The world is changing. Video is more important to consumers than ever before. In fact, according to HubSpot Blogs research, 69% of consumers consider video content to be highly important in comparison to other types of content.

“Consumer video consumption habits are evolving, and businesses need to adapt,” said Dr. Ofer Shechter, Market Scientist, HubSpot Blogs.

“With more consumers accessing content via video on their smartphones, demand for video-enabled marketing strategies grows. Just 17% of marketers state that they use video content for marketing purposes compared to the 71% who use text-based content and 3% who use both video and text content.”

The trend is clear: people prefer to learn about brands and products via short-form video content.

So if you’re looking to make a marketing video but don’t have the budget to hire a professional, don’t worry — there’s a better way!

Thanks to powerful online video makers like Vidyard, Ditto, and TwentyThree, making a video doesn’t have to be hard. With these platforms, you can easily upload your video files from your phone or computer, and within minutes you’ll have a polished marketing video ready to go.

These tools help you avoid many of the pitfalls that come with traditional marketing video creation. For instance, many video makers, such as Vidyard, offer sophisticated color correction tools that can help you level out poor lighting and adjust the mood of your video to fit your needs.

Get Inspired

One of the first things you should do before starting to make a video is to get inspired by what already exists. You don’t need to start from scratch — look through your company’s social media accounts to see what videos you can find. Watch other companies’ marketing videos and see what you can learn from them. Inspiration can come from anywhere, so take your time searching for ideas.

You also need to be sure that what you’re going to film is going to be valuable enough to justify the effort. If you’re looking for inspiration, check out some of the latest marketing videos by brands like Uber, HP, Miele, and many others.

Plan Your Content

Once you have your inspiration, you can move on to the next step — planning your content.

For many business owners, this step can be the most challenging part of video creation. It’s quite easy to get lost in the process and not have a clear idea of what you’re making or why you’re making it. To help you plan effectively, create a mood board — a collection of images, graphics, and text that will help you identify the tone and style of your video. Make sure to include everything from the script to the music to the visuals. Once you have everything on one page, it will be much easier to stay organized and on track.

Take your time with this step, because you can always go back and change things later. You want to make sure that everything lines up and that you’re not rushed.

Create A Rough Draft

Now that you have everything planned and you’re ready to actually make the video, it’s time to take out your camera and start shooting.

The first thing you want to do is to create a rough draft of the video. This is the version that is most likely to change — and that’s okay! You want to take your time with this step so that you can make sure that everything is perfect before moving forward.

This draft is also the perfect place to try out new ideas — if you have something exciting to show off, you can easily build on it in the next step.

To create a rough draft, use a tool like Storyfire, which allows you to add photos, music, and text for a fully customizable video.

Take More Time To Perfect It

Once you have your rough draft, it’s time to take it easy. Set your video to playback once you’ve pressed the button and relax while the video plays. When you’re in the middle of shooting, it’s easy to become overwhelmed and tense, and that will make it harder for you to get the best performance. So take your time and make sure to listen to the audio closely so that you get the most out of your performance.

When you’re done, take a minute to review the video — from the lighting to the audio to the editing. Tweak things here and there and make sure that everything fits your theme and style. When you’re happy with the final product, share it with your team.

With these steps, you will be able to make a marketing video in minutes and without the stress that typically comes with other video solutions. From there, all you have to do is promote the video and watch the engagement rise.