How to make ordering a video marketing project easier
We realise that the concept of ordering and getting started with video marketing project may be daunting. You may not have done it before, or you might be against the clock and need the quickest turnaround time that you can possibly get.
Well, efficiency in the ordering process is the best way to speed everything up and make everything silky smooth.
In this STM Blog, we’ll teach you how to make ordering a video as easy as possible.
In the spirit of things being easy, we’ve broken it all down into steps.
Step One – End goal
What is the purpose of the video marketing project? Will it end up on your website, your social media channels, or is it for recruitment or training? Is it to drive sales, promote a new service or to show the values of your organisation?
Video production companies work on different kinds of videos every day, so giving them a clear idea of what they need to start preparing is a great first step.
There are different workflows and different templates for different types of video, as well as the high likelihood that the team you’re working with has worked on a specific type of project before.
Step Two – Idea
There are two types of clients; those who have a clear idea of what they want and those who don’t.
It’s absolutely fine if you’re either. It’s part of a production company’s job to take some creative direction, but having a really clear idea of what you want your final product to look like will make the process slightly easier.
There’s a few ways you can articulate this to the video production company. You could draw up a storyboard, (don’t worry, here’s a free template) which doesn’t have to be a masterpiece. Use stick figures if needs be, you just need to communicate roughly what you’d like to see.
If that doesn’t work for you, send over a few examples that you’d like yours to look like or something close to what you want.
It’s important to remember that not all videos need an idea or massie creative vision, it might be the simple option that will be best for you.
It’s also helpful if everyone who’s going to have an input on the video are in the first few meetings, or are at least aware of what you’re trying to do and are on the same page. The last thing you want to do if you’re trying to make the buying process as easy as possible is for someone to come in at the final hurdle and want a load of changes.
If you’re completely blanking on an idea, that’s absolutely fine too. The best thing to do in this instance is just to say that you need some help.
As we’ve mentioned previously, if you know what purpose your video will serve, the production company will have a bank of knowledge to fall back on, or have similar videos they’ve done in the past to use as a reference point.
Step Three – Budget
Budgets can be a bit of a touchy subject at the best of time, especially in video marketing, but you don’t have to show any bank statements or anything down to the penny.
Letting the production company know roughly what you’re working with is a key element to everything running smoothly.
Imagine a scenario where everything is agreed, you’re all on the same page and good to go, but it turns out they’re asking for double your budget. You’re back to square one.
If you let them know what you’re working with, the spec and features of the video can be adjusted accordingly.
Step Four – A reasonable deadline
Deadlines are a very important element of a video marketing project and video production companies want to know that they can meet the deadline at the beginning of a project, to the point that usually they won’t take something on if they don’t think they can meet the deadline.
Every video differs in the length of time it takes to make, but typically, for corporate video marketing, you should probably allow about 4 weeks, or longer there are multiple locations or actors involved.
For an animation you should allow a minimum of 6 weeks, but the more time the better.
Thanks for reading this STM Blog!
If you have any questions about video marketing or video content in general, get in touch today! We’re happy to help and chat through any concerns you may have or where to begin.
Why not check out these great resources while you’re here?
How to choose a video production company
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