then integrate their branding principles into the content.
The better your branding is, the better I can make content.
The best clients I work with are the ones who already have solid branding and they have codified their branding into a company Brand Style Guide which they provide me and it makes it really easy for me to then integrate their branding principles into the content.
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If you already have a Brand Style Guide then great! I look forward to seeing it.
If you don’t have a Brand Style Guide yet, then here are some of the things that I’m going to want to know from you:
Knowing the answers to these questions will help me conceive and create videos that will take your brand to another level! |
4. The Marketing Funnel
Understanding the Marketing Funnel is something that I’ve realized is very important but a significant amount of clients that I talk to are unfamiliar with it.
So what is the Marketing Funnel?
The Marketing Funnel is a system of getting clients and customers. It starts with marketing and getting people’s attention, and it ends with the sale converting people into clients and customers.
Or in my words, the Marketing Funnel is a system of turning attention into enthusiasm! Because I believe we don’t just want to gain customers or clients. We want to have enthusiastic customers and clients who love what we do or create!
The system includes the different tools that you’ll be using to take potential clients through a journey that will lead them to wanting to hire you or buy your product.
So what is the Marketing Funnel?
The Marketing Funnel is a system of getting clients and customers. It starts with marketing and getting people’s attention, and it ends with the sale converting people into clients and customers.
Or in my words, the Marketing Funnel is a system of turning attention into enthusiasm! Because I believe we don’t just want to gain customers or clients. We want to have enthusiastic customers and clients who love what we do or create!
The system includes the different tools that you’ll be using to take potential clients through a journey that will lead them to wanting to hire you or buy your product.
It starts with social media where you capture people’s attention.
From social media you direct people to your website. On your website, some people might love you enough solely from your social media content that they will immediately buy or hire you. Or you might need to hook your audience in a little more by getting them to sign up for a newsletter.
Then with your newsletter you build greater trust and rapport. From there you can continue to lead them back to your website where they will hopefully, sooner rather than later, purchase your product or service.
Now a lot of people will come to me for content for their social media. They want to start getting people’s attention right away! But I’m seeing a problem with many businesses because they are focused on the top of the funnel before they even have the bottom of the funnel ready to convert customers.
So before we starting working on content for social media we want to make sure you have your funnel properly prepared and that includes creating videos that will help you at the bottom of the funnel stage to convert customers and get you the sale.
From social media you direct people to your website. On your website, some people might love you enough solely from your social media content that they will immediately buy or hire you. Or you might need to hook your audience in a little more by getting them to sign up for a newsletter.
Then with your newsletter you build greater trust and rapport. From there you can continue to lead them back to your website where they will hopefully, sooner rather than later, purchase your product or service.
Now a lot of people will come to me for content for their social media. They want to start getting people’s attention right away! But I’m seeing a problem with many businesses because they are focused on the top of the funnel before they even have the bottom of the funnel ready to convert customers.
So before we starting working on content for social media we want to make sure you have your funnel properly prepared and that includes creating videos that will help you at the bottom of the funnel stage to convert customers and get you the sale.
5. Attention Videos VS Conversion Videos
Video is a very powerful tool that can be used throughout the Marketing Funnel system. The reason why it’s important to understand the Marketing Funnel when it comes to video is because it helps us think about the different stages of the funnel and how we should use video differently in the different stages.
There are actually two types of videos.
There is the marketing video (AKA the attention video) which is the type of video most people are thinking about. You’ll post these on social media to get people’s attention. These videos will be more focused on different aspects of your business and providing small tastes of what you provide.
Then there is also the sales video (AKA the conversion video). This could also be your business branding video. This is the comprehensive video that people will find on your website and ultimately convince them to hire you or buy your product.
The attention video is top of the funnel.
The conversion video is bottom of the funnel.
If you don’t have a business branding video that converts customers and gets you sales, then I suggest we do that first before we get started on social media attention videos.
NOTE: The branding conversion video can also be posted on social media and is best to be pinned at the top of your profile feed.
ALSO A NOTE ON VIDEO LENGTH:
With videos we want to get people’s attention and keep people’s attention. For this reason, the ideal length for a video is between 1 to 2 minutes long. For videos on social media, we want the video to be closer to 1 minute.
For some type of videos on Youtube, such as if we do a vlog style of video or a comedy video, the length can be longer.
There are actually two types of videos.
