By BizVid co-owner, Caz Taylor

Writing to you, as a business person, I suspect you have more question marks than exclamation marks in your plans for maintaining and growing your company in these “COVID-ified” times. In many ways, you may feel that the deck has been unfairly stacked against you and fellow small businesses. Perhaps it has been.

Please allow this brief blog entry to serve as an encouragement. An inspiration. A motivation for you and your organization’s enhanced success moving forward.

Sometimes, the best communications tool is to use examples and stories of others learning to survive and even thrive in antagonistic environments, as we are in. May I draw your attention to a beloved friend of my partner, Bill Gruber, and mine? This person and his “roaring twenties/mafia themed” restaurants, Notorious Burgers, are located in Carlsbad, California. His name is Brian Gruber.

You have likely observed that Brian’s last name is the same as my associate’s last name. Partner Bill is Brian’s father. This relationship puts us in a position to observe, provide video support and otherwise encourage, when possible and appropriate. This relationship gives us firsthand knowledge of the ebbs and flows in a promising business model and the threat of seeing a great idea snuffed out by a debilitating pandemic and less than compassionate regulations.

Bear with me as I present the story and provide a closing “moral to the story” to end this blog. If the “business closing” plague crippled commerce, the seemingly unfair local and state regulations nearly terminally strained the comeback of many businesses like yours and Brian’s.

Brian is one of the most creative and resilient business owners I have seen. As are you. To people like him and you, devastating challenges should really be taken as exhilarating opportunities to give you benefits and approaches which will separate you from the competition and enhance your success, rather than hamper it.

I will give you two examples born by Mr. Gruber and his restaurants. Government mandates to restrict inside dining afforded Brian the opportunity to expand his primary location by enhancing his tables and service to include an outside experience. This was presented to customers not as an inconvenience, rather a benefit of taking their dining experience “to the street,” almost literally.

His second location was within a “restaurant row” kind of a setting named the “Windmill Food Hall.” While the whole restauranteur clientele braced for the impact of COVID restrictions, and many closed down, Brian made lemonade out of lemons, so to speak. Instead of being “grilled” by restraints of COVID and government bureaucracy, Brian’s strategy turned to “barbeque.”

Discovering there were no longer any restaurants in the area offering barbeque, Mr. Gruber altered his menu to command the attention of hungry and cooped up diners. He revisited his menu and marketing approach when he realized he could tastefully corner the “barbeque” market. This decision and his flexibly creative strategy is being met with resounding success.

By BizVid Communications Partner Caz Taylor

Through the life of your business, you have likely experienced challenges which war against your greatest success. The Covid-19 issue is just another such combatant, how be it, more robust than many of the others.

Take heart. The values that have proven themselves successful in past combats will pay off in today’s battle for your company’s surviving and flourishing.  Here are a few top-of-mind traits employed by successful women and men, along with their businesses.

Keep in mind that these BizVid Communications viewpoints are from personal observations, and less from today’s bloviated and so-called facts. This point of view, however, comes from a faith and confidence that doing what is right within your business acumen will win over the elements that threaten your company’s failure.

We are reminded of ancient words of wisdom, the likes of which will be the springboard for this blog. Hopefully, they will be a springboard for your heightened success in contrary times. By paraphrasing, the saying goes: “Displaying the heart of godliness will produce fruitfulness in our lives (and businesses): love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”

The last sentence in these words of wisdom is most curious. Neither the constitutional laws within America, nor the greater, supernatural laws of the universe violate the aforementioned precepts.  This should present an added comfort as you decide your best ways of sustaining and even expanding your business within troubled times. Though nay-sayers may challenge your proactive business decisions, if the annotated precepts are followed, “there is no law against them.” Being bold and confident in these times will carry great promise of reward. Watch and see.

While the nine precepts mentioned carry great weight and promise of success for you and your business, this missive will focus on only two of them. This duo are perhaps the most difficult to achieve and maintain, which makes them all the more important to your success.

I am speaking of your application of “patience” and “self-control.” As the current threat abates, we are likely to see the landscape strewn with large numbers of businesses in ruins. Two of the most significant causes of this ruination deal with a lack of business patience and self-control of the leader(ship).

Patience. What is the most truncated version of your business which can survive? I am reminded that many of today’s great organizations began in someone’s garage. What is your equivalence of that garage? Is it a single room office? One-desk? One clipboard? One faithful vision? This may not be a time to fully abandon the ancillary elements of your earlier successes, rather prune them back for a season. A pruned tree will be more fruitful when the season changes. Keep your relationships with the people who helped you become successful in the first place. Though those relationships may need to be in storage for a season, as the promises of fruitfulness come back, so can the fullness of those relationships. Nature would suggest that this pruned tree will become even more fruitful. Patience, indeed, is a virtue.

