, , ,

How to Set up your own Video Recording studio at home on a budget.

A video camera on a tripod recording a women that is sitting on her couch.

If you have ever thought of setting up a home video recording studio, now is the time! Since COVID-19 has hit and stuck around, content plans have had to be reworked, or even put aside. With these tips, you can set yourself up right from the comfort of your own home. 

Having the right equipment is going to make a huge difference for your home video recording studio setup. Luckily, we can help you find the basics at almost any price point. 

At Home Video Equipment Checklist for Beginners:

  • Phone Camera or Web Cam 
  • Camera Tripod
  • Lighting
    • You can totally get away with natural lighting, however, for those overcast days, an LED ring light can make all the difference. 

TRICK:  You can find LED light rings & tripods in one!

TIP #1 – Choose an Appropriate Setting

Use a nice space in your home to make your backdrop not only beautiful but full of personality! Having a set of props that reflect your brand image will not only make set up easier but also keep your videos more consistent. A tall plant and a trade show banner work in a pinch!

TIP #2  – Keeping Consistent Lighting

Having good lighting makes all the difference in videos. Lighting helps to keep the camera focused on what you are shooting, and not on re-adjusting to the lighting. Whether it is natural or artificial lighting, you want to make sure your subject is facing the light, and that the light is smooth. We don’t want any harsh shadows…unless that’s what you are going for. 

Because sunlight is constantly changing, investing even a little into some artificial light will be well worth it. Google the “Three-Point Lighting System” to see the setup we use and recommend to all our clients.

TIP #3 Adding a Second Camera

Adding a second camera can add some dimension to your content. Whether it’s a second phone or a second video camera, getting some different shots can increase the “professionalism” of a video. If your subject is shot from the front, try adding your second camera 45 – 90 degrees from your primary camera. When editing, you can take footage from both angles, leaving you with a more dynamic video. 

TIP #4 – Floor Markers 

Setting down markers on the floor will allow you to take snack breaks in between takes…but in all seriousness, setting down markers will help you stay consistent in the long run. When working at home, sometimes you are the producer, director, stylist, lighting, and camera operator all in one. Having place markers on your floor will help you stay consistent. It will also help you with continuity while editing. 

TIP #5 Check 1..2..3..

Tip #5 but Rule #1: You’re going to always want to do an audio check. There is nothing worse than filming an amazing video, then finding out during editing that the audio wasn’t very good. A solid tip for any at-home studio is to figure out what your space’s baseline audio sounds like, and then fix that. A great example is an empty room that tends to echo; we can fix this by putting some furniture in it to help absorb the sound. Another great example is knowing what goes on outside of your space. If the garbage truck comes every Wednesday at noon, then it is probably not the best idea to try to film during that time. 

TIP #6 Prep B-Roll Shots to Cover Any Mistakes

B-Roll footage is what is outside of your main set up. Examples of B-Roll could be closeups of a prop, or of someone’s hand. Having B-Roll can help you hide any filming mistakes. You can cut to some B-Roll instead of using the original footage. 

TIP #7 Practice 

Be kind to yourself, practice makes perfect. Your first video isn’t going to look and sound like your 5th, 10th or even 50th video. You’ll learn your own tips and tricks along the way! 


Remember, if you aren’t up to filming in-house content, you can still book your professional photos and videos with the Rosewood Team. Commercial photo/video shoots are still permitted to operate during the pandemic.

/0 Comments/by
, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Entrepreneurs in Residence

What Does Being An Entrepreneur Mean To You?

Being an entrepreneur means taking an idea and turning it into a reality. As a result, it gives an individual the freedom to express their creativity and explore beyond average boundaries.

Join Us!

We invite you to join us on Thursday, November 14th from 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm in the Aurora Public Library Living Room where four local entrepreneurs will share their stories and inspire others to take on the journey of becoming a self made entrepreneur. 

The Journey of Rosewood

The founder of Rosewood, Deanna Simone, will be sharing her journey as an entrepreneur and why Rosewood chooses to focus solely on serving entrepreneurs and small businesses. Deanna gets to know your business inside and out and finds the best ways to market it. Owning your own business is personal, and she believes in becoming a team to work together toward mutual success. She has made it Rosewood’s mission to provide online marketing strategies that reflect your business goals. Rosewood prides ourselves on honesty and transparency, translating technical concepts into terms that business owners can understand and appreciate.

