Tag Archives: Preconstruction video

Smart Shots: Economical Video Ideas for Service Businesses That Deliver Results

As decision-makers responsible for marketing, photography, and video production, you understand the necessity of engaging visual content. However, the budget for extensive, high-end productions is not always available. The good news is that effective, high-quality video content does not have to break the bank.

At St Louis Video Services, we specialize in helping service-based businesses and organizations maximize their visual marketing spend. Here are several economical, high-impact video concepts that can significantly boost your brand without requiring massive budgets or complex setups:


1. The Expert Q&A Series: Establishing Thought Leadership

The Concept: Position your key staff or executives as industry experts by having them answer common client questions or discuss industry trends.

  • Economical Advantage: This requires minimal set design—often just a clean background, good lighting, and clear audio. The focus is on the value of the information, not elaborate visuals.
  • Production Notes: Keep segments short (1-3 minutes). Film several Q&A videos in one session to maximize crew and location time. Use basic on-screen text for the question and speaker identification.
  • Impact: Builds trust, demonstrates expertise, and provides excellent evergreen content for your website, social media, and email marketing.

2. The Customer Success Story (Testimonial Spotlight)

The Concept: Instead of an expensive scripted commercial, film authentic, short interviews with satisfied clients.

  • Economical Advantage: The location is often the client’s office or home, eliminating studio rental costs. The narrative is organic and requires minimal scriptwriting—the client tells their own story.
  • Production Notes: Focus on a clear “before and after” narrative: the client’s challenge, how your service solved it, and the tangible positive result. Use a dual-camera setup if possible for a more professional look, or simply use quality single-camera framing.
  • Impact: The most powerful form of social proof. Testimonials build credibility faster than almost any other content.

3. “How-To” and Service Breakdown Shorts

The Concept: Quickly and clearly explain a complex service, break down a process, or offer a useful industry tip.

  • Economical Advantage: These are typically screen-capture videos with a voiceover, or simple shots of a process in action (e.g., a hand demonstrating a technique). Minimal talent and set requirements.
  • Production Notes: Focus on clear, concise instruction. Use graphic overlays and simple animations (like arrows or highlights) to draw attention to key points.
  • Impact: Excellent for boosting SEO, demonstrating transparency, and educating prospects, leading to more informed sales conversations.

4. Behind-the-Scenes (BTS) Culture & People Snippets

The Concept: Show your company’s personality and the people who make your service happen. A quick tour, an employee interview, or a snapshot of your team collaborating.

  • Economical Advantage: Shot within your own workspace, leveraging existing, natural light and settings. This is a very authentic style that thrives on a “less polished” aesthetic.
  • Production Notes: Use natural sound and a handheld, documentary feel. Focus on capturing genuine moments. Keep the music upbeat and positive.
  • Impact: Humanizes your brand. Clients buy from people they like and trust. This content helps forge an emotional connection with your audience.

🎥 Your Full-Service Partner in Visual Success

Achieving professional, results-driven video and photography—even on a focused budget—requires the right partner with deep experience and specialized equipment.

St Louis Video Services is a full-service professional commercial photography and video production company, operating since 1982. We provide the expertise, creative crew, and technical equipment necessary for successful image acquisition, ensuring your media stands out.

We offer full-service studio and location video and photography, as well as editing, post-production, and licensed drone pilots (including the capability to fly our specialized drones indoors). Our state-of-the-art, private studio lighting and visual setup is perfect for small productions and interview scenes, with enough space to incorporate props to round out your set.

We are not just a vendor; we are your complete production team.

  • We support every aspect of your production—from setting up a private, custom interview studio to supplying professional sound and camera operators, as well as providing the right equipment—ensuring your next video production is seamless and successful.
  • We can customize your productions for diverse types of media requirements.
  • Repurposing your photography and video branding to gain more traction is another specialty. We are well-versed in all file types and styles of media and accompanying software, and we utilize the latest in Artificial Intelligence for all our media services.

For over four decades, St Louis Video Services has successfully partnered with countless businesses, marketing firms, and creative agencies in the St. Louis area, delivering high-impact marketing photography and video solutions.


Ready to explore economical video strategies that maximize your marketing budget? Let’s discuss how our experienced team can bring your visual goals to life.

314-604-6544

stlouisvideoservices@gmail.com

Revive and Reimagine: Smart Ways to Re-Use Old Videos for New Marketing Content.

