Your Guide to Understanding Video Production Costs
Business owners and marketing managers might be nervous to jump into video marketing because they’ve heard it’s expensive. With a camera on every device, they may be tempted to employ low-cost or DIY video production and create tons of videos.
However, investing in a professional video production company to make a few stellar videos will be much more impactful than several cheap clips.
The changing video landscape
As more brands make the switch to digital marketing, it’s tempting to make any video just to get in the game. But brands should research their options before taking the cheaper option: low quality video can be worse for your brand perception than no video at all.
Fortunately, video production equipment costs are going down, and more production companies are emerging to help business reach and engage their target audiences. Video is becoming especially popular for B2B marketing, with companies designing video for a specific audience.
How much does video cost?
Video costs the more than other marketing types, but can also earn you the most in conversions. A high-quality video could cost anywhere from $5,000 to $500,000. When requesting quotes from video production companies, providing them with a video brief that details what you want will help them give you a more accurate price.
Now, let’s break down some typical cost variables for video production.
· Video type: An animated short will have different production costs than a day-in-the-life doc. Consider your audience and needs when brainstorming what type of video you’d like to create.
· Pre-production: Before filming beings you’ll need a concept, script, talent, location and more. Your team may be able to do a lot of the pre-production themselves with input from the production company. If you have the budget, you can let the experts do more of the prep.
· Crew: Crew rates depend on location, experience and role. A full service video production crew could cost from $1,500 to $30,000+, depending on the other factors listed here.
· Length: Most marketing videos for brands will be short, depending on your needs. However, shooting a lot of video while you already have the crew, talent and location can also afford you several videos edited for different uses.
· Time: Unlike length, the time the production company spends creating the video will factor a great deal into cost. Production companies will have their own rates for filming, and the more crew members required the higher the price. Solid planning during pre-production can minimize costs due to last-minute changes.
· Equipment: While companies should have their own film equipment, they will likely also have a cost to cover any damage to their expensive equipment. This may be factored into their day rate.
· Travel: If you bring in a team from out of town, you’re looking at transportation, lodging and meal costs that could cost as much as the video. Your best choice for keeping costs down is to hire a local team, which will also help you in finding a perfect location.
· Post-production: You’ll want to have enough in the budget to make sure the final product comes out flawless. Story editing, sound, coloring and graphics could all be done by different professionals and will impact final cost.
Video production requires teamwork
If you are clear about what you want, and help the production company help you, you can create a valuable piece of content that can be used for multiple campaigns and ultimately drive conversions. When you hire the right video production company, you’re hiring a partner who wants to meet those goals with you.
Say hello
and let Spin develop a video production proposal that fits within your budget and propels your brand forward.
About Us
Spin Creative is a video production company and creative agency helping marketers create winning video and creative strategies that engage, inspire and activate targeted audiences. Spin is headquartered in Seattle with offices in San Francisco and London, serving brands around the globe.
