Last year, 90% of all social sharing was video. To boost a social-first strategy for prestige Antiguan resort Jumby Bay, Hawkins International sent a team on a mission to capture great content—here’s what we learned.
Hawkins International Digital Director Maja Derviskadic recently traveled to Antigua to bring back video and still images from Jumby Bay Island for use on a variety of social media platforms. The prep, execution, and some unexpected hiccups along the way provide valuable insights for any digital media professional.
Be Lean.
Acres of landscape. Resort rooms, meals, villa grounds, pool, and ocean expanses. Hours of footage. A dozen interviews. All that had to happen—including 5 a.m. calls for sunrise shots and midnight moonlight footage—in just four days with a two-person team. Travel light and efficient.
Be Versatile.
Coverage is the name of the game—since you can’t be sure exactly how a client will want to use the content you’re bringing back, it’s important to get both still images and video of whatever site you’re shooting.
Be Flexible.
While pre-planning is a must, and you’ll lock in interviews and locations with property management before you even touch down, that is only the beginning. Simultaneously, you’re going to keep an eye out for another, possibly more engaging or fresher story. For Jumby Bay, the theme “Land of Smiles” came about after every team member flashed joyful, infectious grins as they were being interviewed. Zeroing in on that as a resort distinction makes the incredible service (often a hard aspect to communicate to prospective new guests) come to the fore.
Be Teachable.
When you have 300 acres of blue-green ocean-front luxury resort to depict, you’re going to need a sweeping overhead shot. That being said, not everyone knows the first thing about operating a drone. Derviskadic watched a day’s worth of “how-to-fly-a-drone” videos on YouTube, practiced a little at the resort, and, holding her breath, captured some of the most gorgeous footage this side of a fragrance ad.