It’s not very often that I put down my red pen and dive into a different type of media, but when my fellow Hammockites called upon me to help produce a video that would augment a sales presentation, I found myself instantly thrown into the world of video production. Forty-eight hours and two sleepless nights later, I had completed my very first video project—and learned a few important lessons to boot.

The most important one? You can’t control the weather (I assisted the videographer as we shot outside in 20-degree temps for 8 hours last Saturday), but with a little organization and a lot of legwork, you can put together a beautiful video on extremely short notice. If you’re not sure where to start, check out these five steps to making the video:

1. Call for backup. When I learned on Thursday night that I would need to round up 10 or more college students to interview for our project, I immediately turned to my phone book. Remember all those favors you’ve done for other people? It’s time to call in a few of your own. After five phone calls, I had lined up five participants for Saturday afternoon’s video shoot. And after a mass e-mail, we found six more to participate on Sunday.

2. Scope out locations. Your video can only look as good as the location in which you shoot it. Look for well-lit areas without a lot of traffic so you can set up your video gear and shoot your subject in a semi-private location (where he or she will probably feel less nervous in front of the camera). Our choices? A colorful concrete wall, a white doorway in the midst of a charcoal wall, the steps of an auditorium on a college campus and among trees in a quiet park.

3. Get organized. If you’re shooting on short notice, staying organized is the most important—and the most difficult—part of the project. The night before the video shoot, make a list of what you need to bring (including camera cords, lighting, tripods, back drops, props, batteries, microphones, etc.), a detailed shot list (so you get the look you want for the video), and a comprehensive schedule (with plenty of extra time included for mishaps—because they will happen). Once you’ve finished scheduling, contact each of your subjects to give them the time and place where they’ll need to be; then e-mail the schedule to everyone involved. Keep a list of contacts and phone numbers handy in case one of your subjects forgets when and where they need to show up.

4. Pay close attention. Keep a list of certain shots and interviews that look and sound particularly good. This will save you time when you edit later, and can help you start building ideas for how to organize the video. Also, double check everyone’s wardrobe and hair to make sure nothing is out of place. There’s nothing more frustrating than a shot that is unusable because someone’s eyes are covered up by their hair. Also, check the microphones between every participant to make sure they are working properly and sound crystal clear.

5. Pull it all together. Consult the list you kept during the video shoot, and only keep the best footage. Once you’ve selected your favorite shots, pulling together the final product will be much easier. That’s not to say that the editing process will go quickly—it took us 6 hours to create a 2-minute video. Stock up on caffeine and snacks to fuel your body (I don’t think I’ve ever drank that much sweet tea in one sitting), and before you know it you’ll have a great video on your hands.

Like anything else, the more time you have to shoot and edit the video, the better it can turn out. But if you’re like me and you only have 48 hours to turn it around, these tips will have you well on your way to producing a hit video.