Video is one of the most important aspects of your marketing strategy. As a business owner or manager, you know that your company cannot afford to miss out on the massive amount of revenue that you can receive from your video emails and online videos that you post on your page or blog.
You can’t afford to miss out on the 65% of viewers who purchase a product immediately after viewing a video.
And you definitely cannot afford to miss out on the estimated 100 million users who access some type of video every day.
So you know you need video… but what does it cost?
There are varying costs regarding video production and it all depends on who you ask.
DIY Video
The easiest way to keep control over your projects is to do it yourself. By creating your own video, getting your friends to step and do some “talking head” video or some local high school actors, you can save a substantial amount of money in the long run. However, it can be costly upfront.
If you plan to do video yourself, at the very least, you will need the following things.
- HD video camera– An HD video camera is the most basic piece of equipment you’ll need to get started if you do your own video production projects. You will want to shop around a bit and compare prices. A professional type camera can cost anywhere from $3000 to $30,000. Of course, you’re not trying to be the next Spielberg or Hitchcock. But you still need to invest in a high-quality camera in order to achieve the4 best results.
- HD editing software (professional quality)– In addition to an HD video camera, you’ll also need high definition video editing software for your computer. Video is produced on the computer nowadays. If you try to produce it with the old standard definition editors, you’ll look like a cave man that just discovered fire and doesn’t know how to use it. Make sure and get a good editing program that can handle the demands of HD video.
- Audio sound mixing software– One of the components of a good video production setup that is often overlooked is a sound production system. This does not have to be extremely elaborate. It may include digital external mixers and recorders such as a Tascam digital multi-track recorder or recording unit. But it needs to be capable of rendering to mp3s that can be used on the computer. That’s because you will have to mix it down to an mp3 to save for your video tracks when you are finished.
- A good studio microphone for audio mixovers– You’ll also need a good studio microsphone for recording narrations and voiceovers. This can cost from $50-$1000 or more. You must also be aware of the types of inputs and how your sound card will handle it and process the sound. It may be necessary to install a new sound card in your computer to help with the quality.
- Video conversion software-Finally, you will need some type of video conversion software that will allow you to convert from one form to another. Generally, an .mp4 is feasible in most conditions but different people have various types of devices and players. So you may need to offer several formats to accommodate this.
Outsource it
Another option is to find a local video production company or freelance video producer to do it for you. Their costs range generally from $50 for a short video clip to $500 or more. Some of these production people charge by the hour and some per project. Be careful with contractors that charge by the hour and be sure to get a specific amount of time they think it will take to complete the job.
Remember, however, that this is hard to predict and you may get a bill that is much more in the end than you expected. An ethical videographer will keep you posted along the way if they see that the job is running into more money than they originally quoted you.
Hire Professionals
To be honest, the best way to get your money’s worth as a business and to maximize your return is to hire a professional company to do it. If you do this, you are not out the cost of the equipment that you would be if you were to try to invest in hardware and software to do the job yourself.
The DIY method is only recommended for business owners who either have some experience with video production or who have some in-house staff who can do it. Even then, though, you are probably going to be limited on what you can do.
Not everyone on your staff has a full-house production business on hand. They are too busy focusing on their jobs, as they should be.
If you hire an outside professional agency, you should look for the following characteristics to make sure you’re getting the most for your money:
- HD professional quality results
- Variety of video formats and styles
- Animation capabilities
- File saving and conversion tools
- Must be usable on your platform
First and foremost, you need and must demand professional results. If not, then you may as well do it yourself. High-definition is what people have come to expect these days and with good reason. All of the modern mobile players and smart devices are capable of playing full HD or at least 720p quality. Users can change the settings of how your content is delivered on YouTube, for example, by changing the resolution to 380i or some other setting. However, they may not always do this and it should always be up to you to make sure it’s rendered to the best quality that will play on various portable devices.
It’s difficult to know what type of player your users will use. That’s why you need to be able to offer a variety of formats and style and optimize it for mobile devices. The production part is easy when you think about what else is involved in optimizing your content to make sure it serves the greatest number of users.
This is why you need conversion tools as well as other equipment to do the job right.
When you hire a professional video production team such as AnimatedVideo.com, you don’t have to worry about any of this. We can produce your video in any form you want, including but not limited to:
- Animated videos with sound synchronized with the video
- Whiteboard videos
- Talking head with animation
- Presentation style videos
We know the video business and we love to create custom animations for businesses. So, if you have more to do that set up an animation and video production studio, contact us.
We can take the guesswork out of the process and provide you with the best results so that you can get on with your business.
Because, if you have time to produce the kind of video we’re talking about that your customers demand, perhaps you should be in the video business.
All kidding aside, contact us for a free estimate. We’ll custom-design an animated video you’ll be proud of and you can get back to business.
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