There is the marketing video (AKA the attention video) which is the type of video most people are thinking about. You’ll post these on social media to get people’s attention. These videos will be more focused on different aspects of your business and providing small tastes of what you provide.
Then there is also the sales video (AKA the conversion video). This could also be your business branding video. This is the comprehensive video that people will find on your website and ultimately convince them to hire you or buy your product.
The attention video is top of the funnel.
The conversion video is bottom of the funnel.
If you don’t have a business branding video that converts customers and gets you sales, then I suggest we do that first before we get started on social media attention videos.
NOTE: The branding conversion video can also be posted on social media and is best to be pinned at the top of your profile feed.
ALSO A NOTE ON VIDEO LENGTH:
With videos we want to get people’s attention and keep people’s attention. For this reason, the ideal length for a video is between 1 to 2 minutes long. For videos on social media, we want the video to be closer to 1 minute.
For some type of videos on Youtube, such as if we do a vlog style of video or a comedy video, the length can be longer.
6. Call to Action!
The reason it’s important to think about whether we are going to create an attention video or a conversion video is because for every video we make we want to make sure there is a Call to Action at the end of the video.
The Call to Action (CTA) will be different depending on the type of video.
If it’s a conversion video, the Call to Action will be:
“Hire me!”
“Buy my product!”
“Book an appointment today!”
For an attention video, the Call to Action will be:
“Learn more.”
“Visit my website.”
“Leave a comment.”
“Follow me for more.”
“Join my newsletter.”
These little prompts can have powerful psychological effects on viewers, encouraging them to engage with your content and your business.
Our goal isn’t just to have passive viewers. We want to create enthusiastic followers of your brand.
Engagement = Enthusiasm
The Call to Action is how we foster engagement.
The Call to Action (CTA) will be different depending on the type of video.
If it’s a conversion video, the Call to Action will be:
“Hire me!”
“Buy my product!”
“Book an appointment today!”
For an attention video, the Call to Action will be:
“Learn more.”
“Visit my website.”
“Leave a comment.”
“Follow me for more.”
“Join my newsletter.”
These little prompts can have powerful psychological effects on viewers, encouraging them to engage with your content and your business.
Our goal isn’t just to have passive viewers. We want to create enthusiastic followers of your brand.
Engagement = Enthusiasm
The Call to Action is how we foster engagement.
7. The Social Media Platforms and the Top of the Funnel
Now in more detail, let’s go through the system that will lead people from simply followers to customers starting with social media at the top of the funnel. I will outline what I believe is important to know about all the platforms you can use.
Let’s start with the best platform that you should be posting videos on.
Let’s start with the best platform that you should be posting videos on.
YOUTUBE
The best platform that you need to be putting videos on is Youtube. It’s not Instagram or TikTok.
The reason Youtube is the best is because it is not just a social platform. Youtube is the second biggest search engine on the internet after Google. This makes the growth lifespan of a videos much longer on Youtube.
Post a video on Instagram or TikTok and the video might have a growth lifespan of a day or a week if you’re lucky. Whereas on Youtube a video can continue to be shared and discovered for years. The algorithm on Youtube is simply better for introducing videos to people.
Another advantage of putting a video on Youtube is that the video can be embedded on to your website where it will collect more traffic and direct more people to other content you have on Youtube.
I will say this again: you need to be putting videos on Youtube.
The best platform that you need to be putting videos on is Youtube. It’s not Instagram or TikTok.
The reason Youtube is the best is because it is not just a social platform. Youtube is the second biggest search engine on the internet after Google. This makes the growth lifespan of a videos much longer on Youtube.
Post a video on Instagram or TikTok and the video might have a growth lifespan of a day or a week if you’re lucky. Whereas on Youtube a video can continue to be shared and discovered for years. The algorithm on Youtube is simply better for introducing videos to people.
Another advantage of putting a video on Youtube is that the video can be embedded on to your website where it will collect more traffic and direct more people to other content you have on Youtube.
I will say this again: you need to be putting videos on Youtube.
INSTAGRAM
I’d say Instagram is probably the most popular social platform which is why you should be posting on it. Personally I believe Instagram had its golden age from the years 2015 to 2018. This was the time when it was easy to grow on Instagram. Then they started changing the algorithm in 2018 and it’s become much harder to grow and reach your audience even if they are already following you. Even some of the biggest influencers I know say that they are getting less and less growth and engagement nowadays.
