As a business owner, you want to do almost anything to make your brand known. Major corporations even spend a lot on their advertising and marketing campaigns. However, when it comes to budget, that’s where the challenge usually comes in.
Most small-medium enterprises are quite apprehensive of the thought of using videos to promote their brand because of the video production cost. There’s even a popular saying in the video production business that says “cheap, quick, and great — pick two.” It simply implies that you either choose to make your video cheap and quick but it won’t be that great or you choose quick and great but it won’t be cheap.
So how are you going to have a quality marketing video for your product or service without having to spend much and not compromising the quality as well?
In this article, we’ll give you some tips on how you can lower down your video production cost and still have that excellent video quality you are aiming for.
Prepare well
As in every project, good planning is essential if you want things to run smoothly. Planning ahead is critical. Don’t just focus on the creative part. You need to iron out your pre-production in order to stick to the budget that you have. Essentially, you have to know the purpose of your video, know the script, and know the content. Once you have these ironed out, you can now decide on your budget.
When it comes to budget, be sure to be realistic about it. Consider everything that you will need for the video production — video production team, set, video style, talents, etc. The planning stage is your chance to tweak your budget without backlash. Adjust your budget as early in the planning stage so you can set out your expectations as well.
Prepare a project proposal
Remember about the video production brief? It will come in handy in every video production plan. It is important to create a video production brief with an explanation of the budget requirements for each part of the video project. Make sure that it includes the objective, goals, audience, key message, visual style, length, plan for distribution, timeline, and budget. Once you’re done with this brief, have it approved by the people involved and you’re good to go. Having a well-planned and detailed brief and proposal will lessen your chances of needing edits or revisions on the project later on.
Be wise in choosing the location
Location is important in video production. Studios and off-site locations are more expensive. If you want to save on your location expenses, it is better to shoot in your own space or one that you can rent at a very low price. Think about the available space you have — maybe your office or even your own house. A video production team can help you come up with ways on how to make the location that you have perfect for the flow of your story. When looking for a video production location, consider the size, background noise, natural lighting, state of the furniture or interior elements, and if it will look great on the still picture. Keep in mind that your location has a huge impact on the overall look of your video.
Choose a good video production team
There are a lot of video production teams willing to film your project for a fee. However, you need to be choosy when choosing your video production team. Choose a team that you can very well communicate with and is always responsive to your emails or calls. If you are constantly nagging the crew for information, then that could be a bad sign. You also have to be able to talk and be open to your team about your budget so they know how to move around it and not risk you going beyond your budget. A good video production team will not compromise the quality of your film just because you only have this much of a budget. Moreover, a good crew will be able to help you come up with creative ways to negotiate a small budget, and help you cut corners without cutting down on quality.
Take care of the coordination
If you can have someone from your own office take over some video production role instead of hiring new ones, that would save you a lot of overhead costs. Also, if you can provide catered lunch services for your crew instead of having them leave to get lunch elsewhere, that would be helpful, too. Anytime the production stops, especially for a long period like an off-site lunch, it’ll cost time to get things moving again. Save yourself some money and work out the logistics among your own team.
Cast your own talent
Instead of going to casting agencies to look for talents that surely cost a lot, why not look around you and spot someone you think would look good in front of the camera. You will even be surprised at the talents hidden among your team members. Or if there’s really no one from your time who would like to take on the role, you can source out amateur talents but make sure that you agree on the budget before you have the contract signing.
Keep it short
The longer the video, the more you are expected to pay. Hence, shorter is better. Remember that you only have seconds to capture your audience’s attention. It is better to be thoughtful but ruthless when it comes to video production time. Your video production team can also provide some assistance with knowing when to cut and what to cut.
Optimize your time when editing
The post-production editing process could also eat up a good chunk of your video production budget and you have to prepare for that. The video editing process can sometimes stretch for weeks. One way to save up on this is to reduce the editing time. It would be best if you can personally sit with the editor so you’ll know what needs to be done or which should be deleted, etc. It would save a lot of time and budget instead of sending the revisions via email and waiting for responses.
If you’re looking for a video production company that not only provides quality films but can also meet your budget, you can contact New Win Productions. We specialize in video production, search engine optimization, digital marketing, and branding. You can email them at [email protected]. You can also visit their website https://newwinproductions.com/ to check out some of their works and other services.