5 Things Every Technology Executive Should Know About Video
When you reach that Executive with a big E level in your career, it’s important to know that you are now shifting into a role where it’s less about keeping the engine running, or the financials in order, or the IT servers up and running.
The role has evolved into one where you have become so experienced in your field, that it’s time to pivot how you communicate back to the world. You start to relate to words such as thought leader, or subject matter expert, where there are people who are actually followers of you.
This means you need to consider the most effective communicative method that not only helps convey the message you want to give but is easy to share with people that are at various levels of knowledge.
Video is the most sophisticated technology for communication currently
If you’re a Technology Executive and you are going to start a communication platform then it’s important to use what is the most advanced format out there. Until we get holographic communication we see in some of our favorite movies or television, this is where we are at.
It’s also not simply about making a video and posting it for later viewing, but taking several approaches at once. Consideration should go into live streaming some sessions as a common way to connect with followers, as well as making high-quality and engaging video content.
The video content itself shouldn’t just be you speaking to the camera but should utilize the ever-growing library and options for adding elements to your video communications to make them much more engaging. Please never just simply speak into a camera and try to communicate a message from a script.
Check out his video of Elon Musk Live:
Video is the best medium for explanation
You’re in technology, and that can be very complicated for many people. Using a video allows you to turn it around to a classroom setting, where you can easily explain complex technological ideas, or even what a certain software does, or what the DevOps department is responsible for.
Video allows for the combination of the written word, visual imagery, and video all into one combined and perfect setup. You can show a presentation, or use fun and engaging animations to try to convey your message as simply as possible. Through the use of engagement, it ends up making your job easier as you are able to build out these digestible snippets for people to learn and feel empowered.
That’s another beauty of video. If you were to write a user manual on Cloud Operations or System Architecture, it would be the size of two bibles filled with diagrams that only scare those uninitiated even more.
You would think that having chapters, or even breaking up the chapters into online PDFs to be downloaded one at a time would make it easier. The problem is that people can still feel and see the gravitas of the subject and see how much they would need to consume is what deters them.
This also applies to graphics and illustrations as well, which will visualize the complexity even more. With a video, you create controlled instances of information that can be viewed at people’s leisure, without feeling overwhelmed.
Here is a great example of a Tech CEO video with Mark Zuckerberg:
Video is the easiest medium to consume
As mentioned earlier above, video for explanation or demonstration is the easiest to consume. It is both visual and auditory, so there are two receptors working to capture information. That helps people who don’t need to be fully focused but can still be able to consume the basics.
Since you can also simply rewind the video with the swipe of a button, that engagement from the user watching the video also helps. Stopping the video, skipping around to parts, repeating parts, is a lot easier with a video, and there’s better absorption of the content, which in turn helps people who want to hear a part of the message in this format.
Video can be distributed globally tomorrow
One of the most powerful features of that video, whether it’s a video of you making a presentation at a conference, or a video oversimplifying an explanation of what an ERP system can do, whatever the message, it can reach a wide audience quickly.
It can reach those users that may not have the knowledge you existed, and help grow your reach and help spread your experience and vision out there to everyone. Some of the most-watched videos are from past technical visionaries that are still referenced and viewed on a daily basis by millions of people.
Yes, I’m talking about the Steve Jobs and Elon Musks of the world, where they are edited and redistributed by other video content creators. This sharing of content helps with the distribution of information and reach.
There are also so many video content distribution platforms out there, that cater to all the demographics in existence when combined. That’s a powerful thought, and having your 15-minute presentation on the corporate site get cut down to 5 minutes on YouTube, down to less than a minute as a snippet on Instagram or TikTok, helps parcel and repurpose your content to anyone and everyone out there.
That’s what makes video marketing such a powerful technology that should be embraced by technology executives.
Video can help you own your content
Even with the parceling of information down below, the original content that is made is yours. Yes, so is written content and images, but with video, there’s a higher possibility that you may be in the video yourself, and you can control the message you want to present through the video.
Producing a video may require a lot more technical work, but it also requires a lot less content technically speaking overall. Going back to those large technical writing papers, or user manuals that are extensively written and take a long time to write, video content is efficient in its message.
Whatever the length of the content, it’s your content, every piece of that content can be utilized, and it helps to push technology executives to be able to own their message through their thought leadership and content.
Go back to the original tech innovators of the last several decades, and you don’t see them writing thesis papers, or drawing complex diagrams. They are all sitting in front of audiences, ensuring that their message to these audiences is being recorded for future preservation.
Video is a combination of mediums that has multiple industries trying to make it as easy and efficient as possible. The advances to video production, formatting, and creation continue to come out at a much faster pace than other mediums.
It’s important to understand that when comparing it to other mediums that may seem to be more informative, like the written word. There was so much discussion about speech-to-text software or some recommendation software to help produce information, but all of it is basically fringe development.
The same thing goes for graphic design and imagery. You could probably easily name two or three graphic design programs out there that people use, whereas when it comes to video editing there are dozens out there. From native applications on smartphones to native applications within video distribution sites to standalone fully dedicated video editing software.
A great deep dive tech video from Nvidia’s found Jensen Huang:
As a technology executive, always stay ahead of the curve in your communication platform and fully understand the power of video.
