Do you hate recording talking-head videos as much as I do?

There. I’ve said it. I hate recording talking-head videos!

Here’s why.

Before I can hit the “record” button, I must:

• Clean my home office. This includes ripping all the inspirational post-its and to-do notes from the walls, scooping up papers, notebooks, periodicals and other junk from my desk and throwing it into a pile in the corner. The coffee cups go into the kitchen sink.
• Drag out my big wooden ladder so I can clip one of the lights onto the side of it.
• Look for the blue gel sheets that I attach to the lights with wooden clothes pins.
•  Search for the damn clothes pins.
• Retrieve my tripod from the closet, set it up and attach the camera, then reposition it until it’s perfect.
• Wash and style my hair.
• Paint my face.
• Find something decent to wear.
• Tape my talking points to the wall behind the camera.

All That—BEFORE I Can Practice

Only then can I start recording a few dry runs.

When I’m done recording, I rip everything down and put the office back together again.

So why bother at all with these videos?

Because I can upload them to my YouTube channel. Videos are one of the most powerful ways to pull traffic. They’re terrific for offering free content.

They help people know more about me. They’re one of the hottest, most powerful marketing tools. And they’re essential for a PR campaign.

Anybody who doesn’t use video is leaving money on the table. (Nonprofits, this includes you!)

But why go through all this trouble and make shooting video harder than it has to be?

Enough is Enough

Last night, I decided to turn a small corner of my dirty apple cellar in my basement into a video studio. I can set up the equipment once and everything stays in place forever. When it’s time to record a video, all I have to do is gussy up, run downstairs, turn on the lights and start recording.

Here’s where you come in. I need your help turning part of this room, which you’d expect to find in the Addams Family basement, into an attractive setting for videos that are good enough for the corporate world. I want to shoot against this wall which is fine for Lurch and Uncle Fester, but not much else:

Calling it an apple cellar is a bit of a stretch. The 18-by-8 room is filled with remnants of aluminum siding and carpeting from the previous owner. It’s littered with pieces of broken wooden chairs.

I need to sweep up small piles of gravel and sand from the floor. A big oak table holds about a dozen paint cans, paint supplies, blankets and other junk:

The sturdy walls, made of large stones held together with grouting, keep out the noise. But they’re not a pretty backdrop.

Let’s Have Fun with This

What can I put against the stone wall? Suggestions for furniture? Silk flowers in a vase? I dislike silk flowers but don’t want to run out and buy a fresh bouquet every time I shoot.

I’ll also be sharing my progress, with video and photos, on the social media sites to prove that if I can do it, so can you. All you need is a small space, some fairly inexpensive equipment and the creative ideas of other Publicity Hounds like you.

I don’t need professional staging or interior decorating advice because I want to keep it simple. And I want to be able to buy what I need from the local thrift shops.

So have at it, Hounds.  I’m on a tight budget and need your ideas on how to really spruce up the place.