Most people probably don’t even know how the Instagram algorithm works.
For those that don’t know: when you make a post, Instagram will first show the post to only 10% of your followers and then it will wait to see how much engagement your post gets. If the post gets a lot of engagement, it will then show the post to the other 90% of your followers. If the post doesn’t get much engagement then Instagram won’t show the post to any more people.
So if you’re wondering why your post isn’t getting viewed much it’s because the first 10% of your followers isn’t engaging. Personally I think this is a terrible approach. Some social media people will argue you just need to make better content and yes we will strive to make the best content possible and do everything we can to encourage engagement, but some followers are always going to be passive and if those followers are the 10% being shown your content then Instagram is simply going to determine that your content isn’t worth sharing to anyone else.
Still post on Instagram, but know that the Instagram is no longer the best place for your content to be seen because of this algorithm.
I’d say Instagram is probably the most popular social platform which is why you should be posting on it. Personally I believe Instagram had its golden age from the years 2015 to 2018. This was the time when it was easy to grow on Instagram. Then they started changing the algorithm in 2018 and it’s become much harder to grow and reach your audience even if they are already following you. Even some of the biggest influencers I know say that they are getting less and less growth and engagement nowadays.
Most people probably don’t even know how the Instagram algorithm works.
For those that don’t know: when you make a post, Instagram will first show the post to only 10% of your followers and then it will wait to see how much engagement your post gets. If the post gets a lot of engagement, it will then show the post to the other 90% of your followers. If the post doesn’t get much engagement then Instagram won’t show the post to any more people.
So if you’re wondering why your post isn’t getting viewed much it’s because the first 10% of your followers isn’t engaging. Personally I think this is a terrible approach. Some social media people will argue you just need to make better content and yes we will strive to make the best content possible and do everything we can to encourage engagement, but some followers are always going to be passive and if those followers are the 10% being shown your content then Instagram is simply going to determine that your content isn’t worth sharing to anyone else.
Still post on Instagram, but know that the Instagram is no longer the best place for your content to be seen because of this algorithm.
FACEBOOK
With Facebook being related to Instagram, the algorithms are pretty similar and should be approached the same.
With Facebook being related to Instagram, the algorithms are pretty similar and should be approached the same.
TIK TOK
If you want to grow an audience on any platform right now then TikTok is the platform you should probably be focusing on because the TikTok algorithm is much friendlier in helping videos go viral.
TikTok is also the platform for reaching a younger demographic.
The only reason you shouldn’t use TikTok is if you have concerns with the Chinese government.
If you want to grow an audience on any platform right now then TikTok is the platform you should probably be focusing on because the TikTok algorithm is much friendlier in helping videos go viral.
TikTok is also the platform for reaching a younger demographic.
The only reason you shouldn’t use TikTok is if you have concerns with the Chinese government.
X
Since Twitter turned into X, the platform has evolved a lot in the past couple of years. Where as Twitter was just for sharing short written tweets, X has become a platform for sharing all sorts of media.
I got my biggest client in 2023 because of X, and when we shared the videos we made onto X we were able to get over 100,000 views!
So there is a lot of potential to reach an audience on X, but I don’t think X is a good platform for all types of businesses. I believe the best brands on X are personal brands that focus on education.
Since Twitter turned into X, the platform has evolved a lot in the past couple of years. Where as Twitter was just for sharing short written tweets, X has become a platform for sharing all sorts of media.
I got my biggest client in 2023 because of X, and when we shared the videos we made onto X we were able to get over 100,000 views!
So there is a lot of potential to reach an audience on X, but I don’t think X is a good platform for all types of businesses. I believe the best brands on X are personal brands that focus on education.
8. Email and the Middle of the Funnel
Having an email newsletter might not be necessary for every business, but it is something I highly recommend considering.
The reason is because a newsletter is a more reliable method of sharing news and information with your loyal followers. It’s more reliable because you are not dealing with social media algorithms. When you send out a newsletter, your email subscribers are more likely to see your newsletter than they will see a social media post.
As an example, with social media I might get 10% of my followers seeing my posts, but with my own newsletter I get on average 50% of my subscribers viewing my emails. That’s a significant amount more.
But with a newsletter you won’t gain new subscribers just with your newsletter. That’s why it’s the middle of the funnel.
