“Hi. My name is Britt, and I’m an introvert.”
“Hi, Britt.”
But, I’m a big-time people person who has lived smack in the middle of the city for twenty years. I love to bolt out of the house any chance I get to attend fitness classes in a crowded room of sweaty strangers or have drinks with sweaty strangers in a crowded bar.
All of that works, as long as I get my dedicated Britt Time. If I don’t get Britt Time, I implode.
So…surprise! I’m an introvert and I am the face of my organization.
You’ll see my damn 40-something face all over LinkedIn and YouTube in Superneat’s marketing videos. You won’t see my extroverted business partner’s face anywhere, because he’s happier behind the camera and behind the scenes.
You too have this wild mixture of introverted and extroverted humans in your organization. And, nothing is straightforward when you’re figuring out which humans should be on camera and which humans you should keep far, far away.
Why Selecting the Right On-Camera Talent Is Difficult But Important
Video is a bigger investment than written content. Because you will invest more time, resources, and creativity into producing marketing videos, you have to find an internal rockstar who can still deliver your message under immense pressure in front of a camera.
The on-camera talent is the face of your organization. They need to simultaneously embody your brand and connect with viewers on a human level. Through their facial expressions, tone of voice, and body language, on-camera talent has the power to build trust and inspire action.
I’ve worked on both sides of the camera as the director and as the talent. I’ve witnessed firsthand the incredible impact that the right on-camera talent can have on the success of a marketing campaign and strengthening the entire digital presence of a brand.
On-camera talent plays a critical starring role in your video marketing initiatives. They will serve as the conduit between your brand and your audience. If they’re right for the part, your brand image and video metrics will be on the up and up.
Selecting the wrong on-camera talent will have the opposite effect. Instead of raising your brand credibility, your brand will either make zero progress—or worse, be harmed. Instead of longer watch times and more likes and comments, lower viewer retention and engagement rates will probably happen.
Then, sadly…your big video investment will bring little results.
How to Recognize When You’ve Picked the Wrong Talent
Choosing the wrong on-camera talent means wasted time and resources internally, and missed opportunities externally with your target audience. You obviously don’t want any of this when you’re doing everything in your power to make your video marketing investment worthwhile.
The problem is: It’s not always clear when you’ve got the on-camera talent wrong. Your video metrics aren’t even a clear indicator, since the success of your video depends on many factors. Anything from the title to the thumbnail design to the topic could be to blame instead of the on-camera talent.
You don’t want to jump to conclusions with on-camera talent based on the video’s performance. But, some other behaviors will reveal when you’ve chosen the wrong person for the job.
They’re unreliable.
We’ll start with one of the easiest warning signs of the bunch…you can’t rely on them.
They’re repeatedly rescheduling or canceling recording sessions, showing up late or unprepared, or failing to meet deadlines. Your on-camera talent is showing you exactly how uncommitted they are to this process by not showing up physically, mentally, or all of the above.
They’re reluctant.
Reluctance is a tougher warning sign to notice. Most people aren’t exactly jumping up and down when asked to get on camera and become the face of the organization.
A little bit of reluctance is totally normal. But, they should shake it off over time. If not, their discomfort on camera will be ever-present with stiff body language and an awkward content delivery that makes your audience feel awkward.
They’re unenthusiastic.
A lack of enthusiasm will be noticeable on camera because they’ll consistently give a lackluster performance.
You’ll also see a lack of energy play out behind the scenes—during pre-production, post-production, and promotion. This person won’t be interested in brainstorming topics or providing feedback, and they won’t make an effort to share their videos on LinkedIn.
So, what do you do once you’ve recognized the on-camera talent is all wrong?
Just have a heart-to-heart with them and see how they can be involved behind the scenes. They may be really great in a supportive role for other on-camera talent. Maybe they contribute interesting video topic ideas or record screen share tutorials that can be used as B-roll in future videos.
Finding Your On-Camera Diamond in the Rough
So, how do you find your diamond in the rough? Who are the ideal candidates for your marketing videos?
Most B2B organizations default to the CEO as the primary thought leadership figure. It makes perfect sense to have the CEO as the face of your organization. Why wouldn’t you do this?
Well, even though the CEO is arguably the best on-camera personality from your internal talent pool, you’ll almost always run into one major problem…time.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve worked with leadership as the on-camera talent and watched in silent horror as the whole video production process disintegrated. Most people in leadership roles are just too damn busy to commit to video content, especially if it’s an ongoing commitment.
Instead of begging your leadership team to make room in their schedules, search for your diamond in the rough elsewhere: People in customer-facing and product-facing roles.
The People Person
You definitely want to get the people person on camera. Because they talk to customers and future customers all day, they’ve got plenty of intel to add value to the content strategy and plenty of relatable stories to build connections with your audience.
Customer success and salespeople are two of my personal favorites. I also think there’s a great opportunity to tap into the marketing on-camera talent pool, even if they don’t talk to customers all day, as long as they’re in tune with your buyer’s needs. The people person will shine brightest with thought leadership and podcast video content.
The Product Person
Product people are fantastic on camera because they know your solution better than anyone. They’re invaluable resources with unbeatable knowledge. Your audience will learn a ton from them and they will position your organization as trusted experts in your field.
