Often in video marketing, whether it’s to appear in a real estate property video tour, making your agent brand video or a video of you as the neighbourhood expert, putting yourself on camera is the most effective approach.
Whatever the scope of the real estate video, while preparing for your big on-screen introduction to the world, you’re going to find yourself wondering: What should I wear?
Believe it or not, what you wear in the marketing video is very important, even if you’re not a Hollywood celebrity or fashion icon. Even for a short property video, there are some rules you should know when pondering about what to wear.
To help you out, here are a few tips.
1. Wear something comfortable that expresses your style.
In general, your style and who you are should determine whether it’s a business attire, something casual or anything in between. You should feel comfortable since it’s something you normally wear during your workday. Like it or not, the perception that the viewers get of you will be influenced by what you are wearing in the video so use it to your advantage. You might add a bit more polish over what you would normally wear though. After all, you’re making your first good impression on many of your viewers.
2. Wear something cool.
By this, we don’t mean looking cool, although that’s important too. We’re talking about wearing clothes that keep you cool on a professional production set, like when shooting an agent branding video. In any type of indoor shoot that requires lighting and a crew on the set, the room temperature can rise quickly. Even for a property shoot where typically there is no external lighting, it’s better to be safe. Believe me, you don’t want to be overheating, sweaty and uncomfortable while looking into the camera.
3. Wear something that reflects your brand and the property.
Branding helps create and sustain your professional image. If you’re shooting your real estate branding video, think about how you would want to be perceived by your clients. If you’re filming a property shoot, wear something that reflects your brand and at the same time, fits with the style or ambience of the property.
4. Try it on before the shoot.
Avoid being surprised. Your new outfit might have fit well in the dressing room, but when on site the skirts may be too tight to walk, jackets restrict arm movement, or the shoes hurt, yikes!
First, do a dress rehearsal with all your clothing prior to the shoot. Make sure the clothing is loose enough to sit comfortably and walk around. Is there a good spot to clip the black microphone so the color blends in? Second, try out any movement you might do on camera and avoid any last-minute surprises.
5. Be prepared with a backup.
Remember Murphy’s law. If anything can go wrong, it will. In case something does go wrong, bring a backup. You may spill coffee on your light-colored shirt right before the shoot begins. The colors may not look right with the background at the shoot location. Or maybe you want a few takes with a different outfit. Be prepared with options and make sure the backup clothes aren’t wrinkled when you bring them.
6. Pick the right colors and avoid patterns.
To begin with, avoid intense colors like red. It will bleed and make your face look red and make the video editors pull out their hair. Earth tones and neutral colors are safe. Cool colors, like teal, purple or coral, will pop without affecting your skin tone.
Especially if you have a pale complexion, avoid pure white clothing. The camera will have a hard time adjusting the colors. Light blue, teal, cobalt and similar colors will work much better. In general, avoid colors that too closely match whatever skin tone you may have. They tend to wash out your facial features and just don’t look good.
Finally, there’s black. It looks cool but avoids wearing all black. When the video editor color corrects the video to adjust the colors to optimize your face, the black ends up looking too dark. As a result, your cool black outfit blends into one dark mass and loses all its definition.
Avoid patterns. I repeat, avoid patterns. Big patterns are distracting and take the attention away from you. Small repeating patterns – plaids, stripes, zig-zags, polka dots – make a buzzing effect and are very distracting in the video. If you must, medium-size patterns are okay but try to stay away if you can.
7. Avoid making last minute changes.
In general, most people find it tempting to improve with last minute changes. However, try not to go for that new look with a new haircut the day before the shoot or the new makeup the morning of. The video will live online for a long time so don’t take a chance and avoid doing something that you may regret later.
In conclusion, just enjoy it. Our expert real estate video crew can coach you and make you feel comfortable. They’ll take as many takes as needed, so don’t feel like you have to nail every time. Be confident in the choice of your wardrobe and let your personality shine through. You’ll look great, we promise.