Meet the Other Entrepreneurs in Residence Speakers

The speakers of the November 14th event will bring great background knowledge and experience that you can benefit from for your own business. Kimberley Smith is the Marketing Consultant, Instagram and Facebook Designer and Owner of Young at Heart Painting. Kimberley believes in “providing creative solutions to help improve the lives of others.” Another speaker of the event is Emily Chung, Licensed Technician and Owner of AutoNiche. Emily lives by the motto, “mental grit for the entrepreneurial journey.” Finally, Carl Milroy will be speaking at the event. Carl is the President and Managing Partner of Red Thread Brewing Co. Carl believes simply, “It’s what connects us.” 

Why Is It Important To Share Experiences and Learn From Each Others Mistakes?

It is important to share our experiences to not only learn from each other’s mistakes, but to understand that every entrepreneur will experience failure before success and to not feel discouraged in times of failure. Sharing experiences is a great way for entrepreneurs to bounce ideas off each other. It is also a great way to find some tools and skills that may work for you. Passing on knowledge from experienced entrepreneurs to those who are just starting out can be a great way to find yourself a mentor or even become a mentor for someone who is new to entrepreneurship.

 

This is a great opportunity to meet with new visionaries who share your same drive to succeed. There will be a Q&A with attendees after the speaking. We also have a Smartboard available for your use and refreshments for you to enjoy.

Click here to register for the Entrepreneurs in Residence event! 

/0 Comments/by
, , , , ,

Are You Accurately Tracking Your Marketing Efforts and ROI?

Are you accurately measuring your marketing ROI?

Whether you’re working with Rosewood or another marketing agency, you should read this blog from beginning to end.  We’re probably one of the only marketing agencies that will say this but, marketing is not something you should just keep dumping money into. Are you doing your part to measure your marketing ROI?

Most small businesses are running marketing strategies in some capacity.

  • Google Ads or BING Ads (Search Engine Marketing SEM),
  • Social Media Ads (Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads, LinkedIn Ads),
  • Organic Search Engine Optimization (SEO),
  • Video Marketing,
  • Backlinking campaigns,
  • PR Campaigns,
  • Radio,
  • Newspaper,
  • Periodicals,
  • Seminars,
  • Workshops,
  • etc.

No matter which one, you NEED to be tracking your ROI.

Online marketing makes it easy to measure TRAFFIC, but not necessarily CONVERSIONS.

Unless you are selling products via an online store, you can lose track of what happens from when someone visits your website or sees your ad, to if/when they actually convert into a customer.

The Solution? Get Back to Basics

This is where the onus is on you, the business owner.  We absolutely recommend that you have a client onboarding process in place that requires new clients to specify how they found you, or what made them ultimately convert. It’s as simple as asking them how they found you or having a short online survey that’s sent after initial contact or the first meeting.

Scenarios:

More than likely, it is a combination of marketing mediums:

  • Maybe their colleague mentioned you to them, they started doing some research about you, and then a few days/weeks later they see an ad and that’s what convinces them to call/visit you.
    • ROI came from Referrals x Google Ads (SEM)

 

  • Maybe they simply needed a quick solution, Googled you and saw your convincing Google Ad. They then went on your website and it established trust with them to reach out to you.
    • ROI came from Google Ads (SEM) x Website Content

 

  • Maybe it was solely a referral from a friend they trusted because of your excellent work.
    • ROI came from Referrals, Customer Retention & Nurturing

 

  • Perhaps they Googled a specific question, which your most recent article answered and showed up organically on the front page in Google Search Results.
    • ROI came from Organic SEO

Are You Using These Results to Improve Your Marketing Efforts and ROI?

Depending on what these results show, you should be tweaking your Marketing Campaigns to reflect them.

If your business is 90% referral based, think about how you can:

  • Improve your customer’s experience so they continue to refer you
  • Instate a referral program that rewards clients for their referrals
  • Create a Customer Retention and Nurturing campaign that keeps you top of mind and educates your existing clients on other services you provide. They may not need them but may know someone who does

In the coming weeks we’ll expand on the different marketing mediums that are available to small/medium businesses with Rosewood as your marketing partner. The great thing about us is that our plans are flexible. We meet with business owners quarterly to adjust their marketing strategy and make sure it reflects the data results and projections.

For more info & #inspo you can follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. And don’t forget to sign up for our monthly newsletter as well!

Deanna

/0 Comments/by