How can you create video content on a low budget?

For years now, the future of marketing has been seen as video content. Generally speaking, it connects differently with audiences than text content, because it’s quicker to digest and a more engaging medium. It’s also versatile, because a longer video can be recycled into ads for use on social media.

The downside to that is the perceived difficulty and expense of generating video content.

How can I make video content on a budget?

First, let’s not get carried away with all this video freedom. Good video content takes planning, and if we skip that phase the end result is going to be messy.

Set out the objective of the video you want to make, and the details of how you’re going to achieve that. Do you want to sell a product, are you trying to pass on some knowledge about your company, or is it something else? These questions will help you plan it out:

  1. Is that the right format for the job?
  2. What are we making a video to achieve?
  3. Does it need to feature real people or a voiceover, or can it be done with text?
  4. Does it need any graphic design work done ahead of time?
  5. How long does it need to be?

Generally speaking, I divide my video content into three categories:

  1. Video that doesn’t need a human involved
  2. Video that needs part of a human involved (usually their voice)
  3. Video that needs to be all people in the middle, with an intro and outro to make it look professional

Category one needs me to plan out the story of the video, but the information will be conveyed with short bits of text and using images so it doesn’t need as much prep as categories two and three.

If there’s a human being involved, though, it’s important to write a script out before you start. This will keep your message on target, and also keep you from ending up with lots of footage that you need to edit. 

Some VHS cassettes on a table

Recording footage on a budget

Part 1 - recording people

If your video needs a real person, this section is for you. If it doesn’t, you can skip to the next section.

Your secret weapon here is that in 2025 we all carry superb quality cameras around with us every day. The key to making the footage they record look professional is in the background, and the lighting.

All smartphones have a camera, and most are capable of 4k video - this is what you’ll need if you’re recording just one person doing a piece to camera.

If you’re recording an interview, or you want to feature multiple people, a video call might be a better option. Zoom has a feature which will now record video and audio at each end of the call, which can then be combined into a stutter-free video which you can edit in one of the tools below. Microsoft Teams is also capable of recording calls, although maybe without quite such a smooth result, it’s still pretty good.

If you’re recording a video call, encourage your presenters to wear headsets, or worst case scenario, modern headphones that offer hands-free will do. That’ll cut down on any background noise. Ask them to present in front of a tidy background - it doesn’t need to be a liminal space drifting through a white void, but it shouldn’t look like the inside of a skip, either. Video backgrounds have come on a way but still look a bit too fake to use unless there’s an emergency.

If you’re just recording a voiceover, there are a few ways to do it. Windows has Sound Recorder, which is ancient but still does the job. If you need to edit the file, Audacity is a free bit of software that will let you chop it up and rearrange it, then output as an audio file ready to use.

Editing Teams/Zoom footage

This is where the time spent planning out the script is important. With the software you’ll be using, you can make some edits, but you won’t want to have lots to make - it’s fiddly and time-consuming. If you’re going to need to make lots of edits, I would recommend you get a copy of Power Director, which is easy to use and comes in either subscription or one-off cost form. In the long-run that will save you time and money later vs trying to edit using an unsuitable platform, so it’s worth the small investment.

Part 2 - Adding the professional touch

OK, so if you need it you should now have your audio and/or footage of people ready to go. To create your video, you’ll need one of these:

Dedicated video tools:

  • Lumen5
  • Biteable
  • InVideo

Tools that work with video, but not as their specialism:

  • Adobe Express
  • Canva

All these platforms have a drag and drop video editor that lets you place either your own clips or the stock footage which the platforms contain anywhere you want in the video timeline.

You can add multiple layers, allowing you to have text appear over the video, and also to create intro and outro sections using your branding. You can also apply animation effects to the text or other elements, which can let you put together some slick intros, outros and transitions. Speaking of transitions, you can also change the way that the video moves from clip to clip - sadly, starwipe isn’t an option any of these platforms offer.

They also have a bank of royalty-free music which can be used to score your creations. Some have a dedicated feature to let you add a voiceover, but if not you can always add it in as a music track.

Of all the platforms above, Biteable is the only one to offer not just stock footage but also reusable animated sections. These can be more helpful than stock when you need to present information, although you can still put decent videos together with anything on the list above - it just takes a bit more ingenuity.

Pro tips for new video editors

Don’t have lots of dialogue if there’s text to read on the screen, and vice versa - your audience won’t be able to concentrate on both.

If there is text on screen, check the timings with someone else before processing your video. Because you know what the text says, it’s easy to underestimate how long it will take someone to read for the first time. Equally, you don’t want the text on screen for so long that your viewers get bored.

Don’t get too carried away with transitions - keep it simple, like a slide or a fade, instead of adding more visual distractions.

The information above is all you need to get started, but if you need more help, there are lots of dedicated guides on YouTube - now get out there, and start putting your own video content together!

Note for anyone that buys PowerDirector

So, the irony here is that PowerDirector is more capable of editing than any of the platforms discussed above, so while you can use the method I’ve suggested, you may find it easier to compile the clips you want from a platform, then export them and cut the whole thing together in PowerDirector. It might be worth trying both ways so you can find the one that works best for you.

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