What Everybody Ought to Know About Creating Corporate Event Highlight Reels
Corporate events offer a unique opportunity to capture various media and create everlasting value for your company. These events bring people together and are filled with moments that are entertaining, captivating, and unforgettable.
When done right, a well-crafted highlight reel video can be an effective way of engaging with attendees and promoting future events. Having personally shot, edited, and produced over 25 highlight reels for corporate events over the last decade, I can share some valuable tips on what it takes to create a successful reel.
This blog post will guide you through the process of planning and creating a highlight reel for your next corporate event. You’ll learn how to create a video that not only reflects your brand but also surprises and delights your viewers.
It’s All About the Soundbites
Incorporating soundbites into your highlight reel adds depth and increases viewer engagement. Without soundbites, you’ll be stuck with a clip montage, something that lends to passive watching.
Soundbites can come from main-stage presenters or man-on-the-street interviews.
Pro tip: presenters often start and end their presentations the strongest—that’s often where the best soundbites live.
For man-on-the-street interviews, keep it simple. Here are some specific pointers:
Dedicate someone within your marketing team to ask attendees questions
Aim for 10-15 short interviews per day if it’s a multi-day event
Ask only 4-5 questions. Here are some good ones:
Where are you coming from?
What do you think about the venue?
What’s been your favorite keynote, and why?
What’s been your favorite breakout session, and why?
Anything else you want to share about the event so far?
Music is Not an Afterthought
Highlight reels are edited to music. Each cut flows with the beat, and the pace of the cuts are based on crescendos. Put simply, music is foundational to the edit.
Choose a song before the event. If creating multiple highlight reels, choose songs for each reel. Don’t forget to make sure it’s approved by all stakeholders.
Attendee Generated Content Engages
Often at the end of each event day, the attendees do some fun activity. There are different activities, groups, and locations.
Ask attendees to share and tag photos and incorporate those images in the highlight reel.
I’ve seen this resonate with an audience after a fun night out!
Who Are the A-Listers
Make a list of the people that must be in the video. On the flip side, make a list of those that shouldn’t be in the video.
This will keep everyone happy.
Coverage and Creativity
When planning a highlight reel, aim to hit a balance between coverage and creativity.
There are certain moments that must be covered—such as a presenter making a big announcement, a celebrity showing up, the CEO revealing something big, etc. Make sure cameras are in the room during these unforgettable moments.
Then there are times when you’ll need less coverage, and the event slows down—such as breaks, simultaneous breakout sessions, transitions, etc. Use this time to get creative shots, like timelapses, hyperlapses, drone videography, etc.
These are the clips that ALWAYS make it into the highlight reel, so they’re important to capture.
In Conclusion
In conclusion, highlight reels are simply fantastic! They have the power to convey the very soul of an event - the energy, excitement, and camaraderie between people. If you're seeking videography services for your upcoming corporate event, look no further than Level Set Films.
Thanks for reading.
