We or I?

[Josh Bass]

I think I still like I for myself. "We" starts to sound like a production company, which I don't really want to be thought of as, as opposed to a crew member. I may not attract as much business, but at least what I DO attract will (hopefully) be things I want to handle. I don't want to end up in a "Hello, Mr. Bass, can you supply 10 camera operators and a live truck for our new housecat vs housecat boxing match?" situation.

[Markus Nord]

Originally Posted by Josh Bass

I think I still like I for myself. "We" starts to sound like a production company, which I don't really want to be thought of as, as opposed to a crew member. I may not attract as much business, but at least what I DO attract will (hopefully) be things I want to handle. I don't want to end up in a "Hello, Mr. Bass, can you supply 10 camera operators and a live truck for our new housecat vs housecat boxing match?" situation.

I use "We" just because I think of me/my company as a production company. Most of the time I work alone, but other times I hire or co produce.
If I would get the call "10 cameras and crew" I would say "I'll se if I can help you at that date, let me get back to you" and I would then check for someone that could take the job, put an extra number on the offer and coproduce the job (or give the job away for a later favor).
Anyway... "We" on website and " I" (or we, depending the job) during contact with clients.

[Josh Bass]

I guess that's the difference. I think of myself more like the folks who advertise themselves as "John Smith, DP" or something. Except in my case videographer/editor/grip/teleprompter.

[Jack D. Hubbard]

Serious overthink going on here, guys. I use 'We". It is all inclusive.

[John Wiley]

Glad I stumbled upon this thread... I am having a much improved website built right now and this was one of my biggest concerns. In the end I went with "we", so I'm glad other people see things the same way I do (though it's worth mentioning I have a company name which is not just "John Wiley Videography").

[Noa Put]

But then again I just watched Philip Blooms website and in his rates, bio and kit's section it's all 'I' or "me", there even a 15 min video where he talks about himself and his work. But I guess he is at a level where he doesn't need a "we" to get attention that leads to a job.

[Markus Nord]

Originally Posted by Noa Put

But then again I just watched Philip Blooms website and in his rates, bio and kit's section it's all 'I' or "me", there even a 15 min video where he talks about himself and his work. But I guess he is at a level where he doesn't need a "we" to get attention that leads to a job.

Well, PBs website is named after him, probably his company too. Then "I" is ofcouse right. I too got markusnord.se registrated but I'll still use nordproduktion.se as my site and point the other names to that site. I'll make a markusnord.se later and on that one I'll use "I".
A site name don't cost much, so why not cover it all... So if they look for my name they fine my "I" site and so on...

[Colin McDonald]

Around these parts, it is usually 'we', if only because most requests are on the lines of "Can youse film wur wedding?"

:-)

[Andy Solaini]

I'm in the WE camp but ideally I would like to use both depending on jobs. I do some things that sell via DVD on the web so use WE to sound bigger even though I hate the deceiving people side of it.
When I do things locally I sometimes use "I" to give a more personal feel. I think a lot of people like to know they are corresponding with you rather than someone from a sales department or something.


One thing I definitely couldn't do is write about myself as "he" like some websites do. Like "Andy Solaini is camera operator bla bla"

[Jon Fairhurst]

The Philip Bloom example is a nice counter-example to the "we" approach. It all comes down to branding...

* If you are truly a one-person shop and use your own name, "I" is appropriate. The risk is that it could make your operation sound "small". But it can also be honest and personal.

* If you might expand your operation and/or hire assistants and use a company name, "we" is appropriate. The risk is that it could make your operation sound bigger than it is, possibly stretching the truth. But it also feels more inclusive to your staff and might be a less arrogant/egotistical approach.

* If you are branding your operation around your personal skills, personality, experience, and enthusiasm for the industry, put your own name in the company name and use "I". The risk is that it could come off as arrogant. If you expand and hire more people, they will know that they will always be in your shadow. On the other hand, you have a chance at earning speaking fees, if you become "known".

No approach is inherently better or worse than the others. It comes down to knowing your vision and personality and finding the right match.

Branding is an interesting game, isn't it?

[Noa Put]

Branding is an interesting game, isn't it?

I get so pre-occupied with video I don't think about branding at all eventhough I know it's a very important part of the business, getting people to recognize and remember you. I also think the "I" approach works best if your work speaks for itself.

Great info so far, thx all for sharing.

[Tim Gauthier]

I should get a website up! I am currently the only person but since I'm founding something and hoping to add more crew/crews then it makes sense to say we, and us.

If it was my personal site it definitely is an I.

Personal site works off of relationships and referalls, people want to say that they know "you", but an organization, especially one that takes donations, should be more then one person. I always ensure that I never over inflate how big it is, if it is small, I make it sound small and fun, people like that.

[Roger Gunkel]

Nobody else seems to have mentioned it, but as a solely owned business, the business itself is a legal entity. Therefore if your business is John Smith Video, you could sell that business as a going concern even if the new owner is not John Smith. Because of this, there is no reason why using 'We' shouldn't refer to you and your company if you find it convenient to describe it that way.

You are not giving a false impression, it is entirely up to clients to see your business how they want. I'm sure we all often say things like 'I own the business', which is quite correct and therefore gives it an identity. My business, we, is my equipment, my records, my customer base and the business bank accounts etc and I do all the work:-)

Roger

[Rob Cantwell]

as Jon pointed out above Branding is an interesting game, when i did my site I really never thought about the 'I' or 'we' aspect of it, but whatever for the time being I'm going to leave it the way it is!!

[Chris Harding]

Especially with weddings I have seen instances where a bride is furious when the person that consults with her and tells her exactly what he/she will be doing ends up sending an associate instead so I also make sure that she knows "the person you are talking to will be the person shooting your special day" which means lot's of "I's and Me's" ... The moment you mention the "We" content then it's assumed that other people are active in the organisation ... Weddings are quite a personal thing so I would think the bride automatically assumes if you are talking to her and getting details that you are doing the shoot not just a free-lancer you hire. It also gives an indication to the client of personal committment rather than "I'll send someone over" I must admit I have never been asked if others work for me but with weddings where I'm forced to use an assistant (bride and groom getting ready at the same time but different locations) then I explain that to the bride (that's who you usually meet up with 99% of the time) and also let my assistant do the guys so the bride prep is done by the person she has been working with and communicating with leading up to the big day.

Chris