How To Make TV Commercials: a blog about how to make television commercials from the perspective of a brand marketer.
I have worked for over 20 years in the advertising and media industry. During that time I have been involved in making thousands of ads (or commercials if you prefer) and spent millions of dollars on television advertising. This blog is a culmination of those experiences, in which I share what I have learned on how to make tv commercials that are effective at delivering results.
The information presented here is just one point of view and I will do my best to keep it updated with current trends. Please feel free to leave comments or ask questions so that we can learn together how to make better tv commercials.
How To Make TV Commercials: a blog about how to make television commercials from the perspective of a brand marketer.
In order to achieve a sufficiently wide reach, TV campaigns are often run on national media. On most channels, this means that you will have to purchase several spots in each daypart. And since the best time to reach consumers is during prime time (between 19h and 22h), this is also the most expensive time.
As an alternative, some marketers opt for regional media because they are cheaper and their reach can be similar (if not better) than national media. In Belgium, there is one such channel called Vitaya, which broadcasts throughout Flanders. It has a cost per rating point (CPRP) of 0.30 euro versus 1 euro for prime time on the public broadcasters.
The downside is that there are not that many options when it comes to regional media. There are few channels available and they tend to have niche audiences (elderly, kids or women). As such, they may not be able to deliver your target audience. Another downside is that vitaya only broadcasts during the day and at night it is replaced by other channels with different audiences and different programming.
Would you like to work in television? Do you have an idea for a TV show, but don’t know where to begin?
Start with this blog. You’ll learn how to take an idea and turn it into a TV show or TV commercial. You’ll get tips on writing a script, directing actors, working with film crew and editing the footage. You’ll also find out how the TV industry works and what kind of jobs are available.
This blog was started by Bob Woolfson, who works as a brand marketing consultant. He has created TV ads for companies like BT, Sony, Toshiba and Virgin Atlantic. He has also launched award winning campaigns for several charities including Amnesty International, Barnardo’s and Oxfam.
For the past five years, I have been a brand manager at a Fortune 500 company. In that role, I have overseen the development and execution of numerous television commercials for national brands. Now, I would like to share my experiences with you. Over the next few weeks, I plan to go in-depth into the process of creating a television commercial from beginning to end, drawing on my experience with recent projects as well as case studies from other companies.
I’m going to start off this series by discussing one of the most fundamental aspects of any successful television commercial: casting an actor who can embody your brand’s target consumer…
When I was in business school, I asked a professor whether I should take a job in brand marketing or media buying. He said that it’s tough for a brand marketer to get a job in media buying because you have to have bought every kind of media and he said that it’s tough for a media buyer to get a brand marketing job because you have to have marketed every category of product.
His point was that people who work on the “buying side” tend to specialize in one area of media (like TV) and people who work on the “selling side” tend to specialize in one category of product (like beer or toothpaste).
So, if you want to be able to buy or sell any type of advertising, you need to know how both sides work. This is why it helps for smart producers and directors (i.e., people who make commercials) to understand the business side of advertising.
How to make a television commercial. How to make a TV commercial. How to make a 30 second commercial.
It seems that everyone wants to know how to make TV commercials these days. They want to know how to shoot, edit, and score their own ad spots; they want to know how the business works; they want some tips on writing copy and producing the spot. All of which is fine, but what are you going to do with all of this? Are you going to sell your spot as an infomercial? Are you going to run it on cable?
I’m assuming that you’re not just doing this for fun, but rather are looking for a way to get your product or service in front of the largest possible audience at the lowest possible cost. If that’s your goal, then there’s really only one way to go about it: use a professional production company. Sure, you can shoot it yourself–but if you don’t have any experience shooting ads, why would you want to run the risk of sabotaging your product or service with an amateurish presentation?
The first thing anyone should know when attempting to figure out how to make a commercial is where they’re going to put it. And until you have a plan in place for getting
The commercial begins with a shot of an attractive woman in an evening gown entering what looks like a luxury hotel suite. She is holding a Starbucks cup. There are two men in the room, but as she enters she only sees one of them. This man is seated on the couch with his back to her, and as she walks into the room he rises to greet her. He turns around — and it’s not the man she was expecting to see. She looks surprised and delighted.
He says something along the lines of “I wanted to surprise you.” She replies “You did!” They walk towards each other, embrace and kiss passionately. The word “Starbucks” appears on the screen, and then we see their silhouettes in the window behind them.
This commercial starts with a sexy premise: the audience is thinking “is this an affair?” And then it turns into a non-sexy commercial for coffee. I thought it was kind of brilliant, actually; they took an idea that would normally be used to sell perfume or beer or cars and used it instead to sell coffee! Why not? But then I looked at some blogs where people go crazy about commercials, and I discovered that this commercial had been universally hated. Which made me wonder: why?
