Ever since the late 1980s, when Macintosh computers made designing marketing communications materials look easy, a great many organizations have found that they’re able to handle their marketing in-house. Instead of having to rely on ad agencies and design shops, they’ve gotten used to the tighter control and timeliness of the messages they send out on a daily basis.
For some Baltimore and Washington, D.C. based organizations, it’s tempting to look at video production the same way. But they’re also discovering that the challenges to creating video that suits their needs is far more imposing than anything they’ve faced before.
According to Greg Abel, President of Abel Communications, “We put together videos on a fast-turnaround basis all the time. But for higher quality, we look to outside sources.”
Dina Wasmer, President of Baltimore’s Incite Creative, says “Where brochures and websites rely on typography and imagery to communicate to its intended audience, video adds the extra dimensions of voice, music and controlled pacing that is less attainable in other mediums. Having a great video, however, takes more than just capturing a live event on tape. It takes a compelling storyteller to make it come to life.”
And for Craig Kahl, President of Adventure Web Productions, one of Maryland’s top web developers, “we’re finding that video to help our clients’ websites really rock is becoming more of a necessity than ever.”
Whether you produce marketing communications tools for others to use, or are looking to add the emotive power of video to your website, you’ll find it pays to answer a few basic questions first.
1. “Can I get away with ‘quick and dirty?’” If you have the resources to compile an “announcement” video and it makes sense to look “home made” or inexpensively produced for your brand, go for it. If your video doesn’t need the look of broadcast quality, why pay for it?
2. What will it take to capture the emotional component that makes for great video? Motion and emotion are video’s great strengths. But not everyone’s a born storyteller. It takes compelling music, the “right” voiceover and impeccable timing to tell your story in a way that has a bottom-line impact on your business.
3. What am I willing to invest? According to national surveys, the low-end price of high-end production is about $1,600 per finished minute. There are plenty of options above and below that cost, however, from just-graduated video school students to motion picture developers.
When you’re serious about producing a video that’s right for your company, you’re likely to find that narrowing your Google search to “corporate videos” or “corporate video production” will give you a solid start. Take a look at their work and ask lots of questions. You might find a partner that’s just right for you.
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