3 Reasons to Avoid Cutting Corners with Your Company's Ads
In today's marketplace, it is more important than ever to not only distinguish yourself through multimedia--especially video--advertising, but to do it in the smartest, most cost effective way possible. With everyone and their dog owning a 5D and promoting themselves as a high-end video production company, there are some important things to consider when putting together a video project for your company and matching it with the team best fitted to execute it.
1. What are your competitors doing? (and do something better)
Be aware of what your competition is doing with their video marketing. Check out their production values. What feeling about their company does the video itself create? Are there visual effects? Animation? What does the quality make you think of? Home movies? Local commercials? A national spot from a big company? Figure out what they're aiming for with their videos (or better yet, what they've actually achieved) and then aim higher while putting together your video or commercial production strategy. This is important because...
2. Your commercials and videos are more than their literal message. The videos themselves are branding.
One thing that is easy to forget is that, while your message and featured product or service is very important to your video, just as--or more--important is the feeling your customers get from the form of the ad itself. What does the quality of your television commercial spot or corporate video say to them about your company? How does your video or commercial make them feel compared to your competition? There's a reason why you'll never see a large company with successful video or television commercial marketing release an ad that looks like something from a small business or a local car dealership. People have been watching home videos, movies and commercials their entire lives, and even if they couldn't explain to you exactly why a tv commercial spot or video production feels higher end to them, they'll know that it does, and they will associate that feeling with your company, which is why...
3. Cutting corners on video production actually makes your television ad less cost-effective.
Some companies try the do-it-yourself approach to video production. Some hire their employee's nephew who has shot a couple of videos for his high school or a local company. Some people hire a production company that promises them top-end video results, fast and super-cheap. The secret that many of the larger advertisers know is that there is a sweetspot in the level of video quality (and therefore the feeling you can associate with your company) and how cost-effective an investment the video production is. Finding this sweet spot with your video, and then executing a project that maximizes its potential, should be a major factor when selecting a video production company partner to help create your perfect television ad. Sometimes spending a few dollars more where it counts with your video will save you and your company a lot more in the long run once your television ad is out in the wild.
