Our first “Lobby Level” Substack issue provides some background and inspiration for the Hero Network platform. Thanks for your indulgence. Now let’s go.
We see many use cases for our remote video storytelling platform. Whether you are a social media manager, a destination marketer, creator-journalist or a nonprofit, the tool is ready for you to:
Capture remote video footage in high resolution.
Crowdsource event coverage from your community.
Edit professional clips without an expensive agency
Gather stories without leaving your desk.
If you see yourself needing these solutions, we invite you to try our tool in creating conversation-based video. You’ll find that they hit differently on social media and perform really well.
The tool obviously expands your geographic reach. If you enjoy video editing already, you’ll see that it can combine and replace several apps you’re already paying for. If you’re not an editor (or your time could be better spent elsewhere), take advantage of our editing service. Presto! You’re in the video production business! We provide quick turnaround with one round of revisions.
For a limited time, if you set up an account and complete the setup wizard, you’ll receive one free video credit (a $99 value).
Building in Public
That phrase is all the rage in entrepreneurial and startup circles. Frankly, we’ve struggled a bit to define what that means for Hero.
We’ve started a couple of founder TikTok accounts in the past, but self promotion is hard (solving our own problem). Besides, the content is not about our journey, but that of others featured in the video stories we help tell. That’s where our users come in.
We realized some time ago that to achieve scale we could not be the bottleneck to the story running. As much as we enjoy meeting the subject, doing the interviews and crafting the videos, that’s a pretty limiting approach. Plus, they’re not really our tales to tell.
Our clients know the essential stories, and they have built-in access and affinity to share them effectively. That’s why we moved toward building a self-serve tool.
Our goal with this Substack, and more broadly across social media, is to amplify the videos and experiences as told by our users. We don’t commission them, we surface them and share with a wider audience. Not journalism, but observation and curation. You’re all invited.
Community Storytelling Initiative
In the coming weeks, we will be reaching out directly to creator-journalists and others from the list of professionals above and entice them to try the Hero tool. We’ll obviously gain valuable feedback on how the software performs, but we’ll also see the content they produce.
Ready to turn this into a business? If you are looking to build a media asset rather than just create a video, our Community Showrunner Academy is accepting applications for the Founding Cohort.
Our editorial team will consider which stories or ideas might be impactful to share more widely (with consultation and permissions of the Producers, of course). Our goal is a collection of stories that highlight a particular region or common theme.
We want to encourage and educate video storytellers, improving techniques and developing a shared sense of purpose. More to come in that regard.
In the meantime, if you are enticed by the tool or the mission, please reach out for a conversation.
