Corporate videos are a powerful tool for communicating brand messages, educating employees and clients, and promoting products and services.
Clients often ask me, “How much does a corporate video cost?” and that is akin to asking “How much does a car cost?” as there are many factors and elements that contribute to producing a professional corporate video.
While every video is unique, there are a number of common important elements and steps involved in creating a high-quality, professional corporate video, and they can be grouped together into three areas.
First: Pre-production
Pre-production involves careful planning and coordination, which includes defining the objectives of the video, identifying the target audience, and developing a clear message. This stage also covers scriptwriting, storyboarding, scheduling, development of a detailed scope and budget, as well as location scouts and permitting, script breakdowns, and shoot planning. It’s at this point that we also provide production insurance certificates to locations, studios, and clients so everyone involved has proof of the production company’s coverage.
This careful planning lays a solid groundwork for every subsequent phase, ultimately leading to a more successful and impactful corporate video.
Next: Production
This phase covers the actual filming of the videos and is often the largest expense. Production costs can include the following:
- For example, fees for the director, camera operators, sound technicians, lighting technicians, teleprompter operator, and actors.
- It also includes equipment rentals for professional filming equipment such as cameras, gimbals, drones, lighting, microphones, and location sound mixing equipment.
- Location fees are also part of the production costs. This includes studio space and power, as well as location fees if we are filming in a home or rented office space, for example.
- And logistics and administration. This can include catering for the crew, actors and clients, as well as travel expenses for crew if we are not filming locally.
The final stage: Post-production
Post-production is everything that happens after filming. This includes things like,
- Clip selection. This is the stage where the producer/director reviews the footage, including interviews and supporting footage to choose the best takes.
- It also includes editing, which is where we do the actual cutting of the footage, fine-tuning the storyline, and adding transitions and graphics such as titles, lower thirds, infographics, or animated sequences.
- Also part of post-production is sound. This includes music selection, licensing of that music, narration record, sound design, and audio mixing.
- And then there are revisions. At Sugar Media Inc., we gather input from our clients and include two rounds of revisions for each video, so clients have the opportunity to give feedback multiple times before the final version of the video is exported.
- And then there is final delivery. Once we have received approval of the video, the final high-res version is delivered to the clients for use.
- So, as you can see, there are many steps, and a great deal of planning and time that goes into the production of a professional corporate video. Understanding these steps helps businesses work with producers to create high-quality, impactful videos.
- If you’d like to talk to us about a corporate video project, send us an email.
