Thinking About Producing a Corporate Video? Start Here.
If you're planning to produce a corporate video, it’s easy to jump straight into the logistics: Who’s filming it? What gear do we need? Where will we shoot? But before any of that, it’s worth taking a step back to think about why the video exists in the first place—and what it actually needs to do for the people watching it.
Corporate video isn’t about flash. It’s about function. The best corporate videos don’t just inform—they clarify, align, and remove friction. They replace long meetings with something tighter. They scale important messages so teams across locations, roles, and time zones stay on the same page. But to get there, you need more than a good script or camera. You need a plan that respects your audience, fits your organization’s voice, and solves a real communication problem.
Step One: Define the Role of the Video
Start by asking: what job does this video need to do?
If you’re producing a training video, the goal is retention and clarity. If it’s a leadership message, the goal might be tone, visibility, and building trust. If it’s a culture piece for recruiting, it’s about giving outsiders a quick, honest look at what it feels like to work there. These are very different goals—and they call for very different creative approaches.
Don’t treat the video like a standalone deliverable. Treat it like a tool in a system. Where does it fit in the employee journey? Will it be watched once or revisited often? Should it lead to a next step or simply reinforce a key idea? The clearer your answers, the more targeted (and useful) the final product will be.
Step Two: Know Your Audience Internally
Corporate video lives in a different context than marketing content. Your audience already has context—and opinions. They’ve seen internal messaging before. They know when something feels off. If the tone is too polished, it can come across as insincere. If it’s too casual, it may undercut the message. The key is alignment: the right voice for the people watching, and the subject at hand.
When you produce a corporate video for employees, you’re not trying to win clicks. You’re trying to earn trust and make things easier. That could mean using familiar language, showing real employees instead of actors, or choosing to film in your actual office—even if it’s not perfect. Authenticity often wins over polish, especially in internal comms.
Step Three: Budget for Attention, Not Just Production
One of the most common missteps is assuming the budget should go toward cameras, locations, or motion graphics—without first thinking about how long people will actually watch. If your team’s average attention span for internal updates is five minutes, building a ten-minute piece might backfire, no matter how well it’s made.
Respecting your audience’s time is a creative decision. It might mean cutting a planned segment. It might mean breaking one long video into a series. It might mean scripting voiceover differently to get to the point faster. Whatever the case, attention is your most limited resource. Don’t spend the whole budget on the visual polish without considering how the message will land.
Step Four: Build for Reuse
If you’re going to produce a corporate video, plan it like a repeatable asset. What else could it serve beyond its first use? Could that onboarding video double as a recruiting piece? Could a leadership message become part of a quarterly roundup? Could you build a library over time with the same tone, format, and structure?
Building with reuse in mind gives you more value per minute filmed—and less pressure to start from scratch next time. It also helps internal teams know what to expect and where to find what they need when they need it.
Step Five: Bring in the Right Partners—At the Right Time
A corporate video producer can’t solve strategy after the shoot has started. If you’re planning to hire a production company, bring them in early enough to weigh in on structure, tone, or how to make the most of a single shoot day. A good partner won’t just ask what you want to film—they’ll ask what you’re trying to solve. The earlier you align on that, the better the results.
But before you call anyone, clarify the purpose, audience, and expectations internally. That way, your video partner can focus on helping you make it better—not digging for context that should’ve been sorted out from the start.
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You don’t have to produce a corporate video every week. But when you do, it should work harder than just “getting the message out.” It should reduce effort for the people watching. It should add clarity, not noise. And ideally, it should make future communication easier.
That starts not with the script, but with the thinking that happens before anyone hits record.
Explore more examples and resources here:
https://awakenedfilms.com/our-work/corporate-video/