Editing Process & Guidelines

Editing the Narration (A-roll)

1. Upload your footage into your editing program.
2. Start by pulling the best answers or sentences out of the raw footage.
3. Continually narrow down and reorder your footage until you have a solid 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Edit out all “um”s, pauses.
5. Use straight cuts for your transitions unless a crossfade is appropriate for a more relaxing mood.
6. The narration only needs to sound clean. Don't worry about the breaks between clips as this can be visually covered with B-roll. If you have an stretch where there is a break in the narration that can't be covered with B-roll, simply zoom in on the portion after the break to make it look intentional. Adjust resolution settings in the editing software lower (say from 1080 to 720) for best results.
7. Most business types should have a video from 1 to 2 minutes. Many sites, like Yelp, limit videos to 2 minutes in length. Shorter videos suggest to viewers that the video is more concise and thoughtful of their time. But big ticket items such as roofing may warrant more 2 minutes.
8. Once your A-roll is complete, detach the audio from all clips.

Overlapping Shots of the Business (B-roll)

1. Grab business shots (B-roll) that present your business as outlined in step 2. Often the footage will present the business in the same order as a buying experience, and often the picture will match what the owner is talking about. Longer 4 to 12 second clips are often preferred to several shorter clips. Delete the narration A-roll visual clip leaving the audio as you replace with the soundless B-roll shot.
2. Avoid stock footage or photos, always use real footage of the business.
3. B-roll should roughly take up the first 20 seconds or so before exposing the A-roll narrator for 6 to 10 seconds. Return to B-roll shots for another 20 seconds or so before revisiting the narrator. Repeat throughout the video.

Final Touches

1. Graphic Intro: It is rarely beneficial to add a graphic intro page for business overview videos as this does not benefit the customer. Jump right into your content.
2. Text: Add text at the bottom of the screen at the beginning, ending, and other appropriate parts.
   • Business Name
   • Address if appropriate
   • State and City
   • Website
   • Phone Number
3. Text: Potentially add: Hours, services, certifications, lists and other relevant information.
4. Background Music: If your business sells ambiance, as most restaurants do, a background music communicates a theme and is informational. If your business does not sell ambiance, such as a plumber, consider refraining from adding background music as it can make the video feel like a commercial rather than helpful information. Background music resource can be found at free sites like the Youtube Audio Library, or you can have something custom affordably made at paid sites like AirGigs Directory of Song Producers
5. Best Practices: Reference the list of best practices below.
6. Publish: Share your completed movie by uploading it to a video host whose link can be added to your website and other venues as listed in Step 6.

Editing Best Practices