Plan Your Video Production Budget NOW!
Now’s the time. It’s only September, but businesses everywhere are already planning their budgets for 2014… so why not start thinking about your video production budget!?
It sounds so simple, but this is critically important. Companies often approach us without any idea of how much producing a video is going to cost. There’s nothing wrong with that. I don’t expect people to be experts on video costs. But, this often slows the process… even for motivated clients. Business leaders need to investigate that sort of thing as they’re planning the new years budget, not when they realize a video is needed urgently.
Video Production Budget? What budget?
In our experience, here’s what tends to happen. People at a company love the idea of producing a video. They work it into their marketing plan, they get excited about it, then they start getting quotes and whoa!… sticker shock.
In many cases, it’s not necessarily that video costs a lot. It’s just that it costs more than what someone was anticipating. The response we get from a lot of people is something like, “Oh, that’s what it costs? Okay, we’ll have to budget for that next year.”
So… here we are… planning budgets and discussing video. Consider this our friendly reminder.
How many $$$ should you plan for?
How much money you plan for your video is entirely up to you, and it depends on what exactly you want done. I know, I know… I hate the “it depends” answer too, but it’s true.
Do you just want a basic marketing video? A single person on-camera talking about what makes the business special? There are producers who can do that for a $1,000 or less.
How about something a little more detailed? Multiple interviews, multiple locations, more complex storytelling? You better plan for $4,000-$7,000.
Multiple videos with complex stories? A project that’s going to take five or six video shoots? Helicopters, fireworks!? $10,000-$20,000.
Hopefully, that gives you start. If you want a more specific and detailed estimate, feel free to touch base with us. We’re happy to help you plan!
–Tony Gnau
Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 11 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years.