Self-control. The operative word here is “self”. One rarely can command full control of others. You, however, carry the clear responsibility for controlling yourself. Your perseverance or lack thereof in light of YOUR company will either help relaunch your success or assure its failure. Winston Churchill was credited with saying “Never (never, never) give up.” We are reminded of a cartoon showing a troop of soldiers trudging over barren dunes and across the desert, with the leader saying, “I give up. Let’s go back.”  From the cartoonist’s vantage point, we see a beautiful oasis just on the other side of the knoll which inspired the troop’s retreat. This troop leader is you, my friend. Your reenergized success is much nearer that you can even imagine if you never give up.

In this brief BizVid Communications blog, we reveal a secret to success which we have observed in some of finest businesses and the most endearing people throughout this nation, and world.

Simply put: focus yourself and your communications based on what you would like to be, rather than what you are not. The following insights embrace our personal work ethic. We hope you find them helpful.

As the whole world tries to find its way in the midst of troubling, even contrary times, there are a few communication techniques that have proven to outlive the braggadocious, self-elevating, often demeaning babble that one hears (and sometimes self-professes) as businesses like yours strive to survive.

Over the decades, BizVid Communications has worked with a variety of people and organizations. Businesses whose actions exhibit a level of contrition, humility, and concern for others have enduring staying power. Businesses with more-critical and less-compassionate attitudes for others may find that their successful days numbered.

A prophet once said: “A word fitly spoken is as ‘apples of gold in pitchers of silver.’” 

Our present day interpretation: “Choose your words kindly and wisely when communicating with others.”

This also supports a well-known quote from Bambi’s friend Thumper who said, “If you can’t say nothin’ nice, don’t say nothin’ at all.”

At BizVid Communications, we have dedicated our company’s principles to giving everyone with whom we work (staff, contractors, and clients) the benefit of the doubt.  We find grains of goodness within all aspects of our production crew, and we expand on those as we communicate to achieve a common goal.

Sometimes it may seem that the human psyche seems to relish hearing about only the bad stuff, it’s been our experience that positive and sustaining messages are tied to what is actually good and helpful for humanity.

Someone once said that when you point the finger at someone or something, the majority of your fingers are pointing back at you.  Perhaps the best recipe for finding the good in others is by taking a brutally honest look at ourselves.

Have we gone out of our way to serve and help others, even when this high ground is best attained from being on our knees? We have found that when one has the attitude of elevating others, we ourselves are elevated. 

This opens the door for examining the difference between true compassion and humility versus and acting with self-serving, false humility and insincere compassion. As we each look in our personal mirrors of self-reflection, we should let our unfiltered conscience have its say. From personal experiences, when one must weigh between “what is right” against “what is best” for one’s self and company, “what is right” should ultimately win out.  I know this may be hard when faced with some business decisions. 

Bottom line is this: your peers and clients are watching. When you and your organization personify grace, compassion, and honesty, the truth-seekers who really count will sustain you and your company in challenging times. 

When the rules and regulations for running your businesses seem topsy-turvy and out of your control, I offer the following advice:

Don’t abandon your innovation.

Through the years, BizVid Communications has partnered with businesses of all sizes. We don’t focus on the businesses as much as we focus on the individuals that have inspired the businesses. We use video to help businesses personify their character. The resulting video delivers those insights to a public in need of that business’s services or benefits.

As a company owner or manager, much of your own character has been embedded in the strategies which have made your business successful. During times of stress, employee anxieties, or faltering finances, you may feel a tendency to abandon your good business sense. You may feel a desire to acquiesce to people who know very little about your industry, and even less about you.

Don’t abandon your anchors.

During troubled times, we at BizVid are impressed by companies who place great emphasis on the well-being of their employees. Often, your employees are the people who helped your business become a success in the first place. Faithful employees are the metaphorical anchors of your successful business. Employers who make modest-yet-heartfelt efforts to lessen the suffering of their employees will likely discover that such efforts are the best possible investment.

Don’t abandon your innovation.

We are heartened to observe restaurants and the innovative work-arounds that they devise in order to continue serving their patrons. Food deliveries, catering, take-outs, plastic booth dividers, and the development of sidewalk tabling are all examples of “how to make the best situation out of the worst restraints”. In his writings entitled “Republic,” the Greek philosopher, Plato, observed that “necessity is the mother of invention.”

As a business owner, take note of what happens when you depend on the anchors who surround you. Your employees are likely to be a stabilizing force, and they may even inspire more innovations that steer your business from “surviving” into “thriving”. In so doing, you can and will redefine your industry and succeed like none other.

