If You Want Your Marketing To Be Profitable…Read This!

Brandweek, July 10, 2000 by Brandan Nakamura

First, the expenses attributed to shooting and producing a video have decreased. Whereas many television commercials are shot on film (which then require expensive processing and editing expenses), digital video has provided a much less expensive and equally effective alternative. Digital video requires no film processing and is much less expensive to edit.

For large corporations, the costs of video production can be spread between many applications. For instance, the same footage used for a television campaign can be used for a video direct marketing campaign, as well as for: video placed on the Internet; video walls; looped, in-store, POP demonstration videos; CD-ROMs; sales presentations; conferences and trade shows; and kiosks. This being the scenario, production costs are spread out across several implementations. This allows a corporation to get more for its investment in a video production.

For smaller companies, even a mom and pop operation, digital video cameras can be used to shoot inexpensive video footage. Professional quality video is now accessible to the masses and small companies are well advised to take advantage of this phenomenon.

Editing video is also much less expensive today than it was 10 and 20 years ago. Inexpensive computer software now allows individuals to edit their own video on their desktop computers. How significant is this? Thirty years ago, corporations were dependent upon highly-skilled artisans to design their print materials for them utilizing complicated printing processes. Then came the desktop computer. Suddenly, with inexpensive computer software like Adobe PageMaker and QuarkXPress, individuals were suddenly able to design complicated, professional quality art all by themselves. It was a revolution then and the advent of inexpensive video editing software like Final Cut Pro is a revolution today. New technology has paved the way for a new generation of film and videomakers. Just point your camera, shoot, and edit. This was impossible 20 years ago. What was once impossible is now called a handicam.

Technological breakthroughs are also behind the revolution in manufacturing videotapes, DVDs and CD-ROMs. Vendors are now able to duplicate videotapes and mail them for as little as one dollar per tape. The cost of duplicating DVDs and CD-ROMs is close behind. Several manufacturers have developed feather-light videocassettes, weighing a fraction of a normal VHS videotape. One company,V-lite Video Corp., manufactures a videotape weighing an amazing 1.8 ounces.They have eight U.S. patents on the product, it's recyclable (environmentally friendly), is inexpensive, and costs just 20.4 cents to mail per unit in quantity (complete with a 4-color wraparound label that covers 50% of the videotape surface, shrink-wrapping and an address label). Another company, Shape Inc./Fuse Integrated Marketing, Inc., has a lightweight videotape that is available in any Pantone color your heart desires.

Innovative strides in video duplication have also made the turn-around time for duplication much faster than in previous years. A typical duplication company should be able to churn out at least 50,000 or more seven-minute videotapes in one day. This high-speed duplicating technology provides faster turn-around time at a lower per-unit cost.