Today we’d like to introduce you to Jerry White.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I learned to tell stories on deadline.
I started in local news at what was then KBVO, later KEYE CBS, here in Austin. News is a tough school. You get a story, a few hours and no excuses. I spent several years at KXAN, then went back to KEYE as a special assignments videographer and producer. We did the long-form stories, and I covered Texas politics out of the CBS Capitol bureau.
That work taught me three things I still use every day. How to build a story people actually watch. How to sit across from powerful people and get a straight answer. And how to work with a team of professionals who don’t miss deadlines. It led to work with CBS News, 48 Hours, MSNBC and FOX. News teaches you to find the real story quickly and tell it straight. I still work that way.
In the late 1990s, I saw a gap. A business that wanted video had two choices. Hire a guy with a camera who didn’t know how to tell a story, or pay a production house a small fortune. There was nothing in between. I started White Lens Productions to fill that gap: network-level storytelling at a price a local business could afford.
Over time I wanted a sharper way to tell business stories, so I spent years as a StoryBrand guide. StoryBrand is a messaging framework built on one idea: the customer is the hero, not the company. The business is the guide that helps them solve a problem. When a business gets that right, people finally understand what it does and why they should buy. I used that approach with more than 40 local companies through my marketing consulting firm, Texas Marketing Strategies.
Along the way, I learned that a great video with no plan behind it is an expense, not an investment. So White Lens grew from a video production company into a video and marketing agency. We still make the videos. But now we also build the system around them: the message, the website or landing page, paid ads on Google and Meta, and the CRM that tracks and follows up with every lead. It all serves one goal: more of the right customers for local businesses.
Thirty years and 500+ videos later, the job is the same. Tell the truth, tell it clearly and make sure the right people see it.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
No. And the hardest part had nothing to do with the camera.
Honestly, the biggest struggle was this: we’d make great videos and marketing material, and the client didn’t know what to do with it. Videos sat on YouTube to die, or went out in one social media post and disappeared. These businesses were spending real money on professional video, and we knew they weren’t getting a real return. Something had to change.
So I changed. I couldn’t just be the guy who shoots and edits anymore. I had to learn the other half: paid ads, tracking, retargeting, CRMs, landing pages. I also had to help clients see that different videos have different jobs. A website or About Us video should be polished. Social media video needs to feel real and unscripted, because that’s what earns trust in a feed. Mix those up and you pay for video that doesn’t work.
Most businesses post only organically and don’t realize how few people actually see it. Even a small, well-run ad budget reaches far more of the right people. And one video alone isn’t enough. Customers need several touch points before they call. If you can’t track them and follow up, you lose them.
The market is tough, too. Small and mid-sized businesses get taken advantage of by large “marketing mills.” They produce generic content, don’t explain what they’re doing, and keep billing every month. I meet owners who’ve been burned and don’t trust anyone in marketing. I understand why. Earning that trust back takes honesty and clear reporting.
Now there’s AI. I use it all the time, and it’s a great tool. But I see businesses using AI video to replace a real local presence, and it doesn’t work. AI can’t build trust. A homeowner hiring a roofer, or a company choosing a vendor, wants to see real people they can count on.
The best practices change almost daily. Keeping up is the job now.
We’ve been impressed with White Lens Productions, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
We don’t just film content. We fill your calendar.
White Lens Productions is a video and marketing agency for Central Texas businesses. Most of our clients are service businesses, like contractors, home services and medical practices, doing somewhere between $500K and $5M a year. They’re good at what they do. They just need more of the right people to know it.
We’re known for telling a business’s story the way a news crew would: clear, honest and built to hold attention.
Here’s what sets us apart: we don’t stop at the video. Most production companies hand you a file and leave. Most marketing agencies hand you a report you can’t make sense of. We do both halves, start to finish:
The message. Before we shoot anything, we fix what you’re saying. As a former StoryBrand guide, I help businesses explain what they do so clearly that customers know why to call.
The right video for the right job. Not every video has the same job, and we make sure each one is built for its job.
The system around it. Landing pages, Google and Meta ads, a CRM that tracks every lead, and retargeting that keeps you in front of people until they’re ready to buy.
We also believe in straight talk. You’ll know what we’re doing, why we’re doing it and what it’s producing. No mystery invoices. That starts with price. Most businesses can’t get a straight number out of a video or marketing company without a sales call. We put ours in the open. Our production calculator shows what a video will cost, and our ad calculator shows, with our fee included, whether paid ads will pay off for you before you spend a dollar. We do it because too many owners have paid for marketing that never paid them back. If the numbers don’t work, you should know before you spend, not after.
What I’m most proud of is the trust. Over 30 years and 500+ videos, we’ve worked with hundreds of Central Texas organizations, including Seton, the City of Leander, the City of Cedar Park, Austin Telco Federal Credit Union and Hellas Construction. Many of them have stayed with us for years.
Our goal is simple. Teach local businesses what actually works, and help the businesses this community needs get their word out. We work alongside you, like a partner, not a vendor.
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
Video isn’t a nice-to-have anymore. It’s a must-have.
For years, a lot of local businesses grew on word of mouth and referrals. That’s still a great foundation. But it only takes you so far. Referrals can’t scale, and you can’t control when they come in.
Here’s where marketing is heading, and why it matters for local businesses:
People are searching with video. YouTube is one of the biggest search engines in the world. When someone wants to know how to fix something, who to hire or what a company is really like, they watch before they call.
AI is watching, too. AI search tools now read and recommend video content. If your business isn’t on video, it’s harder for those tools to find you.
Trust is everything. People are tired of slick ads and fake reviews. They want to see the real owner, the real crew and the real work. Honest video builds that trust faster than anything else.
Small businesses have never had more reach. With even a modest ad budget, a local company can put its video in front of exactly the right people, in its own zip codes, again and again. Every view is another touch point. That’s how you stay top of mind until someone’s ready to buy.
My advice to any business owner: don’t wait until referrals slow down. Start telling your story now, make it honest and make sure the right people see it.
Pricing:
- Every project is custom, built around your goals and budget.
- Want a straight answer on what a video costs? Our free video budget calculator gives you a real estimate in about two minutes, with no sales call required: whitelensproductions.com/budget-calculator
- Not sure where to start? Call or text us at 737-379-3081 for a free conversation about what will actually move the needle for your business.
- We don’t just film content. We fill your calendar.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://whitelensproductions.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jerry_white_lens_productions/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whitelensproductions
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jerry-white-00310b1
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7CPCVJHrN4gxtIZDeCTK9g
- Other: https://vimeo.com/whitelensproductions
