The 5 Top Ways you can Brand your Live Shows with Graphics

Five Types of Graphics for your Live Show
Listen at [26:02]

So, when we first started, Bradley said that he would share with me his top five graphics for making your live show memorable, and they are:

1. Logo Book
2. Lower Third
3. Full-Screen Infographic/Sidebar
4. Stinger
5. Follow-Me Graphic

Let’s look at each of these in a little more detail…

#1 Logo Book

So first let’s look at the Logo Book and why this is a great way to make your live shows memorable.

"This is the most simple way to create an immediate impact. It’s what you see when you watch HBO or NBC in the corner of the screen. I’d call that a logo book."

A logo book can be left on the screen the entire time you’re on video so it’s possibly the most important type of graphic. You should place it in the upper right-hand corner if possible so that it doesn’t interfere with your face or anything else on the screen.

"If you are going to use text, then I’d recommend using a Sans Serif font as it’s easier to read on-screen. Plus I’d recommend that you create two in contrasting colours so that you use alternating ones depending on your background."

#2 Lower Third

So, number two is a little bit of a misnomer, but it’s called a Lower Third. These are any graphics that show up in the lower third of your screen, and there are a number of different types of graphics you can use.

"I have a lower third with my name, which is very basic. Or you can ask your viewers to like, share and comment. It’s almost like a call to action for the audience to do something."

This type of graphic doesn’t compete for space, as it’s not in a high visibility area, but they are there to help support whatever it is you are speaking about.

This has really got me thinking about how I can use this type of graphic for my housekeeping at the beginning of the show as it would be a lot easier if the information was in visual form on the screen.

#3 Full-Screen Infographic/Sidebar

The third type of graphic is another one that is really great for supporting content and it is the full-screen infographic and or sidebar. And they are both really great options if you have a lot of complex information to share.

First, there is the animated sidebar, and this is great for displaying more complicated content, for example: “Here are five things that I’m going to be talking about today.”

And the full-screen graphic is a great way to give you a breather from the screen.

The great thing about both of these types of content is that they automatically make people screengrab the video.

If you are outlining what you are going to be talking about, and then display important information, people will screen capture so they don’t have to take notes. Now that person has a branded screen capture of your video.

"A full screen or sidebar infographic is the ultimate branding opportunity because now they don’t have to re-watch the video and they might actually go and promote that content for you."

#4 Stinger

The fourth graphic is a great way to add a little pizazz to your live show, and it’s what I call the Stinger.

It’s essentially a bar that moves across the screen.

It’s a little different from a transition, as that is usually used when the camera or a scene changes. A stinger is a great graphic to use if you are switching between topics. There is no sound on it, so you don’t have to stop talking.

It’s a great tool for breaking up your video and helping to keep your viewers engaged.

#5 Follow-Me Graphic

And graphic number five is very similar to number three, as it’s a full-screen graphic that I call the 'Follow-Me graphic'.

It’s your last chance to give your audience something to do at the close of your video.

"I use it to display social media, web address, email, contact info and it can be animated or static. It’s a great call to action to get your viewers to do something."

And that is a great way to close off the video with your viewers.

And that is how you can use graphics in your live video, or show.

You can use a combination of all of these in both animated and static, and if you would like more information on these five graphics, then you can download Bradley’s tutorial on 5 ways to easily brand your videos.