Viewfinder: Making Money on Video Investments

You know how many hours you've invested in refining your video production skills and you're keenly aware of how much money you've invested in your video gear. While this has brought you great joy, perhaps generating additional income would be even more satisfying. There are many categories of entrepreneurial opportunities, but which of them are good fits for your situation?

Making video for people you know is very attractive because the burden of getting the product to market is not a great concern and perhaps the most likely people that you already know are your employers. Companies, large and small, can benefit from your video production abilities. Nearly all companies need to train new recruits. This can be a time consuming and repetitive practice. Perhaps you can convince your employer to let you attend and videotape the next training session for new recruits so that you can produce a short training video.

Most companies need to promote their products or services to prospective customers. These videos can be TV commercials, point of purchase display or long-form promotional DVDs. Sometimes, to appreciate and understand a product you need to actually see how it operates. Pictures and words of some products just don't do them justice. Promotional videos for almost any kind of company can increase customer understanding and the likelihood of a purchase. Video is a highly valued tool when it comes to illustrating the unique value of products and servi…