Value Prop Video
2014
Promoting a Security Startup Without Selling Fear
Introducing the world to Scout Alarm on a tight budget and timeline
Client:
Scout Alarm
Role:
Audience × Intent
Our audience was potential customers and/or investors of Scout Alarm. Our intent was to promote a security startup without selling fear (on a tight budget and timeline).
About the Project
Scout Alarm is a home security start-up based in Chicago. As they were getting ready to launch, they contacted gravitytank (my former employer) for support on their go-to-market strategy. What resulted was a series of design sprints to help them with their product, branding, offerings, and web presence.
One of the elements of this collaboration was a short promotional video to communicate the value prop and offerings of Scout Alarm.
One thing that was very important to the crew at Scout was not relying on a fear-based approach like almost all other security companies employ for their marketing.
With only about three weeks in our timeline, we had to move quickly. We spent a week finding locations and rapidly iterating the script and storyboard so that we could begin shooting on week 2. Thankfully, we were able to to work closely with Scout Founder and CEO, Dan Roberts for most of the preproduction.
The time constraints meant we had to lean heavily on family and friends for on-screen talent, but that was commonplace for the scrappy innovation work gravitytank was so good at. Our second week was spent driving around Chicago gathering principal footage at our scouted locations.
We brought it all together in week 3, recording an in-house voiceover, adding graphics that the gravitytank Design Team had created during their sprints, and cutting everything together into a nice, 90-second spot that they could use to promote their product and service online.
Result
The video was used widely by Scout on their website and various other spaces to promote their products and services online.
Four years later, they reached out for a few tweaks to the content based on changes they had made to their service. Our company had since been acquired but the edits were simple so I took care of it pro bono and was delighted to hear that they were still using our work years after the original scrappy design sprint that it came from.
Details
Timeline 3 weeks (1 wk script + preproduction, 2 wks production + edit)
Resources original footage, product prototypes, stock music
Credits
Dan Roberts (Scout CEO) Creative Collaboration, Script Development
gt Friends & Family Acting, Locations
gt Project Team Art Direction, Graphic Design
David Hull Narration, Creative Direction, Script
Leah Marcus Creative Direction, Script, Location Scouting, Location Provision
Chuck Smith Creative Direction, Script, Direction, Production, Postproduction