In this blog’s Part 1, award-winning BizVid Communications offered insights regarding your smartphone videos, along with video-delivery tips. 

In this blog’s Part 2, we will outline a few ways to maximize your voice delivery, and tips to make your video presentation more desirable and believable. 

Audio tips

There are external-microphone options for smartphones, but most users are assumed to to not be using them. If you are using your smartphone’s built-in microphone, you will like your audio outcome better if you try to keep the camera/ microphone within a few feet of your subject who is speaking. Audiences can be distracted when a video’s audio is inconsistent in volume, or far-away sounding. 

Whenever possible, stay close to your subject and your viewer will stay close to the message

Regarding the content of your video, remember that very few people can string more than a few sentences together. That is completely normal.  To make your video as impactful as possible, we like the idea of crafting a few “glance-worthy” bullet points.

Don’t make your glances obvious, but steal a look at your bullet point as part of your normal head movements. Study the delivery of lines from a soap opera. See if you can locate where the actors have stashed their lines during a rather lengthy diatribe.  

Regarding delivery, stay away from too many “uhhhhs” and “ahhhhhhs”.  Brief silence to collect your thoughts is always better, and substantially adds to your believability.

Also, converse rather than announce. Be yourself.

Practice makes… perfectly believable.

Practice these aforementioned tips, and toss in some purposeful eye contact with the smartphone camera. You will see a marked difference in your delivery, along with higher viewership and greater viewer retention. Fine tune your skills in delivering your message. It is generally okay to have a few takes. Remember, the little things will make a big difference. 

At BizVid Communications, we often tell our clients that it is not the big budgets, but the big ideas that make a great video.  So much the more with your smartphone productions. Go create something memorable.

Smartphone Videos

You may be among the multitudes who have discovered the value and fun of smartphone videos. When it comes to making unforgettable video messages with your smartphone, here are a few tips from one of the producers at BizVid Communications. 

As multiple-time Emmy winners, we know how to craft effective powerful videos using reasonable budgets. But, in this case, smartphones are a good way to put forth a memorable message with no budget whatsoever. With the “increased down-time” recently, we have had the opportunity to see smartphone videos used for all kinds of purposes. Some are even being used to promote small businesses. Here are some tips on how you can “use your smartphone to make smart videos.”

Visual Tips

When recording smartphone video, a horizontal orientation is the most functional. Horizontal smartphone videos allow for more people to be on-screen at once, compared to vertical videos. More background can be displayed in horizontal videos, while showing less of the spokesperson’s lower body. Finally, horizontally-oriented videos allow more flexibility in typical presentations since most display screens (projectors, televisions, etc) are also horizontally oriented.

Starting with a horizontal smartphone orientation will allow more space for the on-screen talent to move their hands or move props. If you are your own on-camera tablet, it is advisable to mount your phone to a tripod or gimbal, rather than hand-holding it. Hand-held video is often shaky, and those shakes can distract your audience from your message.

Regarding lighting and positioning, pay attention to the pre-existing light at the location where you are recording. Frame your shots so the lighting falls on your on-camera subject. Use your smartphone’s manual exposure mode and lock the exposure, if possible. 

Position your subject far enough from the background so that their own shadow doesn’t fall on the background behind them.  Separation between the subject and their background will make both elements more appealing.  

In this Blog’s Part 2, we will discuss some audio tips and the value in taking strategic practice runs. Have fun with your smartphone camera. Go create something.

Welcome to this Premiere Pro tutorial from BizVid Communications, a video production company based in San Diego. Today you will see how to correct an overexposed section in a video clip.

Often during post, you will find various exposure ranges within a scene. This video clip example shows a restaurant server placing a food item on a counter top. Overall, the scene is dark. To correct the exposure, I will use various Lumetri controls to adjust exposure and contrast according to the Lumetri scope.

Once the adjustments are made, hot spots emerge, specifically the counter top. However, the server looks good and is properly exposed. Not to despair because the counter top exposure can be corrected while keeping the rest of the scene in tolerance. To do so I need to duplicate the video clip.

I hold down the ALT key, then click and drag the duplicate clip up to video Track Two. Next, I will create a mask around the counter top by using the Opacity pen tool. In this example the countertop has straight edges so masking is not as difficult as it might be in other scenarios.

Next, I turn off Video Track one, select Video Track Two then use the Lumetri controls to dial in the proper exposure settings for the countertop. Once that is complete, I turn on Video Track One to fine tune the adjustments. Mission accomplished.

The scene has a balanced exposure in all quadrants and the issue is solved. Masking is great tool.

Welcome to another video tutorial from BizVid Communications a leader in video production for businesses, industry and health.  Today I’m going to show you how to put a border around a video clip and make it whatever size and color you want. 

