10 Ways to Help Plan a Content Shoot
Content shoots are a key element in many brands’ marketing strategies. They provide brands with the specific content they need to tell their stories across all platforms ranging from websites to social media accounts.
Your content is what represents your business online – so getting your content shoots right is crucial to success.
In this article, we offer you 10 of the top ways that you can help plan a content shoot – ensuring that you end up with the best content possible and avoid making any costly mistakes.
So, notepad at the ready… let’s begin…
Know Your Goal
Like anything in marketing, to get the most out of your content shoot you first need to be clear on what it is you are trying to achieve. There are countless reasons why you may need a content shoot such as:
- Showcasing a new product
- Highlighting an event such as a sale
- As part of a wider marketing campaign
- Generating brand awareness
- Refreshing your website
- Building a ready-to-go content library for use across social media
Knowing what you are trying to achieve will ensure that you and everyone else involved in the shoot remains focused throughout.
Set Up Clear Communication Channels
Communication can mean the difference between a successful or disastrous content shoot. Great communication will help your shoot run smoothly and help you overcome any potential issues quickly and easily.
How you choose to communicate with those involved in your shoot is up to you. This could be anything from setting up a dedicated WhatsApp group to using a dedicated team management platform such as Slack. However, it is crucial that everyone is aware and accepts the method of communication you choose, as multiple people communicating in different ways will usually lead to communication issues further down the road.
Write Down a Plan
A well-thought-out and detailed plan is going to help make your content shoot a breeze. This should include key details such as:
- Timings
- Location
- Who is involved
- What people’s responsibilities are
- Outline of content requirements
You can go as detailed as you like, although all plans should include at least the details we have outlined above.
Communicate Your Plan
Your plan should be the central document that those involved in your shoot regularly refer to. Therefore it is important to keep it in a centralised location where everyone can easily access it.
Using a platform such as Google Docs will help you ensure that everyone knows where to find the most up-to-date location of the plan. It will also allow you to set up notifications so that all those involved will be notified of any critical updates.
Know Your Location
Spending time getting to know your location will help everything go smoothly on the day. You can also include key details of the location in your plan such as:
- Where is it
- How it is laid out
- Details of parking facilities
- Any accessibility concerns you may have
- Allocated spaces (shoot location, wardrobe etc)
Manage Timings
Time management is a crucial element of a successful content shoot. You will always need more time for each aspect of the shoot than you think, so building in generous allowances is well worthwhile.
It is also important to have someone onsite whose job it is to ensure that everything runs smoothly and time requirements are met. This may seem a little ‘over the top’ but will ultimately mean that you achieve everything you need to in the time allotted – saving you time and money in the long run.
Support Wardrobe
When checking out your location you should find a space that can be allocated to the wardrobe. This is an often overlooked aspect of the shoot which can cause major time delays if not considered properly.
In your plan note what each person will be wearing throughout the day. This could be extensive in some scenarios, such as a product shoot for a clothing brand. In other cases, it will be a simple list of clothing requirements, such as dressing in colours that complement the brand.
You will also want to ensure that those who need to get changed on location have a private place to do so.
Be Clear on Your Content Needs
The platform you will be publishing your content on will dictate how that content is shot. For example, content that will be used on a website will need to be shot in a different format than content that will be used on social media.
Often shoots will be used as an opportunity to shoot content for multiple platforms – so being clear on what these are will make the editing and publishing stages that come later much easier.
You may also create a shot list that clearly outlines which shots need to be taken and the platform requirements for those shots.
Consider Food and Drink Needs
Content shoots can be thirsty (and hungry) work.
Ensure that there is enough food and drink available for everyone from the models to the production team to keep them operating at peak efficiency throughout the day.
Set an End of Shoot Review
At the end of the shoot, it is important to review your plan and ensure that everything has been covered. This step is often forgotten but can save potentially costly and time-consuming oversights from being made.
Helping Plan a Content Shoot: Summary
Content shoots can be complex tasks to undertake. However, they are also a great way to create brand-centric content which can be used for everything from marketing campaigns to general day-to-day social media use.
Following the steps we have outlined in this article will help you create a plan and to get the most out of your content shoots.