Choosing background music for a company video is a personal choice. However, my own examination of the background music for a series of short plumbing videos, revealed the fact that there are at least three approaches to selecting background music, and the owner of a company, in conjunction with a video production team can initially simplify their decision by deciding which of the three roads they wish to travel along.
The videos suggest that the three differing musical poles are: music which suggests or sounds like the service activity being performed, music which suggest or sounds like the plumbing problem, or music, which suggests a positive mood, related to the successful flow of life both before and after the occurrence of the problem.
I believe that in general optimists in life outnumber pessimists. Most people put life’s daily struggles in perspective, and see them as problems to be dealt with and overcome, so that they can get on to the “rollicking good times.” In this light, consider what happens when something goes wrong, e.g., a plumbing leak, and a service company is called? At first, something is not working right, the order of daily life is a bit disturbed and the service company, such as a plumbing company, steps and restores order, and the good times march on.
We can see from this analysis, that there are three phases of a service intervention. In the first phase, something goes wrong, i.e. an electrical short occurs, which shuts off the flow of electricity to the house. In the second phase the service company steps in to right the problem, and in the third phase life order is restored and the good times roll on. As we will see, these three phases of a service intervention correspond to three different types of background music that are used in service videos. Consider examples taken from videos which I examined when writing this report.
http://video.yahoo.com/watch/4770485/12735726 This video presents music imitating the sound of a dripping pipe, along with a video of the drip and a narrator encouraging the viewer to get help. This is background music imitating the sound of the breakdown.
http://espanol.video.yahoo.com/watch/4466979/11977280 This video presents driving music with a rapid almost industrial beat which imitates the on screen display of a plumber making repairs to a sink. This is background music imitating the sound of the repair process.
http://www.graspr.com/videos/Richmond-BC-Plumbing-Company-1 , http://www.in.com/videos/watchvideo-plumbing-company-in-valencia-7960332.html These videos present feel good background music. The type of music which suggest the ongoing flow of the good times of life, which existed before the plumbing problem, and which will be restored as soon as this small disorder is repaired. The background music in these videos present music associated with the restoration of order and the ongoing good times.
The big question for the company owner is which of these three types of background sound is most likely to make the video successful in wining customers for the company. All three types of music have advantages and disadvantages, a search on the web, however, will show that most people choose positive mood music for their background.
Music which imitates the problem, may capture the attention of the viewer because it reminds him of his current state, which is on his mind at the moments when he searches the web for a company to fix the breakdown. This type of sound seeks to win trust by giving the viewer the feeling that the company understands his predicament. One problem with this approach is that it can only portray one type of problem. A video portraying the sound of a leaky faucet may not appeal to a surfer looking for a company to fix his blocked sewer.
Music which imitates the sound of repair, seeks to win the trust of surfers by presenting a vision of the repair process, which is after all what they seek. It does carry a message of hope. On the other hand, how many people like to stand over the shoulder of a plumber as he solders pipes together or drains filthy water from a toilet. Most people prefer to wait in another room until the plumber finished everything, including the cleanup. Consequently, most people may not be that interested in a video that musically portrays the repair process.
Music which conveys an upbeat mood reminiscent of the good times brings a message of hope and assurance that the company will succeed in fixing the problem and restoring order and the ongoing good times. This type of music wins viewer trust, because that, in essence is what surfers seek when they go online, a means for restoration of their former order.
Which of these types is likely to work best? While all three types have some appeal, it is clearly type three that most addresses the human condition. Because while humans stoop, in their daily labor to various mechanical tasks to solve various ongoing challenges and problems, it is the restoration of humanity and the good life, at the end of the day, which keeps most people going, and which is most important. Therefore use of background music that appeals to this fundamental human goal is most likely to net results.
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