First, scale the clip to 75%. Look for the “rectangle tool”, which is found in the dropdown box of the “pen tool”.  Next, click and drag to make a box around the clip that is larger than the clip itself.  This creates a graphic similar to text a graphic. 

Then, extend it to the length of the video clip.  Now, drag the video clip above the graphic and here’s the border… but we’re not done.  Next, select the video clip, then go to the motion controls “position” numbers to center the clip on the graphic.  This still needs work. 

For this I will use “scale” but must uncheck the “uniform scale” box.  Now I can manipulate the height and width independently.  First, be sure that the graphics clip is selected then; begin to adjust the scale and height settings to your preference.  To finesse, select the video clip and move to your desired position.

I will show you how to lock the two together but first, I want to change the color of the border.  Select the border, double click the “fill” box and change the color. To nest, select both clips, right-click, then “nest.”  It is now one clip and can be manipulated any way you want.  

And there you have it…simple and effective.  

BizVid Communications is a premiere video production company, so creating blogs are important for keeping our name and brand visible. Further, systematic blogs provide important information regarding one’s product or service. Such communications help with rankings on social media. These are very likely good reasons for companies like yours to do the same.

Regarding the selection of blog topics, we are reminded of the strategies behind one of the most popular and highly rated television programs ever. Jerry Seinfeld’s self-titled show, Seinfeld, was touted as a series about absolutely nothing. Even “nothing” can be something if it’s properly packaged. Indeed, there is nothing like it.

Keeping in mind the main objective of “name and brand appreciation/ recognition”, any blog topic which commands a reader’s attention can do the job. Also it is helpful to understand the media parameters into which your blog will be placed. For our purposes, the length of a blog should probably be around 600 words. That is enough to command attention, while not discouraging a person who does not enjoy reading. A person’s love of reading is not usually a factor in the purchasing of a product. So keeping things short and sweet is always a wise decision. What’s more, that 600-word length seems to be typical for popular blogs around the Internet.

Some believe that having a catchy photograph also helps in the blog presentation. Because of copyright laws, it is unwise to grab just anything off the internet and use that as your blog post’s graphic support. Who wants to get a threatening letter in the mail? This may not be worth the risk. Today’s cell phones offer such high resolution photography that you can click your own photo that illustrates your topic fairly easily. As a video producer, we have access to stock photography and video which allows us to search out appealing visuals within our existing usage contracts. Perks of the trade.

Regarding blog presentation style and tone, it is advisable to simply “be who you are” in your communications. The “real you” will be more believable and more able to properly communicate your message than putting on a false persona. That said, Bizvid Communications is responsible for portraying the products, services, benefits, and personality of our clients.

In video production world, we often assume the character of our clients more than our own character.  Over the years we have learned to do this quite well. In fact, we love helping our clients put their best foot forward. Even so, our own personality is never completely lost in the equation. We enjoy taking our clients’ thoughts and streamlining them into impactful and concise messages.

Then, there are times when you have said all you wanted to say, but the format requires you to provide more words than you feel comfortable generating. For example, if you are creating a blog like this one, and you have only 489 words written, but need to get to 600 words.

In such instances, it may be advisable to apply the art of summarization. It is proven that a person’s ability to comprehend something is enhanced when a presenter reframes the original precept, using fewer words. Repetition can be a communicator’s best friend. 

Remember, periodic blogs are very important for branding and name recognition.  Pick topics that will command attention for your target audience which you feel comfortable communicating about. Be aware of recommended blog lengths and other restrictions. And, use photography or graphics as part of your blog whenever possible. Well, my 600 words are completed, as is this blog message. Thank you for joining us for this informative blog.

San Diego video production company, BizVid Communications, has produced hundreds of videos over the years. One of the more satisfying categories for us is medical surgery.  Typically in this environment, we are asked to document a new surgical procedure or the use of a particular instrument in the performance of surgery.

We are honored to be a part of such a project because the resulting video helps to advance the cause of medicine. In the performance of our duties, we must operate at the highest level and without distraction to the surgical staff.  A do-over in surgery is not an option.  

In the case pictured here, we used two cameras. Camera 1 was placed on jib and was suspended over the cadaver for an unobstructed view of the area to be worked. Camera 2 was placed on a ground level tripod so as to capture surgeon interactions.  We rigged each surgeon with a wireless microphone in order to record their teaching moments. 

After recording, the next task in the process is to edit all of the recorded material into a truncated and cohesive presentation. It must accurately represent the procedure and include the important teaching moments. Typically, the edit will go through several iterations prior to sending the video to the client for their final notes and input. Once their edit notes, if any, have been addressed, the video is finalized and sent back to the client for distribution.  It is a rewarding process. One that we hope to continue for a long time to come.