In today’s fast-paced digital landscape, the demand for fresh marketing content is unrelenting. However, creating entirely new video campaigns from scratch can be time-consuming and costly—especially when many companies already have valuable visual assets sitting dormant in their archives. For marketing decision-makers, repurposing existing video footage offers a cost-effective and strategic opportunity to generate fresh, engaging content that aligns with current campaigns and messaging.

At St Louis Video Services, we’ve helped countless businesses breathe new life into their legacy footage—transforming outdated video assets into dynamic marketing materials that resonate with today’s audiences. Here’s how your organization can do the same.


1. Create Short-Form Content from Long-Form Videos

Long corporate videos, training sessions, or event coverage may no longer be relevant in their entirety, but they’re often packed with usable moments. By extracting key highlights, you can create:

  • Bite-sized social media posts
  • Reels or YouTube Shorts
  • Video teasers or trailers
  • Testimonial clips

These clips can be customized with updated intros, new branding, or calls-to-action to reflect your current goals.


2. Update Graphics and Branding

Visual trends and corporate branding evolve over time. Outdated fonts, transitions, or logos can make older videos feel stale. Modernizing these elements is an easy way to give old footage a facelift:

  • Replace intros/outros with current branding
  • Overlay new lower-thirds or titles
  • Add fresh music, voiceovers, or subtitles
  • Use AI tools to enhance image quality or frame rates

At St Louis Video Services, we specialize in seamlessly integrating updated branding into archived footage for a polished, modern look.


3. Build Educational or FAQ Videos

If your past videos contain detailed product demonstrations, executive interviews, or how-to content, consider repurposing that footage into:

  • Training modules
  • Customer onboarding videos
  • “Did You Know?” social media series
  • FAQ explainer clips

Segmenting these pieces into digestible formats can position your company as an expert in your field and support your sales or customer service teams.


4. Compile Montage Reels and Testimonials

Have you collected various clips over the years from client testimonials, trade shows, or project walkthroughs? These can be woven together into:

  • Brand story montages
  • Case study highlight reels
  • Anniversary or milestone celebration videos

These compilations build trust and social proof—powerful marketing tools in any industry.


5. Convert to Different Formats or Channels

A great deal of older video content was created for one specific platform—often for websites or DVDs. Today, the same footage can be re-edited for:

  • LinkedIn, Instagram, or TikTok
  • Email campaigns
  • Landing pages or blog content
  • Webinar promotions or recap videos

By adapting older content to fit the specifications and tone of new platforms, you can reach different audiences without starting from scratch.


6. Use AI to Enhance, Transcribe, and Translate

Artificial Intelligence is transforming how we work with video content. Old footage can now be:

  • Automatically transcribed and turned into searchable written content
  • Translated into other languages for global audiences
  • Enhanced in resolution or audio clarity using AI upscaling

At St Louis Video Services, we use the latest AI tools to streamline and elevate the editing process, making repurposing faster and more effective than ever before.


7. Integrate Footage into New Productions

Sometimes, legacy content still tells a strong story. B-roll, interviews, or testimonials from previous shoots can be incorporated into new videos alongside fresh footage—resulting in a cohesive, layered message that saves on production costs and filming time.


Why Partner with St Louis Video Services?

Since 1982, St Louis Video Services has helped businesses, marketing firms, and creative agencies across the St. Louis region tell their stories through high-quality photography and video. As a full-service commercial production company, we have the right equipment, creative crew, and post-production tools to make your visual content work harder for you.

Whether it’s studio or on-location video and photography, professional editing, post-production, or licensed drone operations—even flying drones indoors—we have every element needed to make your next production a success. Our private studio lighting and interview setups are perfect for controlled shoots, and our large studio space accommodates prop-heavy scenes and branding customization.

We specialize in repurposing photography and video branding to gain more traction and maximize ROI. From re-editing archival footage to delivering AI-enhanced content in modern formats, our team is ready to elevate your visual marketing game.

Let St Louis Video Services help you transform your existing footage into new opportunities for engagement, conversion, and brand growth.


Ready to bring new life to your old video assets?
Contact St Louis Video Services today and discover how smart editing and strategic repurposing can make your content go further than ever before.

314-604-6544

stlouisvideoservices@gmail.com

5 Creative B-Roll Ideas for Interview Projects: Enhancing Your Storytelling

B-roll footage is a crucial component in interview-based video projects. It’s the supplementary footage that enriches the story and creates a more immersive and engaging viewing experience. While the interview itself is the focal point, B-roll serves as a tool to visually support the key messages and add context, helping to bring your narrative to life. As an experienced videographer and producer at St. Louis Video Services, I’ve had the opportunity to work with a wide range of clients to craft compelling interview videos that stand out. Below are five creative B-roll ideas that can elevate your interview projects and engage your audience more effectively.

