I hate speaking in front of a camera. But I had to.
I have a firm conviction that it's healthy to get out of your comfort zone from time to time. Entrepreneurship is all about trials and the joys coming from challenging yourself.
Mailist is my side project and a playground for various experiments. While on the development side, I've stopped playing around myself (and my co-founder is super happy about that, no more shitty code); in terms of marketing & growth-related activities, it's still a fun ride!
From the very beginning, I was sure that I have to be the face of the brand. I stand behind this project, and I didn't want anyone else to be the face of it. Therefore it was always me sending and signing the emails, and it's still me reading all chat messages. As you notice on our marketing pages, the tone of voice is friendly, personal as it's me composing and sending the message.
Video plays a huge role in communication nowadays -- no doubt. It's easier to consume, faster to process. I had to jump into it. My second side project (ViQuestion) is all about videos, so I had to find a way to apply it to Mailist.
I have to admit -- I'm terrified when it comes to performing in public when cameras are pointing at me. But as I mentioned, I believe the side projects are all about the challenges. So I had to challenge myself and record a video product update where I'm the main speaker.
And to make everything even more severe, I'm sharing it with you all here. Enjoy or, well, ignore it!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajdJoQRyPm8
Cheers!
Hi Marcin,
If I didn't know that it was your first video, I would have thought that you'd be doing it for years !
I like your energy, your smile and your enthousiasm.
Keep on doing Great!
Thank you! Appreciate it :)
Nice for the effort! Bg music is too loud, very hard to hear what you say.
Also, in terms of marketing, the thumbnail is pretty weak and the title isn't searchable
For the thumbnail start by making it easier to look at your face and more enticing.
For the title find keywords that people search and include them in it.
Edit: I've seen the video is unlisted so maybe it was just to practice:)
Correct. And also to be viewed only by the existing users. It's just to inform our users about the recent update and not to attract a new audience.
But thanks for sharing your tips!
@marcinem Being in front of a camera and/or speaking in front of an audience is always awkward at first! The fun thing about video is that you literally have snapshots of your progress. You can look back at and go, holy cow, I've come so far.
From an outsider looking in, I thought you did a great job and came across naturally. Sometimes we are our own biggest critics.
Bravo for stepping outside of your comfort zone, trying something new, and for sharing with the IH community with vulnerability and transparency. Keep on seeking what makes you uncomfortable, it's the only way to GROW!
Oh yeah, so true! But hey, that's what the IH community is for. To evaluate ourselves!
I agree with Jonathan's points. But overall pretty good on the "performance" side, good enough lighting non distracting background.
My first time on camera was a 💩show!
Recorded everything, turned out I hadn't lighted properly, on camera it looked fine, but then on the computer I realized it was so noisy that I had to do it all again. But it's a process & a skill, the more you do it, the better and more natural you become. Great job.
Thanks! Lighting is easy because my office room is well lit by natural light coming through the windows.
Agreed, it's a process, and I'm looking forward to the next ones!
Definitely! If you need any help with editing/production in the future, let me know, maybe I can help. :)