Creating an engaging brand video strategy is like planning a successful trip. Both require careful preparation, thoughtful execution, and sharing unforgettable memories.
Just as travel tips help ensure a smooth and enjoyable journey, the same principles can be applied to your company’s brand video strategy. Here’s how travel-inspired tips have also become invaluable to my work in video production:
Highlight collaborations on your journey
When planning a trip, I often include multiple destinations. Each stop adds value to my overall experience, whether it’s through cultural insights, scenic beauty, or new connections.
During my latest visit to San Diego, I decided to explore both old and new destinations and see what I could find. After booking my flights, I immediately added places I hadn’t been able to experience during previous visits including Top of the Hyatt and Little Italy Farmers Market. Each day, I made the time to visit a new restaurant or wander in a part of Balboa Park that I hadn’t been to yet.
Crafting a brand video strategy works in much the same way. Highlighting your partnerships, collaborations, and the people who make your brand what it is is like showcasing the key stops on your journey. Partnerships add credibility, reinforce your brand’s values, and demonstrate how your product or service integrates into a larger ecosystem. These partnerships show that your brand doesn’t operate in isolation but thrives through collaboration.
While working for a local arts organization in San Francisco, I produced, filmed, and edited a video highlighting our partnership with another company who supports social impact entrepreneurs. Dedicating our brand video to this key partnership helped align their strengths with our brand and emphasized the shared mission that brings us together: To uplift those making changes in their communities. Involving real people who had a deep connection to the partnership helped the story feel relatable and relevant.
Focus on your audiences, not the destination
A great trip is more than just the destination—it’s about the experiences along the way. Smart travelers focus on what they’ll get out of their journey, whether it’s personal growth, relaxation, or new knowledge.
When I’m planning a trip, I appreciate guides that think about what I might encounter as opposed to those that feature every must-see destination. Getting a sense of possible opportunities and challenges is much more valuable to me than picture-perfect moments at a location. As a frequent traveler, I value knowing where I can go for a unique experience and reflect on my journey.
The same approach of taking the focus away from a destination can apply to a brand video strategy by taking the spotlight off of your company and placing it on the value your product or service brings to your audience. Instead of centering the video around your brand, showcase how your offerings improve your customers’ lives, solve their problems, or fulfill their needs.
TikTok does an excellent job of doing this by incorporating real stories from customers who have benefited from the platform and its creators by letting audiences’ voices tell the story instead of their brand. Their stories present real scenarios that mirror the challenges or desires audiences face and how TikTok helps them overcome obstacles, learn more, or achieve their goals.
Featuring audiences’ stories also draws attention to the emotional impact of TikTok rather than its features. Highlighting the feeling of security, happiness, or empowerment that audiences experience creates a deeper connection than simply listing what TikTok does or can do.
Go local
When traveling, recommendations from locals are invaluable. They know the best spots, the hidden gems, and the insider tips that make your experience richer and more authentic. Their tips can shape your journey in ways guidebooks can’t.
Enjoying the top sites are a part of any traveler’s list, but it’s just as fun to find the hidden local gems. While traveling, I get more out of making purchases at a local store and getting to know what people do on an everyday basis. One of my favorite places in San Diego isn't a top tourist spot, it’s actually a secluded beach: Sunset Cliffs. Thanks to a local guide, I was able to find and explore this peaceful place on my own time, California Burrito in hand.
Focusing on locals is not only a good travel idea, it’s also great for your brand video strategy. Just as locals enhance your travel experience, turning your audience into brand advocates can amplify your message in ways your brand alone cannot. Advocates are people who believe in your product or service and willingly share it with their networks, providing a level of trust and authenticity that traditional marketing can’t match.
Instead of pushing a hard sell, engage your audience with content that resonates with their values, needs, or interests. Is there a key person who’s going to be at your event or supports what you do? Featuring a person helps audiences feel personally connected to your brand and they’re more likely to share it with others. Showcasing local rapper Rocky Rivera in an Instagram reel helped me amplify an event and provide awareness on what potential event attendees can experience.
User-Generated Content also helps encourage your audience to create their own content featuring your product or service. Showcasing this content in your brand videos builds a sense of community and validates your brand’s impact. When customers see that you value their loyalty and trust their recommendations, they’re more likely to spread the word about your brand.
Create experiences
A well-planned trip is an immersive experience, engaging all your senses and leaving you with lasting memories. It’s not just about the places you visit but how those places make you feel.
During my recent trip to Los Angeles, my visit was more than a must-see list. Walking along the Santa Monica Pier, photographing the Griffith Observatory, or wandering through downtown Burbank, I also took the time to soak up everything around me. Seeing the top sites like the Hollywood sign, Walt Disney Concert Hall, or Yayoi Kusama’s work at the Broad was fun, but seeing other parts of Los Angeles offered other opportunities that I might not have experienced.
Your brand video strategy can also benefit from looking at what your brand offers as an experience rather than an advertisement. When highlighting an online art piece in an exhibition, I created a video showing the process of how museum visitors could contribute to the work by sharing their experiences via a website that would turn their submissions into a virtual weaving. Taking this approach gave audiences both an idea of how to participate and connect to the artist on a deeper level. This approach leaves a lasting impression with audiences and encourages emotional investment, leading to greater brand loyalty and advocacy.
Other ways you can create a strong emotional response is by using rich visuals and interesting narratives to transport viewers into the world of your brand. Another artist-focused video I produced for the same exhibition involved highlighting a collaboration between artists Heesoo Kwon and Vivian Sming Sming that led to a gift shop for Kwon’s feminist religion Leymusoom. Allowing them to share their reflections and highlighting their artistic partnership and friendship brought memorable, emotional moments that resonate with audiences.
Crafting an effective brand video strategy is like planning the perfect trip. By highlighting partnerships and collaborations, focusing on the value you bring to your audience, turning your viewers into advocates, and creating an immersive experience, you can make your brand’s story resonate deeply. Remember, just like travel, the journey isn’t just about the destination—it’s about the experiences and connections you create along the way.
