You won't, however, actually own this "complimentary"
commercial, and you won't be able to use it anywhere else without
paying for it first.
There are a couple of ways to keep the budget
for your commercials as reasonable as possible:
Have the commercial, or "spot,"
produced from 5-by-7 or 8-by-10 color photos instead of paying hundreds
of dollars an hour to have a TV crew come to your location for a
shoot. Whether you hire a professional photographer or do it yourself,
the photos must be clear, crisp and glossy, and you'll need six
to 10 great shots for a 30-second commercial. When shooting the
exterior of your business, watch for things such as telephone poles
and shadows from trees or nearby structures, parked cars or sun
glaring off windows. Make sure the lighting is good, and think about
the content of your interior shots.
Get a signed release form from absolutely
everyone who will be recognizable in any of the shots, including
employees, family members, customers and so on. If you decide you
want to use a camera crew, tell them to save all the footage they
take so you can use it again to produce future commercials without
having to pay them to come back.
-
Go to the production/editing session.
You're being charged by the hour, and it will take less time
to get the commercial the way you want it the first time than
to send it back for corrections.
-
You may also want to make a 10- or 15-second
spot to work into your schedule. They cost less to run and can
be a prudent way to add frequency into your schedule of 30-second
spots.
-
Think about producing a generic 30-second
spot with a five- or 10-second tag. A "tag" is a space
at the end that can be changed to accommodate special sales
or events without having to pay for a new commercial each time.
Even less expensive, let the video portion of the tag permanently
display your logo, address, phone number or Web address, and
just have the voice portion of the tag changed when you need
to.
- Discuss copy and music with your cable
representative, and let him or her write the script for you. Once
you approve a script, ask your rep to have it produced so you
can hear it well before your studio production time. Change anything
you don't like, whether it's the music, the voice or the way a
certain word is pronounced.
Now back your new commercial with a suitable
budget so people can actually see it.
