Getting your message the undivided attention it deserves.

Ensuring your brand sticks with consumers

This is hard to achieve in any ad format never mind a compressed 30 seconds. Nevertheless there are 3 critical ingredients without which you'll have little if any chance of success:

First, Get Their Attention!

It would be difficult to think of any business that's more competitive than TV or video broadcasting. The average viewer in the United States has dozens of TV channels and on-demand video channels from which to choose. The success of a video infomercial will depend in large measure on your ability to effectively capture and hold an audience. And, once you do, you'd better have something interesting to communicate or they'll quickly go elsewhere -- either tuning to another channel or just mentally tuning you out. Your goal may be to communicate a corporate message effectively, to get viewers to understand a series of concepts or, to generate profits by selling products.

Hit the Target (Audience).

Understanding the triggers that emotionally engage us is critical. First, we have an interest in other people, especially in "experiencing the experiences" of other people. We're interested in people who lead interesting (romantic, dangerous, wretched, or engrossingly spiritual) lives. Part of this involves gaining new insights and being exposed to new points of view. This includes learning new things.

Here's something else to keep in mind. Viewers like content that reinforces their existing attitudes and, right or wrong, they tend to react against ideas that run contrary to their beliefs. Therefore, you must be careful in presenting ideas that blatantly challenge widely held beliefs. The trick is to know how far you can go without alienating an audience.

Audiences also like to hear about things that are new and that generate excitement. This is why mystery, sex, fear, violence, and horror do so well at the box office.

It also explains why we see so many car chases, explosions, and general instances of mayhem in our films and TV programs. Such things stir our adrenaline and involve us emotionally. In short, they hold our attention.

This, of course, brings up the possibility of exploitation, presenting things that appeal to elements of human nature that - how shall we say this - aren't the most positive.

Sometimes a rather blurry line exists between honestly presenting ideas and stories and unduly emphasizing elements such as sex and violence just for the sake of grabbing and holding an audience. Beyond a certain point, audiences will sense they're being exploited and manipulated, and resent it. And, keep in mind, the content of a production, good or bad, tends to rub off on the reputations of those who produce it -- and even on the businesses who promote it.

Be a better story-teller (tell a compelling story)!

Go beyond the facts and look for the affect - in order to provide viewers with examples in which they can relate. Look for the person or persons who have been or will be affected by the events you’re there to cover and tell their story.

Second, it takes applying technique to the way you shoot and edit the visuals. Shoot an event sequentially - the way you would see it without a camera. Shoot natural transitions. Capture concise audio. Eliminate all the visual distractions.

Third, write fewer words in your script and use more sound bites and not sound beds. If you have to cut for time - first try to cut something you’ve said.

People relate to other people and how they deal with issues. They don’t relate much to facts, figures and officials - which is why stories provide our best chance at engaging a viewer, captivating and holding their attention.