You’ve decided to shoot a corporate video production and soon thereafter, the panic sets in. What am I thinking! I’m terrible in front of a camera! This is a natural reaction, especially if you’re one of the company’s principals who is expected to lead and therefore expected to be the star of your corporate video. But does this mean that you’re the best person for the job?

When it comes to corporate video productions, the business owner or CEO may seem like a natural choice. For example, if you’re shooting an employee orientation video, your audience will want to get to know about you, your philosophy, and your company and who better to discuss yourself and your vision than you? The same is true of corporate video productions designed to attract investors. However, if you’re extremely uncomfortable on camera, appearing in a starring role could be counterproductive. Instead of inspiring confidence, a poor portrayal onscreen could cause doubt. Because of this, you should assess whether or not you’re the best person to lead the video. And if you’re not the best person, who is?

Define the Corporate Video Production’s Purpose
Corporate videos are made for many reasons ranging from employee orientations, investor relations, and sales videos to company tours and “how to” videos. Ask yourself what purpose the video is intended to serve and who the intended audience is. Now ask yourself how you’re going to use video to get your message across.

For example, if your video is intended to put your investors’ minds at ease and inspire confidence that your company continues to innovate, then your video needs to convey energy, commitment, and strength. While a talking head with loads of bar charts could convince investors that your company is on track, a corporate video production showing your team hard at work may be more effective. Should you stand in front of the camera talking about your latest initiatives or would one of your more energetic employees take the lead? A series of employee testimonials could be far more convincing than a discussion of bank balances in this case.

Similarly, customer testimonials are powerful tools. After all, who better to talk about the wonders of your products and services than the customers who have benefited from them?

Assess On Camera Skills
Whether you’re considering yourself or someone else for the starring role, it’s important that whoever leads the corporate video production is comfortable on camera. Formal acting training isn’t necessary to adequately represent your company in a business video, but whoever leads the video should be comfortable with role playing and speaking on camera.

Consider holding a casting call for the video. For example, if your video will feature an employee giving new hires a sneak peek at what it’s really like working for your company, you could hire an actor to play the part but having a real employee do it will be more effective. Let your employees know about the opportunity and have them submit video auditions or try out in front of a video camera set up in your conference room. Not only might you be surprised at the talent your staff has, your employees could enjoy being involved in your corporate video production.

Consult with Your Corporate Video Production Team
Your video production team knows what it’s doing, so make sure to partner with your producer. If it’s essential that you star in the video, your producer can put you at ease and help you look good on camera. You may be able to appear on camera for a short time, filling in the rest of the video with voiceovers, graphics, photos, images of your company, and testimonials. Your production company may recommend a spokesperson or even a character, depending on the video’s purpose and audience.

Deciding who should star in your corporate video production comes down to who is best equipped to deliver the intended message to the intended audience. It may be you, it may be an employee, it may be an actor, or it may be your customers!