How to Create Video Ads
Advertising delivers a message from companies who pay for the production of your favorite show or sporting event in exchange for broadcasting a short video of usually 30 to 60 seconds to a minute which promotes, supports and explains the product they sell in the consumer marketplace. While major commercials can cost upwards of $2 million to produce, inexpensive and efficient ways allow those starting off in commercial production to create a good video ad.
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Things You'll Need
- Copies of other advertisements like the one you are trying to create to view
- High-definition camera
- HD tape or digital cards (SMS or P2)
- Sound equipment
- Production materials (lights, crew, actors)
- Editing system
Instructions
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Come up with a concept for the advertisement. Look at past advertisements for the product or service and figure out what those ads are saying or conveying about that product or service. Who are they marketing to--what demographics? How can your video ad hit that demographic?
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Write down every aspect of the concept for the advertisement. Write a script, broken up into scenes, action and dialogue if there is any. Based on the script, draw storyboards that illustrate every scene like a comic book, a drawn still frame of each shot.
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Begin pre-production of the video ad. Secure locations where you can shoot with your camera, actors and crew. Cast the actors you want to play the specific roles in your video ad. Hire your crew--including a cameraman unless you want to run camera--to help produce the video ad efficiently. Find a camera on which to shoot your video ad. Will it be High Definition video or film? This varies how much money you will spend on the camera but also how good the video ad will look. Film is the highest quality but is also incredibly expensive. For budgetary purposes, High Definition video is probably the way to go.
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Begin production on the video ad. Shoot all the storyboard scenes with your crew and actors on the secured locations.
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Edit your video ad on an editing system such as iMovie, Avid or Final Cut Pro. This entails taking all the shots you shot from the storyboards you drew and putting them in the order of your video ad. These are rather complex editing programs but rudimentary things can be figured out by non-editors on iMovie and Final Cut Pro. However, finding or hiring an editor would be the best idea if the budget allows for it.
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Tips & Warnings
The most important thing to have locked down is good creative, meaning the concept behind the ad should be rock solid before you ever start production. That's the area the most time should be spent getting right, making sure absolutely the right message is coming across---but also that the viewer is going to pay attention to the video ad and remember it's message, so the advertisement actually works.
Any kind of media production can be tricky and have pitfalls. If you're shooting the video ad on location, make sure you have proper permits or insurance for anyone working with you and that you are following all labor ad union guidelines. Otherwise you could be fined, which could ruin your video ad.
Resources
- Photo Credit http://www.aristos.org/aris-04/rescuing.htm
