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How do you set a Budget for your Video Marketing 

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How do you set a Budget for your Video Marketing 

Videos are quickly catching on as the most shareable and attention-catching type of content. Businesses have seized the opportunity, incorporating videos into their marketing campaigns and gaining more views and customers in the process. 

However, compared to blog posts or images, it takes more resources to produce a single video. An important consideration here is the cost—how much are you going to spend? Luckily, video production has become more accessible, and you can adapt it to whatever your business’s budget is. 

A video’s cost can range from zero to as much as you can pay. There are a lot of factors involved, so the first thing you want to do is gain clarity by having a definitive video strategy. 

What’s Your Expected Outcome?  

Think about your planned video from a business perspective. What concrete outcome do you hope the video will achieve, and what ROI (return of investment) are you aiming for? 

Once you have a definite anticipated outcome, you can decide on what kind of video you’ll be doing. Your creativity is the limit—how-to videos, testimonials, event streaming, and webinars are some popular examples. Testimonials, which are straightforward to shoot, obviously cost less than full-blown advertisements with actors.   

Outsourcing vs. In-House

You can outsource to freelancers or video production agencies, shoulder it all in-house, or—the most common option—do a mixture of both. 

Outsourcing can be extremely convenient because you’ll be working with specialists who are knowledgeable about production and who can guide you through the process. If video quality is a high priority, then this is the recommended route. The downside is the cost. Production can run from £500 to £25,000, but on average, for straightforward videos lasting a few minutes, you’re looking at £1,500 to £5,000. 

Alternatively, you can go in-house. Simple videos like livestreams and interviews where visual quality isn’t as much of a concern can be handled by the marketing or design team. You might also consider hiring a videographer if you’ll be publishing videos regularly. The average salary for a videographer in the UK is around £23,657 per year. 

Production Quality Levels 

There are five levels of quality for video production, correlating closely with your content type:  

DIY

Choosing DIY means that your in-house team will be doing all of the work. Even without full-blown equipment such as lighting kits, videos can still be filmed using decent-quality cameras or high-end phones.  

  • Example: Live streams shown on social media  
  • Minimum Cost: Free 

Semi-Professional

Production will be handled by at least one videographer who’s comfortable with using different cameras and who knows the nuances of video editing. The result is a higher-quality video, often involving only a few people and equipment.

  • Example: Live events 
  • Minimum Cost: £500  

Professional 

There will be a lot more people and equipment involved here. Expect to have several people devoted to specific tasks, extensive post-processing, options to have animation, and a full-blown shooting setup. 

  • Example: Recruitment video
  • Minimum Cost: £1,500  

Premium 

Everything that goes into your video production will be top-notch, from talented videographers to cutting-edge cameras and cinematic visuals. The end video will be impactful, capturing audience attention and even bringing your brand to the limelight.   

  • Example: Company overview video
  • Minimum Cost: £4,000  

Hollywood 

Businesses don’t usually aim for this because of the hefty cost. In any case, this is video production at its highest level. Videos here can be easily featured on TV, perhaps drawing on complex animations or featuring well popular figures.  

  • Example: TV advertisement
  • Minimum Cost: £50,000  

Other Factors                                                                           

The following additional factors will have a huge influence on the cost: 

Time 

The more hours spent on the video, from scripting to shooting and editing, the more detailed the video will be, and it’s likely that the production quality will be better. On the other hand, each extra day of work will cost you more. A safe timeframe for video projects would be a few to several months.  

People

There are fees associated with each person involved, such as actors, videographers, or production agencies. Their respective skill levels also determine the cost. If you’re looking to save more, you can delegate some tasks to existing employees, such as scriptwriting to the marketing team.  

Equipment

Video production inevitably requires different kinds of equipment, including cameras and video editing software as well as costumes and props. Rather than purchasing these yourself, you can rent them or collaborate with freelancers and agencies so they can bring their own instead.

 You should also consider the locations where you’ll be shooting, royalties for songs, and the use of special effects or motion graphics, to name a few.   

With so many factors to consider and services being offered at different prices, you have total flexibility in deciding the final cost. A rule of thumb is the higher the production quality, the more expensive it will be. Still, even though excellent production quality can be a game-changer, the heart of your video lies in the script, and you can pull off a successful video even on a limited budget with the right storytelling. At the end of the day, the video should reflect your brand identity well and resonate with your target audience.

I am the founder of Startup Today. I am the main writer and have put in many hours of work into creating this blog. If you want to find out more about me then lets get in contact.

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