The main challenge with product people is that they are product people. Meaning, they love to live in the product and not in the limelight. You’ll probably need to drag them out of their product cave to get them on camera. They will be in their happy place if you keep them focused on product marketing videos—in-depth tutorials, demos, and product comparisons.
Are Introverts or Extroverts Better for Marketing Videos?
You’ve got your target set on several on-camera talent candidates in people-facing and product-facing roles. Probably the easiest way to narrow this down is to go with someone more extroverted. Won’t they be easier to convince to be on camera? Won’t they give a better performance?
Not necessarily.
Making a snap judgment about on-camera talent based on whether they lean more introverted or extroverted could land you in the precarious position of (DUN, DUN, DUN) choosing the wrong on-camera talent.
I’m totally an introvert, happiest creating content alone in her writing cave. I never enthusiastically volunteered to produce thought leadership videos for Superneat.
About a year ago, I finally committed to becoming the on-camera talent because it was so important for our growth goals. Not only is video the most effective content, but hello, it’s also the service we sell as an agency.
Now, I honestly don’t mind being on camera and I actually have a lot of fun creating these videos with my business partner (the behind-the-scenes extrovert).
Both introverts and extroverts bring unique strengths to your marketing videos. Each on-camera personality type’s impact depends on the preferences of your target audience and the overarching goals of each video you’re producing.
The Case for Introverts
- Communication Style: As empaths who are thoughtful communicators, they will connect with your audience on a deeper, more human level.
- Audience Perception: Your audience will like their genuine vibe and trust what this person says because it comes from an authentic place.
- Ideal Format: Informative videos—tutorials, product demos, and scripted thought leadership where depth of knowledge and sincerity reign supreme.
The Case for Extroverts
- Communication Style: As enthusiasts who are charismatic communicators, they will draw your audience in and hold their attention.
- Audience Perception: Your audience will like their energetic vibe and gravitate toward them because they’re interested in just about anything they have to say.
- Ideal Format: Interactive videos—podcasts, event promos, and unscripted thought leadership where they think on their feet and adapt to chaotic environments.
Ways to Help Introverts and Extroverts Shine On Camera
Over time, with practice, introverted and extroverted on-camera talent will add value to your video marketing efforts by bringing their wonderfully unique POVs. But, with the right level of support, they can shine on camera and make your marketing videos shine brighter too.
Recording Environments
Introverts
Create a comfortable environment for introverted talent. Leave space at the beginning of the recording to check in and make sure they feel confident about the content they are about to deliver. Provide plenty of reassurance throughout the recording process.
Extroverts
Create a collaborative environment for extroverted talent. Before you start recording, get aligned on the content and eliminate distractions (i.e. notifications, phones, pets). During the recording, encourage them to improvise—if something doesn’t work, it can always be cut later.
On-Camera Coaching
Introverts
Offer one-on-one coaching sessions outside the recording environment to help introverted talent feel more comfortable and confident the next time they’re on camera. Provide constructive feedback and encouragement to help them better showcase their strengths and sincerity.
Extroverts
Also away from the recording environment, spend quality time with the extroverted talent to help them channel their on-camera energy in a focused way. Help them understand how to strike a balance between entertaining the audience and staying on track with delivering key messages.
Ideal Formats
Introverts
Keep introverted talent focused on informative video content formats that play up their strengths. Off-the-cuff videos will be trickier for them to pull off. So, they can’t do a podcast video? They can. But, they’ll need coaching to learn how to navigate unpredictable conversations on camera.
Extroverts
Capitalize on your extroverted talent’s charisma with interactive videos that feature their big personality. Does that mean they can’t do a tutorial? They can. But, they’ll require lots of pre-production support to prepare for the recording. Otherwise, they’ll wing it and deliver a haphazard tutorial.
Scripted vs. Unscripted
Introverts
Scripts ease anxiety and uncertainty for introverts, especially if they’re perfectionists. Personally, I love scripted videos. The challenge here is the delivery because a script must be performed. If they can’t perform, use the script as a nearby security blanket and feed them talking points.
Extroverts
Embrace extroverted talent’s spontaneous nature with unscripted video content. A script will likely hinder their performance because they’ll feel tied down. But, that doesn’t mean flying by the seat of their pants. Talking points are a must to keep your extrovert’s high energy focused.
You Have Chosen…Wisely
My deepest apologies for the ancient 1989 movie reference from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade I’m about to leave you with.
In the film, “choosing wisely” meant choosing the right holy grail cup, drinking out of it, and living. “Choosing poorly” meant choosing and drinking out of the wrong cup and…er…certain death.
We’re not talking about a life-or-death situation here with on-camera talent, obviously. But this decision should not be taken lightly, since so much of your video’s impact depends on the talent’s impact.
You now have all the tips I could think of to help you choose your on-camera talent wisely.
If you’re looking for expert on-camera coaching and a strategic partner to produce the highest quality marketing videos possible, the Superneat team is happy to help.
Our remote video packages are the best place to start. Packages start at just $3k a month, and you can check them out on our pricing page.
