I am really struggling to get feedback for my videos. I decided to write a little e-mail to my Bulgarian friends in England and ask them for feedback. This is the message I wrote to them:
"Hi guys, I am writing to you in English because I need to prove to my lectures that I did try to get feedback... basically will need a couple of screenshots of your comments. A little back story of what I am currently doing while coronavirus is trying to over take the world... I am doing my FMP (Final Major Project - which is self - directed, basically I write my own brief and answer it)
I will give you a little taster of what the brief is about so you can be able to understand what the videos are about.
The problem: “Bulgaria is projected to have the fastest-shrinking population in the world. It's already lost a fifth of its population since the 1990s.”
My audience: My audience is 17-30 year old Bulgarians, it’s estimated that 4260 Bulgarians, that belong in this age group, leave Bulgaria yearly and never return.
My deliverables: (basically what I will be creating for this project)
1. Create a campaign to raise awareness that you can indeed work your 'dream job' from Bulgaria
2. Brand identity - for the campaign
3. Three short videos which will be advertising/representing Bulgaria
Note: The videos are not completely finished, I still need to do the branding and add it to the videos.
What I am looking for: Do you think the voice and music connects with the videos? Do you think all of the videos connect together? After knowing what my project is about do you get the sense of wanting to go to 'dreamy Bulgaria' and work there? How would you improve the videos, e.g. would you add anything/take anything away?"
The videos I send to them;
Feedback 1;
"The text does connect with the video, the voice sounds a bit boring and slightly creepy to me. I do not understand the deep breathing sounds. I find the line "a taste of awakening" a bit weird. I would use a different kind of voice, not a deep male voice. I don't think the videos are of Bulgaria. I think Video 1 presents Bulgaria as a holiday destination. Video 2 looks like it could be any city in the world, i would add something more of a character to the city videos (Like footages of Sofia or Plovdiv). Video 3 looks like a winter holiday destination with a lot of scenes with laptops and tablets. Video 3 is closer to the idea of working in a different place I guess (depends what job you do). I would take away the pets shown with the line "a touch of love" as it doesn't connect in a specific way with Bulgaria and it it reminds me of all the stray dogs and cats problems that the country has I think it would be good if there was more information about how Bulgaria can deliver your dearm job, what opportunities can you find there. After seeing the video i get a sense of going to Bulgaria for a holiday."
Feedback 2;
"Do the music and the voice-over connect with the videos? I think they do. They have a good ambiance and send a calm, soothing message that flows well with the clips. However, while the music is fine, the voice-over is somewhat off. If I could change that, I would have it be a female British voice-over. That would be a lot more attractive and endearing to the listener. The deep voice and the accent really throw me off. As for the text of the voice-over, I like that it’s short and snappy, but the breathing is weird. Right now, with the male voice-over, it sounds like a ransom video, but if you were to try a female voice-over, it would sound like an adult movie. Do the videos connect with each other? I think they do. Each one shows a different side of the country – the relaxed and artistic side, the urban side, and the leisurely home-office side (very topical right now). Having seen these clips, do they make me want to go work in Bulgaria? No. I do work in Bulgaria, and these are not representative of my experience. However, even if I was an expat, I’m not sure this style of video would work, because they feel more like tourism ads than anything else. Plus, you’re using a lot of foreign stock footage, which doesn’t help with the credibility of the message. I assume you’re using that as a placeholder for the actual clips. If you want to make me feel like working there, then I need to see and hear Bulgarians working in Bulgaria. It could be something as simple as a fast reel of people smiling and saying “I work at home” with the backdrop of their workplace in Sofia, or Plovdiv or any other big city with a robust business environment. That would reinforce the idea that Bulgaria is my home and it isn’t so bad to go work there. Looking at all those cheerful people working in fancy offices or from their laptops in trendy cafes, or even in their nice apartments, for me, that would really drive home the message that you can grow there."
Feedback 3;
"Hi Valya. Here are my thoughts on your videos: In general, I like 1 & 3. Number 2 - less so. In my opinion, the main deficiency of the clips are that they don't actually show Bulgaria. Correct me if I am wrong, but none of the landscapes you're showing are in Bulgaria. This is particularly evident in video 2. 1 and 3 may pass for Bulgaria perhaps, but not number 2. And if I wanted to return to Bulgaria, I'd like to be shown images I am already familiar with. If I were a foreigner wanting to move to the country, I'd like to see an accurate representation of it. Therefore, I'd advise you to find some actual footage of Bulgaria. You know better than me that our country has a lot to show. Together with its natural beauties, you may focus on showing some of its traditions, as well. You know we have various dances, we're skilled in the crafts, etc. What I really liked was the music. What I didn't like was the voice. The man sounded a bit like Darth Vader with all this heavy breathing. I'd employ a softer and more comforting voice to make me comfortable with what I'm watching. If you want me to answer any other questions, just give me a shout"
Feedback 4;
"Hi Valia, regarding your Final Major Project, I like the concept and the idea behind it. I think you have chosen a topic that is of great importance to Bulgaria and its population. I like the way the videos present the country, i.e. the views picturing Bulgaria as a beautiful place to be. What I would change though is the male voice, I do not think it gives a good vibe. Maybe a female's voice would be better or at least a male's voice that is not that deep. Also, when it comes to the views, I'd remove the ones that are not from Bulgaria (the second video contains city images that are not from Bulgaria), maybe replace those with some authentic pictures. Last but not least, it might be a good idea to add information/images, etc showing how a young person can do their dream job in Bulgaria. It is great to show the beauty of the country but it is also important to emphasize on the job aspect too. Hope this helps. Good luck xx"
Overall;
Feedback 1 is from a person with no experience of design and works in a whole different environment of medicine. The thing that was very important about that is she noticed the voice and this has already come out a few times as I have asked for feedback.
Feedback 2 was super accurate. He works in the media fields and he really understood my questions. I will definitely be going back and looking into changing the voice and the copy of 'your home' instead I will write 'my home' while showing a person. This way they will connect together and make it more personal. He understands the sense I am trying to get across by the dreamy Bulgaria.
Feedback 3 as you can see the common comment again is about the voice and the music. It is my own mistake that I didn't explain to them that the footage I have used is stock library and that it is only a structure of what kind of clips would be filmed and where they will be places in the video. The important thing is the comment about the voice and the music. All comments so far have told me that I should try it out with a female voice.
The same goes for feedback 4.
Next step;
I will be experimenting by changing the voice to a female and seeing how that works. I will also be changing the copy from "your home" to "my home" I think this will make it more personal and instead of trying to make you feel at home I will be showing people that they are at home.
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