Short videos for business: what to film when you don't know what to film

Short videos, such as Instagram Reels and TikToks, often reach far more people than photos. But many business owners freeze when they open the camera. What should you film?

Here are practical ideas that work for almost any business, and most of them only need a phone.

Ideas you can film this week

• Behind the scenes: how you prepare an order, set up your workspace or start your day
• Before and after: a project, a product or a space, from start to finish
• Process in 30 seconds: speed up a task that normally takes hours
• Answer one question: take a real question from a client and answer it in under a minute
• Common mistake: show a mistake people make in your field, and how to fix it
• Product in use: show your product being used in real life, not only on a white background
• Client result: with permission, show the final result and the client's reaction

Simple rules for better videos

1. Hook in the first two seconds. Start with the result, a question or something surprising.
2. Film vertically and keep important things in the center of the frame.
3. Use natural light. Face a window for an instant quality upgrade.
4. Clear sound matters more than a perfect image. A cheap clip-on microphone helps a lot.
5. Add captions. Many people watch without sound.
6. End with one action: follow, message, visit the website or save the video.

Keep it consistent, not perfect

You don't need to go viral. You need people to see your work regularly until they trust you. One or two short videos a week, every week, beats one perfect video a month.

When you're ready to level up, a professionally edited video with branded titles, music and color grading can make your business look much bigger. I can help plan, edit and brand your videos.