Which videos should a small business make first?
Make the videos that answer what customers already ask you: what you do and who you are, how the job works, what it costs to plan for, one before-and-after, and how to care for it afterward. Keep each to one question, one to three minutes long, and put it on the page that answers the same question.
The short version
- Start with the questions you answer on the phone every week. Each one is a video.
- Five to start: who we are, how it works, planning the cost, a before-and-after, and aftercare.
- One question per video, one to three minutes, the answer in the first few seconds.
- Put each video on the page that answers the same question, not only the home page.
- Cut one short vertical clip from each for Shorts and Reels.
What videos should I make first?
The best first videos aren’t creative ideas. They’re answers. Write down the five questions you or your staff answer most often on calls and at the counter, and you have your first five videos. This list fits most service businesses:
| Video | The question it answers | Where it goes on your site |
|---|---|---|
| Who we are | “Who will I be dealing with?” | About page |
| How it works | “What happens after I call?” | Main service page or contact page |
| Planning the cost | “What does it depend on?” | Service page, near your quote form |
| One real job | “Can you do what I need?” | The matching service page or project page |
| Aftercare or how-to | “How do I look after it?” | A help or FAQ page, and in your follow-up email |
A shop or restaurant swaps “how it works” for a walk-through of the place and “aftercare” for a product or menu spotlight. A professional office, such as a dentist, an accountant or a law firm, often starts with “what to expect at your first visit.”
Planning the cost without quoting prices
You don’t have to say a number. Explain what changes the price: size, materials, access, timing. Then say how to get a quote. Customers trust a business that explains its pricing logic, and you avoid a video that’s wrong the next time costs change.
One real job
Film the before, a little of the middle, and the after. Ask the customer’s permission before filming their home or their face, and keep addresses, house numbers and car plates out of frame.
How do I plan each video?
Use the same five-part outline every time. It keeps videos short and makes them easy to film in one take.
- The answer first (5 to 10 seconds). Say the question and the short answer. “How long does a bathroom remodel take? Usually a few weeks, and here’s what decides it.”
- Who you are (5 seconds). Your name and business, once.
- The detail (most of the video). Three points at most. Show, don’t just tell: point at the thing, hold up the part, walk through the room.
- The edge cases (optional). “If your house is older, add a step.”
- What to do next (5 seconds). “Call us or use the form on this page.” Keep it plain.
Write the outline as bullet points, not a word-for-word script. Reading a script on camera sounds stiff. Talking from bullets sounds like you.
For videos longer than a couple of minutes, add chapters. YouTube’s chapters page says to list timestamps in the description starting at 00:00, with at least three, each chapter at least 10 seconds long. Chapters let viewers jump to the part they need.
Why does answering a question beat a promo video?
People search for questions. A video titled “How long does a roof replacement take?” matches what someone types. A video titled “Smith Roofing: Excellence Since 1998” matches nothing anyone searches for.
Google’s guidance on helpful content asks whether content gives “original information, reporting, research, or analysis” and shows first-hand experience. A video of you on a real job is exactly that. And Google’s video best practices say a video needs a page where it’s the main content to be eligible for video features in Search. A focused, single-question video can carry its own page. A general promo rarely can.
What are the common mistakes?
- Starting with a long intro. Logo animations and music beds lose viewers before the answer. Answer first.
- Covering everything in one video. Split it. Five two-minute videos are more useful, and easier to place on the right pages, than one ten-minute tour.
- Filming staff or customers without asking. Get permission, in writing if you can, and respect a no.
- Quoting exact prices. They change and the video doesn’t. Explain what affects the cost instead.
- Only posting on the home page. Each video belongs next to the text that answers the same question.
- Trending sounds and memes. They date quickly and can carry music rights problems. A plain voice works for business video.
What if I’m uncomfortable on camera?
You don’t have to be in every video. Options that work:
- Voice over hands. Film your hands doing the work and talk over it.
- A walk-through. Film the space or the job while you narrate.
- A team member. Someone who enjoys it can be the face; you can appear briefly to say hello.
- Screen recordings. For a software, booking or ordering process, record the screen and talk through it.
Do a practice take that nobody will see. Most people relax by the third take.
How much does it cost, and how long does it take?
Planning a video with the outline above takes about 20 minutes. Filming a two-minute answer, with a few retakes, takes under an hour. Trimming and captions take another hour the first few times. Equipment beyond your phone is optional; our guide to filming on your phone explains what helps.
How does E-3 handle this?
Placing client videos on the right pages is part of our SEO and AI search service. When you send us a video, we put it on the page that answers the same question, on a staging copy first. A person at E-3 checks it before it goes live.
Related questions
Next step
- Next: How do I set up a YouTube channel for my business?The next guide in Video.
- Free website checkPublic checks on your own site, then an action plan of what to fix first.
Still stuck? Ask E-3 for an answer from our help guides.
Rather we handled video for you?
It’s part of what we do every week for small businesses, as part of seo and ai search. Start with a free check of your site and profile, or call and ask.