Candidates and councillors find videos a real complement to their other campaign methods and, done well, they can be a powerful way for voters to get to know issues and personalities. They’re especially useful in internal party elections where candidates may not be able to meet all of their large electorate in person. They’re also great for campaigners at a local level, where there’s usually a lack of good quality information on hyperlocal matters.

Recently I’ve noticed a surge of interest from people who are keen to try it themselves, so here are my top tips for making your own short political videos, and they all begin with “V”.

Your videos should be:

• Valuable: Video should add something to your message. So don’t just sit at your desk reciting something you could have written in a blog post. Have a reason to head out – a successful campaign, a grot spot, a special event, a look behind the scenes. Make sure your video is a must-see, adds value, shows something that only video can show. If your video doesn’t add value, it’s probably not worth the effort.
• Visual: i.e. not just a static talking head shot. If you’re talking about the new children’s playground then go there and show it. Sounds could also add context – traffic, a carnival, etc. Heatmap studies have found that viewers’ eyes wander very quickly away from the video box on the YouTube page if the video just features a speaker’s head and shoulders. People either start reading the rest of the page or look at another window that they’ve got open on the screen. Make it interesting to watch and keep their attention.
• Visible: Make sure it gets seen or no-one will watch it. It sounds obvious, but you need to put your video about. Embed it on your website or blog, and encourage others to do the same. Link to it in your local emails or on Twitter. Add relevant tags to help it to get picked up in YouTube’s search results and related videos.

The good news is that videos don’t have to be long, in fact three minutes feels epic and one minute or just under is ideal. You don’t need fancy effects or equipment. Keep it simple, with one strong point/message. Remember (as with Twitter) to put a short biography on your YouTube profile and a link to your website.

This is how Sir Archibald Sinclair did it in 1945, and while informative in its day and delightful to watch, his formal style wouldn’t set YouTube on fire today:

PARTY POLITICAL SPEECH BY THE LIBERAL PARTY

Click on the image above to watch the newsreel clip, also available at British Pathe here.