How to Plan the Perfect Video Event Recap for Your Next Event

Video event recaps have become an essential content tool for businesses and organizations of all shapes and sizes. The reasons are quite simple - they not only showcase a business’ recent event or conference, but also serve as a powerful marketing tool to raise awareness and even promote company culture. And in full transparency, they’re not that difficult to execute. 

Here's a comprehensive guide on planning & executing the perfect video event recap for any occasion.

1. Pre-Event Planning: Setting the Stage

Understanding Your Objective: Before diving into the filming process, it's crucial to understand what you want to achieve with your video recap. Are you looking to highlight key speakers, showcase attendee interactions, document an individual’s perspective throughout the event, or capture the overall ambiance? Clarifying your objectives will set the foundation of your project, and guide the rest of your planning process.

2. Incorporate the Agenda for a Chronological Narrative

Following the Event Schedule: To give your video a coherent and chronological flow, align your filming with the event's agenda. This method ensures that all key moments are captured logically and in the same order as the attendees experience them, making it easier for viewers to follow the event's progression.

Highlight Key Moments: Identify the event's pivotal points that are both important and visually exciting. Keynote speeches, award ceremonies, and special performances all check these boxes. Remember, you want your recap to entertain your viewers. These highlights are often what viewers are most interested in and will form the core of your recap.

3. Leverage Attendees for Video Capture

Collaborative Filming: Encourage attendees, staff, and special guests to film their own video clips for your video recap. This collaborative effort not only eases the burden on a single videographer, but also adds diverse perspectives to your recap. And if you incorporate a software like Cinebody, all of their footage will auto-upload to the cloud so that you can easily access it for your video without having to deal with file transfer issues.

Dedicated Filmers: Even if you encourage attendees & staff to film, you should designate someone to be the principal filmer. Even if you don’t have an onsite video team, having one person’s responsibility be to capture all content will help ensure you film everything that needs to be included in the recap.

4. Quick Turnaround for Maximum Impact

Speed Is Essential: In our digital age, speed is key. Aim for a quick turnaround in editing your video recap. The faster you can publish the video, the better as it will maintain the event's momentum and keep it fresh in the attendees' minds. 

Showcasing at the Event: If possible, produce a same-day edit to be shown at the event itself. This can be a powerful way to wrap up the day and leave a lasting impression on your attendees. To do this, you’ll want to have an editor ready to start working while everyone films the event content.

Social Media and Email Distribution: Once your video is ready, distribute it through social media and email campaigns. This strategy not only extends the life of your event but also reaches those who couldn't attend, potentially widening your audience for future events.

A well-crafted video event recap can transform your event from a one-time occurrence into a lasting memory and an effective marketing tool. By following these steps and leveraging the power of video, you can create a compelling recap that not only highlights the key moments of your event but also engages and expands your audience. Remember, the perfect recap is about telling the story of your event in an engaging, coherent, and timely mann