The 5 Levels of Video Creation (and Where You Can Start)
You know the story of the tortoise and the hare?
Quick rundown: the hare is used to going fast, so he keeps doing that, and shoots off the starting line… but burns out way too soon. The tortoise puts one foot in front of the other, keeps his head down, and crosses the finish line while our buddy hare is taking a power nap.
This isn’t just a kindergarten story. It’s the philosophy at the center of sustainable content creation.
Here’s a hard-won truth: The most dangerous thing you can do as a creator CEO is bite off more than you can chew. You have some pretty cool things to say, some unique viewpoints, and a need to build a pipeline. All of these things can combine into a great content strategy… but it won’t get off the ground if you’re worried about going too fast, too soon.
And if you stick with us for the rest of this article, we’ll make our case for approaching your content strategy like our friend the tortoise. We’ll do this by breaking down five levels of video creation, in reverse order, so we can help you reverse engineer the best place to start on your journey to sustainable content.
We respect your time, so here’s everything we’ll cover upfront:
We’ll talk about the #1 problem most creator CEOs face when trying to sustainably make content (a.k.a. burnout) and how to avoid it.
We’ll tackle the five levels of video creation according to ANTEATER Way.
We’ll delve into some of the best Level One video recipes to kick off with as a creator CEO on the starting line.
We’ll finish off with our suggestions for where to begin on your very own content journey (we like tactical, actionable tips here).
Spoiler alert: If there’s one thing we want you to walk away with, it’s this: start with an MVP when you’re creating content. It’s ok to start somewhere.
“All great products start with an MVP, and the content you’re creating is a product!”
P.S. And if you think you know someone who would benefit from some of this knowledge, please send it their way (the more the merrier!).
Level Five: High-Quality Post-Production
Starting at the top of the stack, we’ve got high-quality post-production. This is what most people think they need, but you don't. Letting this be the ideal leads - more often than not - into perfectionism that you don't want to mess with. Trust us.
Heavily produced video with great graphics, a lot of extra editing, b-roll, and multiple camera angles spliced together. All of this requires extra considerations while you’re filming, as well as one or two post-production editors to finalize the cut.
There’s no denying that all of these things can turn out a great, entertaining video. But trying to nail video while starting at this level is like trying to build an entire software suite, with all the bells and whistles, and no beta stage. It’s a lot. All that friction and uncertainty can be a real killer, and often derails creator CEOs with incredible potential before they even get started.
Level Four: Bringing Others Into the Equation
One level down is the introduction of other people into your content. Making content where you are the sole focus of the camera is much easier than conducting interviews, because you can predict exactly what is going to happen. This is why the ‘Man on the Street’ videos can be so tough to create.
There is a lot to be said for these kinds of videos, and they shouldn’t be discounted completely. But it’s important to build your solo practice before bringing a co-pilot on screen with you to keep things running smoothly.
Level Three: Whiteboarding
Whiteboarding might not seem overly complex, but videos like these generally require a single take and someone else filming to execute seamlessly. On top of that, if the text on the whiteboard is not easily visible on camera, you might even require some additional editing to make sure all the information comes across.
With these factors in mind, whiteboarding can be a lot tougher than it sounds (but a great style of video to work up to over time).
Level Two: Adding Another Angle (or a Cameraperson)
Let’s face it, adding more gear to your stockpile or another cameraperson to your filming routine can be a great way to organically add more visual interest to a video. It opens up a lot of possibilities to create this way, but not all of them are relevant for the average creator CEO!
Once you can add another angle or cameraperson to your routine, editing, splicing, and on-the-day coordination all become factors. So, before diving into this level, we recommend you start with…
Level One: The MVP
You, your phone’s camera, and a great idea. That’s it!
Level One is the true MVP of online video creation, with no highly-produced editing, camerapeople, or extras. The goal of a video like this is to clearly explain a single interesting concept in a clear, actionable way to your viewers.
There’s a reason why the best startup advice on the planet is to build an MVP. You did this when you built your offering, and that approach works just as well for building a sustainable content practice that moves leads into your pipeline.
Here are some examples of short video MVPs according to some of the recipes we covered earlier:
Talking Head: Set up shop at your desk, at your dining room table, or in your parked car, and take us through a single concept from start to finish.
Walk and Talk: Grab your phone and take a walk through your dining room or down a hallway, talking us through that single concept all the while.
Podcast Clip: Put on some headphones and – if you have one – set up a microphone in-view of the camera. Center your eye-line just off to the right of the camera, like you’re chatting with someone else, and do your run-through.
Show & Tell: Telling a story about a particular thing associated with your business? Grab it and show it off as you tell your story, talking-head style.
The idea is to take all those extra bits and strip them away, so you can focus on figuring out why you’re making video, and how you can do it to best serve your business. It’s okay to treat this as an experimental process, and it’s okay to take your time to get it right.
Be the turtle, friend. Start with an MVP.
Creator CEOs right now are seeing major returns by providing goodwill information to their communities. It’s an amazing way to build and get in touch with your community, which in turn creates a rich pool of potential leads to connect with when the time comes.
The thing is, we see a ton of people jumping into the video space for the first time and expecting themselves to begin at Level Five, or to operate with the same objectives as an influencer. In other words, they’re haring off the starting line, burning out, and taking a solid nap in the shade while they could be moving forward.
Not only does kicking off at Level Five demand a ton of extra time and energy, but it also introduces so much friction and difficulty right as you’re starting out. It might even be sending you in the wrong direction altogether. After all, a full-time creator’s goal is to generate as many views as possible, but your goal is to get interested customers into your pipeline. That demands a completely different approach!
Approaching things like the hare pressures you to get everything perfect, as you’re investing enormous amounts of time, money, and energy into your video. You won’t have the freedom to listen to your community’s needs, set up a creation pipeline, and try new things as you get settled.
It might even mean boxing yourself into something that doesn’t work way too early, for the sake of creating views, instead of delivering niche viral content that actually connects with people you want in your pipeline.
So, with all that said…
Your mission, should you choose to accept it.
Yeah, we’re giving you homework, but it’s fun homework. If you accept it, you’ll have a finished video to post in the next four days. Here we go:
Of the four video recipes we’ve described in Level One, select just one, and use it to create your MVP. Define your concept, structure what you want to say, and film it with a simple setup (depending on your chosen recipe).
If editing isn’t your thing, aim for a quick and easy one-take you can clip and upload easily. Remember, the goal is not to produce viral, highly-produced content that will get millions of views! The goal is to create information-rich, targeted content that will help you build authority and get interested customers into your pipeline. Tortoise, not hare.
Upload that awesome new video, and please tag us on LinkedIn so we can show you some well-deserved love for getting that video live. In our experience, that can be the hardest part.
If you’re feeling a bit unsure, that’s 100% understandable and actually expected. Reid Hoffman famously said, you’re not running your startup fast enough if it doesn’t feel like the wheels are going to fall off. So it's totally OK that this might be a toooouch outside of your comfort zone. :)
To help, we’ve got a free 4-day email course that will take you through this process step-by-step. If you’re interested, feel free to sign up to that. No pressure!
