Creating B2B Video Content Can Be Inexpensive: I’ll Prove It

A user on Quora asked this a common questions when it comes to companies using video: “Why don’t more companies use video in their marketing efforts?”

Another user responded with several reasons why companies haven’t completely adopted video (adoption is increasing, according to HubSpot research). One of the reasons listed was that it’s expensive, which is a common response.

Let’s put this to rest once and for all…

Producing videos for marketing purposes is not expensive.

It does depend on what you’re trying to capture, like a conference, but for the most part it’s inexpensive.

Let me prove it.

Video Gear on a Budget

Here’s the equipment I use to shoot videos along with the price I paid for each item (prices are rounded to the nearest whole number):

• ESDDI Softbox Photography Lighting Kit: $70
• Canon EOS Rebel SL2 DSLR Camera with stock lens: $600
• iMovie for video editing: Free
• Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens: $125
• Rode VideoMicro Compact On-Camera Microphone: $60
• Rode RodeLink FM Digital Wireless Filmmaker System: $369

Grand total: $1,224

Keep in mind, I didn’t buy all this equipment in one sitting. Each item has been acquired over the years.

For the longest time, all I had was the lighting kit, on-camera mic, and DSLR camera with a stock lens – and it worked brilliantly.

It wasn’t until I decided to focus more on video content that I bought other lenses and accessories.

Here’s an example of a video I recently put together for Crunchbase’s careers page:

Here’s an example of a video I created for Startups Give Back:

Both of these videos were shot using my DSLR camera and a wireless mic (total value for both is $769).

That’s it. Nothing fancy.

In addition, I edited both videos using iMovie.

As a side note: the video snippets interwoven throughout the Startups Give Back video were captured using my iPhone.

There you have it, quality videos for less than $1,000 produced by someone who isn’t a professional videographer.

Final Thoughts

There really isn’t an excuse not to at least dabble with video in your content strategy.

With inexpensive equipment and an effective strategy, you can produce video content that provides a lot of value to your audience.

The camera gear I mentioned in this article is my personal equipment.

There are far better cameras and equipment on the market that a company can afford. But the reality is, you don’t need this to create solid video content.

With a little bit of research, you can find inexpensive equipment that can get you started.