Shooting commercials: what you need to know

April 2022

Commercial video production is a media tactic you should be investing in as a business. Video commercial is a great way to portray your brand’s mission and services to your audience. With video, your potential clients can get a glimps of who you are as a brand and what your company does best.

While the concept of videos is pretty self-explanitory in today’s digital society, video production is an entirely different ball game. It takes a lot of work to make a great video, even one as straightforward as a commercial video. There’s setup, production, lighting, shooting, editing, and creating the perfect video atmosphere. And all of that comes after you have the right equipment!

As a business, you should be able to focus on your business goals and acquire more revenue. Investing in a commercial video production company will take the video assembly off of you so that you can focus on where your business needs the most attention. Choosing the right video production company to handle your video needs is no easy feat. Thankfully you got us to give you the inside scoop on all things commercial video. But first, the basics.

The value of video

It’s no secret that video has taken our world by storm. Already every social platform, search engine, and media outlet incorporates video into their marketing tactics in some shape or form. As a result of video being such a breakout trend, 87% of marketers are utilizing video as a form of marketing.

Video is important because it’s wildly accessible and provides immense value. Since video can effectively communicate a story, it allows businesses to convey emotions while simultaneously getting their point across about their brand. Stories build emotion and empathy which drives customer relationships and increases sales.

What is a commercial video?

A commercial video is an advertisement produced for television, social media, or a website that relays the product or service a brand is trying to sell. A commercial is typically 30 seconds to a minute long and promotes a product or service by telling a story. This short-form video is the perfect amount of time for your audience to learn more about who you are and why they should do business with you.

Commercial videos also expand your brand’s reach. When you invest in video marketing, you will be able to put your commercial on TV or social media, meaning your video has the potential to reach a broader audience. With this, comes brand credibility. Putting faces and a story to a brand makes you more trustworth as a business, increasing opportunities for more revenue.

Why you should invest in a video production company

A professional video production company will take your commercial to the next level. Video production seems straightforward but in reality, it’s a huge process. You need a professional with experience to handle the scope of work for the video to turn out great. Even if you manage to film on your own, you still have to deal with post-production.

The benefits of hiring a video production company to film commercials are endless. You automatically get access to the best video production equipment. Dont get us wrong, the average iPhone can record some fabulous content! However, a professional camera will get you clearer shots, amplify your ability to focus and zoom, and ultimately produce a higher-quality video.

Another commonly overlooked element of recording commercial videos is sound. Sound effects and dialogue are hard to capture when doing it yourself, another reason to hire a video production company. Professionals will have the necessary equipment to capture the perfect sound during video productions to minimize the amount of time it takes for a shot.

Hiring a video production company also saves you time and money as a business. The time and financials you are spending learning how to produce and record a commercial video could be invested in other aspects of your business. So really, a video production company helps your bottom line, and what’s not to love about that?

Best practices for commercial video production

Whether you are filming commercial videos or closing a deal at the office, every initiative starts with one thing: a purpose. Starting with a goal in mind will make every video more effective. As your business, do you want to close more leads? Are you looking to share a customer success story? Are you trying to drive online traffic? Knowing what you want to portray in your commercial video will not only help the video production company execute what you want, but it will make for a more effective appeal to your audience.

Upon establishing your video’s purpose, you can then hone in on messaging and call-to-actions to engage your target audience. You should also conceptualize what you want the video to look like. Developing a storyboard is a great way to portray this, and a good production company will either help you through it or appreciate your collaboration. In addition to this, stay true to who you are as a brand. Incorporating these concepts into your video production will make the process go smoothly.

The process of commercial video production

Video production will vary depending on the video, but for the most part, they all follow the same process: pre-production, production, and post-production. Pre-production is the stage where all the planning takes place. Answering questions about video strategy, budget, and a project timeline are essential at this stage. Choosing talent and location, as well as writing the script will also take place during this state. The more you plan for, the better the process will be.

The next stage is production, where you get to film the commercial. This entails lighting set-up, recording voice-overs, and capturing b-roll. If you hire a video production company this phase should not take up to much time, as the experienced team will know the direction thanks to the planning.

Congratulations, you have a video! Now what? Post-production is where editing, music selection, and reviewing takes place to hopefully create the perfect video. The video production team can handle the heavy lifting on this one. Once everything is approved, the video production company will send you the final version of the commercial in the correct format so that your business can utilize it however you want. Simple as that!

Hopefully, this article highlights why you should invest in a video production company to film your commercials. Video is a crucial tactic to implement into your marketing efforts, and should be handled professionally and efficiently!