You want to get people’s attention on social media platforms and then direct them to your website where you will either immediately get them to purchase your product or service, or you encourage them to sign up for your newsletter so that you have a more reliable way to communicate with them.
With your newsletter you build greater trust and rapport. You don’t want to just share news with your newsletter. You want to provide greater value by sharing deeper insights into your business or topics related to your business.
The platform I recommend using for an email newsletter is Substack. It has a lot of great tools and they are constantly improving their email platform.
Other email platforms you can look at are Mailchimp or Beehiiv.
The reason is because a newsletter is a more reliable method of sharing news and information with your loyal followers. It’s more reliable because you are not dealing with social media algorithms. When you send out a newsletter, your email subscribers are more likely to see your newsletter than they will see a social media post.
As an example, with social media I might get 10% of my followers seeing my posts, but with my own newsletter I get on average 50% of my subscribers viewing my emails. That’s a significant amount more.
But with a newsletter you won’t gain new subscribers just with your newsletter. That’s why it’s the middle of the funnel.
You want to get people’s attention on social media platforms and then direct them to your website where you will either immediately get them to purchase your product or service, or you encourage them to sign up for your newsletter so that you have a more reliable way to communicate with them.
With your newsletter you build greater trust and rapport. You don’t want to just share news with your newsletter. You want to provide greater value by sharing deeper insights into your business or topics related to your business.
The platform I recommend using for an email newsletter is Substack. It has a lot of great tools and they are constantly improving their email platform.
Other email platforms you can look at are Mailchimp or Beehiiv.
9. Your Website/Sales Page and the Bottom of the Funnel
Like I said when I first talked about the Marketing Funnel, your bottom of the funnel is actually the most important part of the funnel because without it you are not going to convert customers.
So before we focus on creating content for social media, you want to make sure you have a great website and have a solid conversion video on that website that will help you turn interested people into customers.
A conversion video could be put right on the front page of your website. This is ideal. We want to create as little friction in the customer’s experience going from social media to your website to the purchase.
The less clicking the better.
You may also have a bunch of pages on your website that covers the different services that you provide in which case separate videos might be useful to highlight those different services.
More videos can be used to really heighten the experience of your website.
A branding/story video could be put on your ABOUT page. People would much rather watch a video of you talking about yourself than reading some text. It’s more personal and people get a stronger sense of who you are which helps build stronger rapport.
We could also create a testimonial video to put on a testimonial page. Testimonial videos are more effective than a written testimonial because they demonstrate verifiable legitimacy.
Also simply having a video banner at the top of your website will make your company stand out from the competition. Video banners are an easy way to make your brand feel more prestigious and high end.
These are just some ideas of how we can really take your brand to another level creating an experience on your website with videos that will make people more enthusiastic about your business and ready to make a purchase.
So before we focus on creating content for social media, you want to make sure you have a great website and have a solid conversion video on that website that will help you turn interested people into customers.
A conversion video could be put right on the front page of your website. This is ideal. We want to create as little friction in the customer’s experience going from social media to your website to the purchase.
The less clicking the better.
You may also have a bunch of pages on your website that covers the different services that you provide in which case separate videos might be useful to highlight those different services.
More videos can be used to really heighten the experience of your website.
A branding/story video could be put on your ABOUT page. People would much rather watch a video of you talking about yourself than reading some text. It’s more personal and people get a stronger sense of who you are which helps build stronger rapport.
We could also create a testimonial video to put on a testimonial page. Testimonial videos are more effective than a written testimonial because they demonstrate verifiable legitimacy.
Also simply having a video banner at the top of your website will make your company stand out from the competition. Video banners are an easy way to make your brand feel more prestigious and high end.
These are just some ideas of how we can really take your brand to another level creating an experience on your website with videos that will make people more enthusiastic about your business and ready to make a purchase.
10. Posting Content!
Once we’ve finished making videos or photos that we are very happy with, we’ve reached that exciting moment where we want to share it with the world! When we do this though we want to make sure that we share the content online in the most effective way possible.
There are some critical things that are frequently overlooked at this stage. I can make the best video possible but if these things are not properly done then it will hurt the amount of views and engagement the video will get.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made a video that I absolutely love and then the ball is dropped when uploading the content online.
Here are the things we want to make sure we get right.
The Thumbnail!
The thumbnail might seem like a little thing, but it can really make or break the success of a video. A good video won’t be watched by a lot people if it has a bad thumbnail.
