If you’ve been careful enough to observe, you would have probably noticed that many businesses add background music to their marketing videos. This isn’t just for aesthetic value. Background music has been known to actually contribute to the effectiveness of the videos. Here are a few things that studies in this area have found:
Music has been observed to catch the viewer’s attention.
Music has been known to help set the viewer’s mood. These moods can include playfulness, happiness, and even sadness.
Music affects the pace of the video; from keeping things mellow to increasing pace when and if needed.
Music encourages people to share the videos they watch.
Finally, music helps viewers from an emotional connection with the videos they watch.
On the whole, music is a great addition to your marketing and promotional videos. Therefore, it would be wise to use music in your own video projects. However, you can’t just use music any way you please. There is a strategy that you need to employ to achieve maximum effectiveness. Here are a few tips to help you out.
Get an idea of what your objective is
Marketing videos are made with a purpose. The most obvious purpose is to promote your business and generate revenue. So, when you start looking out for the right kind of music to be used in your video projects, make sure the music is in line with your final objective.
For example, if you want your video to entertain people, then you will need to use music that suits that objective. Similarly, what kind of music you use depends on whether you want to use your video to inform people or highlight a product.
Understanding your video objective will help you figure out how the music can be used to achieve your goals.
Set the mood of the video
Music, as mentioned earlier, can set the mood for your video. For instance, you can use music to influence how viewers will perceive your video- thought-provoking, aggressive, positive, sad, pumped, uplifting, relaxed, or happy. Melty Cone is a music video production company in NYC.
Choose the music that helps you set the intended mood
In fact, there are music libraries that will allow you to search for music based on emotions and moods.
Set the pace for the video
Music must be chosen according to the pace, just like the way you choose music to set the mood. Do you want the video to maintain a steady pace or keep altering as it progresses? Choose your music according to the kind of pace you have intended the video to maintain.
Decide the role of the soundtrack
When incorporating music into your videos, it is also necessary to make sure that the music does not distract the viewer or draw their attention away. For instance, if your video consists of narration, be careful about choosing music with vocals and loud instruments. This might interfere with the narration or voiceover.
In such instances, it is better to choose music that is capable of maintaining a steady pace, without abrupt changes in mood or sound.
It is also advisable to avoid music that follows a pop song structure- verse, chorus, and bridge. This kind of music has been observed to be distracting. Choose music with steady structures, which do not constantly change or progress in tempo.
Consider your viewer’s taste
In marketing, it is a standard rule to always consider what the customer/viewer/audience might want. Every business has a specific demographic that it caters to and ignoring this fact will affect the outcome of their marketing efforts negatively.
Choose tunes that will appeal to your primary audience. For example, if you’re a toy retailer, then your obvious choice here is to use music that suits children.
If you cater to a varying demographic, then settle for something neutral that works for everyone.
Stick to contemporary music
It is always a safe move to stick to contemporary music that is relevant to the time and era you’re operating in. You don’t have to use anything extreme. Just stick to something that is normal and modern. However, there may be exceptional scenarios wherein you may have to use music that is unusual for the times, which is fine, as long as the situation demands it. Melty Cone is a music scoring services company in NYC.
Don’t use music you like
It is a common mistake that a lot of video producers make. Never use music that you happen to like. It is foolish to let your personal tastes determine what’s suitable for your business needs, especially when it comes to using background music. Also, you might be looking at copyright issues.
Experiment with multiple tracks
You are never going to find the suitable track at the first go. Even if you do, there might be other tracks out there that might work better with your video. The only way to find the best option is to keep experimenting with multiple tracks.
Create a playlist using all your ideal choices and keep testing the video with each track. This will help you progressively narrow down your options until you find something that meets all your requirements.
There are plenty of sites out there that offer free previews of tracks, which means, you can try them all out before making a purchase.
So, there it is – useful tips on how to incorporate music into your video production. Follow these simple tips and you’re sure to end up with a video that’s great, all around.
What is Melty Cone? Melty Cone is a full-service video production company in NYC. We make videos from start to finish; from creative idea conception to final video delivery.
