This is usually the first question we are asked, but it’s really difficult to answer because there are so many variables that affect the cost of a video. It’s a bit like trying to find out the cost of a car without knowing the brand, style or spec. If there are many variables or unknowns, our costs can fluctuate to cover every eventuality, so we need to minimise these unknowns right at the start by defining a clear brief and understanding your goals fully. This means we can be accurate with our quote and can find the most cost effective option, getting you the very best return on your investment. Because that’s what a video is – an investment in the future of your company.
So initially you need to think about what is a video worth to my business?
Once you have an answer, we can start to look at what’s right for you, what options will do the job and what budget you are likely to need.
How we work out the costs!
The cost for us to make a video is largely dependent on how much time is required to produce all the necessary parts, and these may include things like:
- Coming up with the creative ideas
- Logistics planning and preparation
- Creation of a storyboard or treatment
- Script writing
- Filming
- Animation
- Graphics
- Editing
- Colour Grading
- Mastering and encoding
Then there are additional costs for things like:
- Equipment Hire
- Insurance
- Travel costs
- Presenter costs
- Voice artist cost
- Music licenses
- Stock images and footage licenses. i.e shutterstock or istock
- Subscriptions to the tools we use to manage projects such as ‘Adobe Creative Cloud‘, ‘VIMEO‘ etc.
A collection of the above go together to make up the three phases of making a video:
- Pre-production which includes all the planning design and logistics
- Production which is acquiring the content – filming, sourcing voice overs and stock imagery
- Post Production where we pull everything together into the final video
Things to think about:
Although the ‘how much will my video cost’ question needs way more exploring, there are a few things that will definitely affect the cost of a video, so these are things to consider when you are thinking about your video:
- The acquisition of the content – where and how? If you want multiple locations for example then this can add cost
- The duration of the final video. A six minute video is twice as much work as a three minute video, so again, cost increases accordingly (and top tip: generally in the corporate world the objective is usually to keep the video as short as possible to maintain engagement, as viewers just want to get to the good bit and don’t have time for waffle! So that’s good news on the editing front and keeping costs down)
- Can you get involved? To save money on scriptwriting and professional voiceovers or actors, can you do these bits yourself? Something to consider; you are the expert in your field after all.
So what will your video cost? It’ll cost as much as you want to spend on achieving your goals.
So let’s get started, and get you the very best return on your investment. Here’s a word from one of our clients Chris at ‘Budget Shipping Containers‘ explaining how using professional video has boosted enquiries and sales.