Keep the interactions natural. Candid shots of genuine conversations often work better than posed or staged interactions, as they feel more authentic to the viewer.

1. Action Shots of the Subject in Their Environment

One of the most powerful ways to incorporate B-roll is by capturing the subject actively engaged in their environment or performing their work. For example, if you’re interviewing a CEO, showing them in their office, leading a meeting, or interacting with their team can give the audience insight into their role and personality. This adds context and makes the interview feel more grounded in the real world. Whether it’s an office, a factory floor, or a creative studio, action shots create a dynamic atmosphere that complements the spoken words.

Pro Tip: Ensure the lighting and angles match the tone of the interview. A busy environment might require a wide shot, while a more personal setting could benefit from tighter framing to maintain intimacy.

2. Cutaways to Products or Services

A great way to showcase a business’s offerings is to include close-up shots of products or services in action. For example, if you’re interviewing a product designer, you can film the process of them working on their design, adjusting details, or interacting with the product. This type of B-roll adds depth to the story by visually demonstrating the subject’s expertise or highlighting the key elements of their work. Product demonstrations are powerful storytelling tools in interviews, allowing you to show rather than just tell.

Pro Tip: When filming products, pay attention to lighting to highlight texture, features, and movement. Use a macro lens for extreme close-ups or slow-motion to draw attention to intricate details.

3. Interaction with Clients or Colleagues

Including shots of the subject interacting with colleagues, clients, or customers helps to humanize the story and gives a sense of community or teamwork. These moments not only provide a visual break from the interview but also reinforce the subject’s role in a larger narrative. Whether it’s a handshake, a conversation, or a collaboration, capturing these moments can add authenticity and highlight the relationships that drive a business.

Pro Tip: Keep the interactions natural. Candid shots of genuine conversations often work better than posed or staged interactions, as they feel more authentic to the viewer.

4. Visual Metaphors or Symbols

Sometimes, using symbolic or metaphorical B-roll can enhance the themes of an interview. For instance, if the subject discusses overcoming challenges, you could film a time-lapse of a sunrise, a plant growing, or a bustling city to symbolize growth or resilience. These types of visuals add a layer of artistic storytelling that connects emotionally with the audience. Choosing the right metaphor can elevate your video to something more memorable.

Pro Tip: Be subtle with metaphors. Overuse of symbolic shots can detract from the interview’s core message, so make sure the metaphor aligns with the key takeaways.

5. Behind-the-Scenes of the Production

A unique way to add B-roll is by showcasing behind-the-scenes footage of the production itself. This could be shots of the team setting up equipment, adjusting lighting, or prepping for the shoot. Behind-the-scenes footage not only adds transparency to the production process but also helps to reinforce the professionalism and care that goes into making a high-quality video. This can be a nice touch, especially in interviews where the production values are part of the story.

Pro Tip: Keep the behind-the-scenes shots quick and purposeful. Too much behind-the-scenes footage can detract from the focus of the interview. Use it to add context to the production and highlight your team’s expertise.


Why Choose St. Louis Video Services for Your Next Project?

At St. Louis Video Services, we understand the importance of capturing the right B-roll to support and enhance your interview projects. As a full-service professional commercial photography and video production company, we offer a range of services, including studio and location video and photography, editing, post-production, and licensed drone pilots. We can customize your productions for diverse media requirements, from small productions with private studio setups to large-scale projects that involve intricate equipment and crew coordination.

We specialize in repurposing photography and video branding to help you gain more traction with your content. Our experienced team is well-versed in all file types and media styles, ensuring your final product meets the highest standards of quality. Our private studio lighting and visual setups are perfect for small productions, such as interviews, and our versatile space can accommodate props to enhance your set.

With extensive experience working with businesses, marketing firms, and agencies in the St. Louis area, St. Louis Video Services has everything you need to make your next video production a success. Whether you need sound and camera operators or specialized drone footage indoors, we are here to help at every step of the process. Since 1982, we’ve been committed to creating impactful video productions that engage and inspire audiences.

Let us bring your vision to life with creative B-roll, seamless production, and expert storytelling.

314-604-6544

stlouisvideoservices@gmail.com