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Perhaps you think that's a dumb question. The perception is that we do commercials to make big money. The reality is quite different.
When people think about commercials, they think about the big national spots that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to produce. On the other hand, the small business owner who wishes to advertise on local air or cable thinks much differently. He usually wants to spend as much of his budget on airtime as possible. Often, he views production costs as an unfortunate nuisance he wants to minimize.
This situation places commercial production under considerable pressure. Small budgets limit what can be done. At the same time, the inexpensive local commercial must compete with much more expensive ones in order to be noticed. Finally, commercials often need to be made under very tight deadlines to meet airdates for a weekend sale, etc.
There's an old saying among video producers, "You want it good, you want it fast, you want it cheap. Pick any two." More than any other type of video project we do, commercials need all three. Why deal with all these challenges when the budget is almost always small?
We make commercials for the most of the same reasons the auto manufacturers go racing. Commercials increase our visibility. Potential clients have already seen our work on TV, making it easier for us to sell our services. Most importantly, commercials sharpen our skills with lighting, directing talent, graphics, effects, audio, editing, etc. All of our clients benefit with increased production value and efficiency.
Let's return to the "good, fast, cheap" slogan for a moment. I have never subscribed to it. Our question is "Why not try to do all three?" True, it is not always possible, but the person who tries their best will almost always accomplish more. Finally, if you can do all three, why not? The challenge of commercials makes it easier for us to deliver all three.
Why do we do commercials? They are an important part of our continuous effort to provide all our clients with the most production value for each dollar spent.
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