A good thumbnail is clean and creates curiosity. It catches people’s interest. I can’t stress enough how important having a good thumbnail is especially on Youtube (and also Instagram). Professional YouTubers will put a lot of effort into creating an eye-catching thumbnail. Youtube also has a useful feature that allows you to upload multiple thumbnails and Youtube will rotate the thumbnails to see which one performs best.
I can provide thumbnails if you want help with that.
The Title!
Like the thumbnail, having the right title on Youtube can make or break the video. Again we want to make people curious to watch the video with the right title.
There are some critical things that are frequently overlooked at this stage. I can make the best video possible but if these things are not properly done then it will hurt the amount of views and engagement the video will get.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made a video that I absolutely love and then the ball is dropped when uploading the content online.
Here are the things we want to make sure we get right.
The Thumbnail!
The thumbnail might seem like a little thing, but it can really make or break the success of a video. A good video won’t be watched by a lot people if it has a bad thumbnail.
A good thumbnail is clean and creates curiosity. It catches people’s interest. I can’t stress enough how important having a good thumbnail is especially on Youtube (and also Instagram). Professional YouTubers will put a lot of effort into creating an eye-catching thumbnail. Youtube also has a useful feature that allows you to upload multiple thumbnails and Youtube will rotate the thumbnails to see which one performs best.
I can provide thumbnails if you want help with that.
The Title!
Like the thumbnail, having the right title on Youtube can make or break the video. Again we want to make people curious to watch the video with the right title.
The Call to Action!
In the description of the video, we want to include a Call to Action! The call to action could be leading people to your website or asking them to do something to engage with the content.
Remember, engagement equals enthusiasm!
The Links!
Make sure you are putting links to your website in the description (or on Instagram you tell people to look for the link in your bio) to funnel people to your website.
And also make sure to have your videos embedded on your website!
The Timing!
Posting content at the right time is important to get that initial engagement. You either want to upload first thing in the morning, or later around 5pm. These are the times when people are most likely going to see your content and engage with it.
For the days of the week, I’ve found Wednesday evenings to be best. Also Mondays, Thursdays and Sundays are good.
Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays are bad.
Sharing!
When the video is online, now share it everywhere you can! Tell people about it in your Instagram stories. Share it in your email newsletter. Tell your friends and family.
In the description of the video, we want to include a Call to Action! The call to action could be leading people to your website or asking them to do something to engage with the content.
Remember, engagement equals enthusiasm!
The Links!
Make sure you are putting links to your website in the description (or on Instagram you tell people to look for the link in your bio) to funnel people to your website.
And also make sure to have your videos embedded on your website!
The Timing!
Posting content at the right time is important to get that initial engagement. You either want to upload first thing in the morning, or later around 5pm. These are the times when people are most likely going to see your content and engage with it.
For the days of the week, I’ve found Wednesday evenings to be best. Also Mondays, Thursdays and Sundays are good.
Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays are bad.
Sharing!
When the video is online, now share it everywhere you can! Tell people about it in your Instagram stories. Share it in your email newsletter. Tell your friends and family.
11. Conclusion
I hope you have found all of this information valuable and helpful with understanding the process of producing effective content. I don’t just want to make a video and get paid. I really want to create something that is going to help your business.
Now having said that, there is no guarantee that a video will have the success that we hope it will. I have produced some videos that have gotten over 100,000 views, but not every video is going to be a hit like that. I want to make sure expectations are not too high. Marketing can be a fickle field to work in even when you’re the best in the business.
If you have any questions regarding anything with this process then I will be happy to answer those questions to create further clarity and help you with your marketing so that it is a success.
If you feel ready to get started with videos and photography for your business then that’s excellent. I look forward to planning with you the content we’re going to create together!
Let’s tune up the enthusiasm!
Now having said that, there is no guarantee that a video will have the success that we hope it will. I have produced some videos that have gotten over 100,000 views, but not every video is going to be a hit like that. I want to make sure expectations are not too high. Marketing can be a fickle field to work in even when you’re the best in the business.
If you have any questions regarding anything with this process then I will be happy to answer those questions to create further clarity and help you with your marketing so that it is a success.
If you feel ready to get started with videos and photography for your business then that’s excellent. I look forward to planning with you the content we’re going to create together!
Let’s tune up the enthusiasm!
