Even though commercials are only 30 seconds long, they need to capture your attention and relay a memorable message. These short bites of information may seem effortlessly compiled when they appear on television or on social media, but they can take up to months to prepare and create. Here we discuss what making a commercial memorable entails.
The commercial making process is unique to other video production processes as it involves a more pressing challenge: getting the point across before the viewer clicks ‘skip’. Each of the production phases are crucial to creating a successful product.
During pre-production, the production company must meet with the client to establish the overall vision and the exact objective the commercial aims to achieve. Once the client has brainstormed, selected their theme and relayed that to the production team, the writers can then write a script. Once the script has been written and approved, story boards are created and sent back to the client for approval. During the pre-production phase, graphics are developed, the location is confirmed, budgets are set and a plan is ultimately set in motion.
Here, all the planning is set in motion. Doing so successfully requires a skilled production team to ensure that time and resources are not wasted. The Michael Group, are experts in their field. Their video production phase includes providing camera crews, cinematography and lighting design, amongst many others. During the production phase of a commercial, filming takes place to gather all the raw material that will be edited and used during post-production.
Post-producing a commercial involves many groups of people. First producers and editors compile the commercial. The first draft is then submitted to the client, if the client is satisfied the draft is often then shown to focus groups. The importance of focus groups is invaluable as it assists with determining whether the commercial objectives have been reached and if it appeals to the desired demographic. Changes can be made according to the input provided by the focus group. Whether or not a commercial is tested with a focus group and the size of the focus group depends on the client and the nature of the commercial. Once all the necessary input and changes have been made, the final version is presented to the client. The client then has the product tested and can begin video marketing.
Determining what a good commercial is all depends on the demographic it is aimed at. A good commercial has the ability to make something objective be interpreted in a subjective manner. It does so in a number of ways. In essence a good commercial is characterized by:
Branding plays a crucial role in the success of a commercial. You can do so by being consistent with the colors used on all your platforms or by consistently producing quality commercials. Doing so can increase the success of commercials as it will be easier for consumers to identify your brand.
Drawing the attention of people and keeping it is particularly difficult in today’s fast paced society. To ensure that people actually watch the entire story told by your commercial, you have to grasp their attention within the first few seconds – this is most effectively done by evoking an emotion. Determining what that emotion is or how it applies to the commercial’s views, depends on the target market selected. Once the emotion is established, viewers ought to be motivated to want to do something with that emotion. These emotions may include creating the desire to feel included, a sense of urgency to make a purchase or even the desire to prescribe to the societal norms as dictated by their identifying group.
A successful commercial does not just make a sale, it also stays with the viewer long after they have watched the commercial. To achieve this, contact The Michael Group. They can take care of all your commercial production needs with ease.
