HOW TO BID A VIDEO PRODUCTION

I’ve found this to be one of the hardest parts of video production for Across the Bridge Productions. We are a small team and can be everything to run and gun to full-on Brand Spot. The cost isn’t even remotely the same. As the owner of ATB Productions, I got my experience mainly in New York working on Commercials like Apple and Verizon for some of the biggest production companies in the city, Radical Media, Hungry Man, Park Pictures, RSA on ads with Agencies like Ogilvy and BBDO.

The way these sets were run was efficient, exacting, and expensive. Easily in the millions of dollars, so I also how something as simple as an interview could cost as much as a house in Baltimore. I also saw the value in that money, in order to be exact and look like a commercial, it needs to be exact. Moving to the Maryland market, I rarely saw large budgets for productions I was working on and learned how to do everything with next to nothing. I also see the value of that.

The goal is to align expectations and effectiveness. The tricky part is “Bid this Job out” without context on what level are we trying to hit and at what value to do you see that level. You can shoot an effective commercial on an iPhone if it fits the creative. That same exact creative shot with an Alexa 35 and full crew also could fit the creative, but not the budget.

References are great. Do you want it in this vain or this? However, finding good references can be tough and also lead to false promises. Are they getting the same “reference” as you? I’ve had a situation where we presented V1 and they were like “Why didn’t it have “X” like the reference?” Well., you are a Bank and that was for a Networking company, but I was more referencing pace, tone, composition, and not the literal visual. But you do you.

Be Honest. People are often scared of numbers. But the great thing about numbers is they are real. Cost + Profit. Videos are expensive to make unless you can make them yourself. Like we all know people who can make multiple videos a day with varying levels of success, but still get the message out. So, it’s about knowing the value of the product and creating products that if done well, make a difference. It’s easier to charge what you deserve when it’s deserving.

Lastly, to be honest. Artificial Intelligence. Get on ChatGPT and bid out the job on it. Name the Client, the Desired Result, the Market level, and the deliverables. This basis tends to be pretty accurate. It’s not the end all be all, but it’s a good CONTROL for how to talk to clients and have a footing. If you ask for a budget breakdown, you’ll get one, this is good to present to the Client “Eliminate any of these items that aren’t necessary for this job”. They get to “cut” it down to their own price, often revealing why we’re going to pay for the video.

In the end, budgeting is hard and I’m still learning.