DANIELMALL BLOG
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How Much Does a TV Commercial REALLY Cost?
What goes into the creation of a TV commercial? And, what you most likely want to know, how much do they really cost? If we had a penny for every time a client calls us to ask how much a commercial costs, we would have a billion dollars! As with any project, the price will depend. It could range from as little as $2,000 to over $1,000,000.
I like to separate the production of TV commercials into 3 phases: pre-production, production, and post-production.
Pre-production is the process of determining which creative direction the client wants to go, budgeting, location scouting, licensing, and the hiring of the production team, actors and extras. This process can be the most demanding of all. With the pressures of the client’s target production date, coming up with all the resources needed in a short amount of time all while trying to stay within budget can seem impossible. Many clients assume creating a commercial is as simple as picking up a camera and shooting, but even with the smallest of budgets, the planning process takes a significant amount of time!
Production is what I define as the actual days of shooting. This is when you’ve got all the cameras, sound devices, and lighting equipment armed and ready to go. It is less stressful knowing you have all the locations, actors, and other resources squared away, but many things can go wrong. Nonetheless, this is my personal favorite stage of production. This is where I get to have fun! Being on a film set is magical. Surrounded by all the tools that will inevitably turn your vision into reality is just mind boggling.
Post-Production is where everything comes together. All the hard work put into getting the resources needed for production, and later capturing it all on film, now depends on the magic of the editor. The editor literally takes all the footage captured during production and pieces it all together according to the guidelines defined by the client and the director. Editing can take anywhere from 1 to 30 days depending on the scale of production and the amount of extra graphics needed. This is also the stage where color is added to the footage to give it that “filmic” look. If needed, voiceovers are also performed during this stage.
How much does this all cost?
If you read my article on music videos, you’ll know what I’m about to say. Ultimately, it depends on the quality and resources needed. But REALLY what it boils down to is quality. What I mean by quality is the level of uniqueness and creative input. This can best be explained by showing you examples. You can get a commercial done for $2,000, and you can also get one done for $1,000,000. Take a look at the videos below to see what I mean.
$2,000 Commercial Example
This commercial is catchy, and has somewhat of a storyline. The audience is able to understand what the product being sold is, it’s pretty funny, has basic camera work, graphics and a voiceover. To some, this get’s the job done. If you’re a new dealership or a business on a tight budget, a commercial like this can do the trick. However, although this commercial is the cheapest of the group, it can also be the most expensive. Here’s why. In advertising, the goal of a commercial is to get the audience to either buy your product or service, or remember your brand or company. A commercial like this will get your company on TV, but the likelihood of people remembering you, is very slim. The company behind this commercial would have to air this commercial more times to leave a lasting impression because it lacks uniqueness and creativity. If it invested a little more, they would have received a commercial that was 10 times more creative and unique and saved more money by having to air it less. When it comes to video production, you get what you pay for.
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Now for the expensive stuff
$1,000,000 Commercial Example (Kia)
This has to be one of my favorite commercials of all time. This commercial is not only unique, but insanely creative and visually compelling! Firstly, the creators somehow incorporated the concept of one of the best movies of all time (The Matrix) with a new luxury car by Kia. Did you see the visual effects at the end? Talk about amazing. If you want your audience to remember your product, this is the way to go!
Here’s another example:
$1,000,000 Commercial Example (Sony)
This commercial is visually compelling with graphics that pull you into the TV. An INSANE amount of time was put into the creation of this commercial; you can tell why it’s worth a million dollars!
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Could you see the difference?
The first commercial was cheap, but had it’s disadvantages. The other commercials were a bit expensive, but served their purpose! There’s a reason why Superbowl commercials tend to only air once or twice! It’s because they don’t need to air it multiple times to grab their audience! A handful of exposures does the trick due to the uniqueness and creativity of the commercial!
Think of Quality Video Production as an Investment.
It is up to you to decide what will suit your needs. Right now, you may be in the market for a cheap $2,000 commercial, and that’s okay! Many companies start out this way! However, if you want to take your company to the next level, you won’t regret having a quality video done. Think of it as an investment. Ask yourself, “would I buy my product or service if I saw my commercial on TV?” We guarantee that you will have much more success with a commercial you can be proud of!