Corporate videos can be boring. That’s the fact. Most of them are dull and say basically the same things, despite the product or industry they represent. Yes, you should tell the viewer who you are, what you do, and why you’re the best choice for them, but you must differentiate yourself from your competitors in order to truly sell yourself to them.

How can you get the CEO of a corporation to go deeper than just facts and open up in an interview? The answer isn’t asking them about how they increased their profit last year or speaking in company jargon to an essentially foreign audience. It’s about forming a meaningful connection with the viewer by getting them to talk about why their brand is right for them, not their company. You must be aware of how you make them feel as a customer and why that feeling is specific to you.

Scripting your video is always an option, but the most authentic answers are often unplanned and in response to strategic questions. Evoke emotional, personal responses from the Subject of your next corporate video production with these 7 powerful interview questions.

1. What is your why?

Obviously this video is going to start with an introduction, or a “what.” Person X is the CEO if Y company that delivers Z product/service. What you can do in your video that other companies are overlooking is discussing your “why.” Why does this person care about his or her company? What is the mission of the company and why do they personally want to see that mission achieved? What does it mean to them? Consumers will almost always choose to work with a company with a relatable spokesperson than a big-name brand. Be that person for your customers.

2. What adversities have you faced in your career and how have they made you stronger?

Find out what stood in the way of your subject 10 years ago and where they are now. Resilience and struggle are universal, and will humanize your subject to your viewers. Whether it’s the Story of how they built their company from the ground up, combated negative media attention, broke into an exclusive market, or even overcame a personal challenge, honesty and vulnerability will make your subject out to be someone worth rooting for.

3. What are you passionate about?

Odds are if you’re interviewing the CEO of a toothpaste company, they aren’t passionate about toothpaste specifically. However, they may be passionate about donating toothpaste to underprivileged children, or about self care and hygiene. Find the bigger picture that highlights your subject’s passion and drive for what they do and show it off as much as possible. Passion is easier to identify with than a product.

4. What makes your story unique?

It’s what every potential customer is thinking: Why should I work with you? This is your subject’s chance to set themselves apart in whatever way they can, specifically with their story. Stories breed human connection, and will keep customers loyal to you, so encourage your subject to identify and sell theirs on film. One of the best examples of this is the new CEO of Uber, Dara Khosrowshahi. The seasoned executive’s bio on Uber’s website includes the line”

“He’s a passionate advocate for refugees in crisis around the world, having himself left Iran during the Iranian revolution at the age of nine.”

This one sentence tells the story of a man who has passion, faced adversity, and found success. However, without telling you his story, a viewer would just see him as another big shot CEO. Tell you story, find success.

5. What do you want to inspire your customers to do?

You have to identify a motive for this video other than selling something. Are you inspiring awareness for a problem that your product or service can fix? Are you inspiring action that your customers will need your product or service to complete? Are you inspiring them to reach out and learn more about how they can benefit from your product or service? Get your subject in the mindset of inspiring rather than selling and your viewers will feel connected rather than solicited.

6. What motivates you?

What gets your subject out of bed and to their office in the morning? If it’s their family, let them tell you all about them. If it’s a mentor that they worked for and have always looked up to, let’s hear it. Whoever or whatever they have encountered in their life that makes them work as hard as they do, let them gush about it, then tie it back into the product. Their motivation is what will motivate others to invest in them as well.

7. Is there anything you want to talk about that we did not talk about yet today?

It’s crucial to make sure your subject has said all they wanted to say. Even if most of this footage doesn’t make the cut, this is their video in their voice and they should walk away feeling like they achieved what they intended too. We recommend asking this last to give your subject an idea of the tone you envision through the first 6 questions. Who knows, maybe they’ll surprise you with an inspirational message to wrap with.

Don’t let your next video be bland. Use these hacks to achieve a meaningful, genuine corporate video to hit home with your customers and stand out as the brand that people want to work with. After all, people don’t invest in companies, people invest in people.  

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