Commercial | TV | Cinema | Production | Costs

What can be Achieved with Commercials?

Advertising is a central topic in today's society and is present everywhere. Up to 45 billion euros are spent on advertising in Germany every year. Therefore Germany is ranked number 5 in the world's largest advertising revenues. Thus, the advertising secures the German media diversity. Above all, television is mainly financed by the short brand clips. Sport and cultural events are also made possible with the help of sponsoring.

Thus, the market offer is as diverse as ever, the awareness of the consumer has never been so popular. It follows that the consumer benefits from a comprehensive market overview and a fair price level. Today it is the case that the consumer determines the market. How advertising influences the behaviour of consumers is analysed with great interest by the Central Association of the German Advertising Industry ZAW e.V over and over again.

Successful Commercials – all Important Facts

There are some essential criteria a good TV commercial should stick to in order to stay in the mind of potential customers. An important factor is emotionality. Such spots are currently very trendy and they give the viewer a positive feeling for the brand. More and more companies also use drama besides humour to achieve this. Intelligence also plays a big part. A good commercial should not be flat and direct. Conversely the advertisers should think outside the box and create a commercial that communicates for example through metaphors but without being obtrusive. Some advertising that stays in people's minds can be pretty drastic. A commercial can provoke and thus achieve that consumers talk about the spot. That way the commercial becomes better known.

Not to be despised is the media effect on the distribution of commercials via the internet. Companies are starting to hire agencies to bring their commercials online so they spread viral across social networks and video sharing platforms. Basically, it can also be said that certain testimonials or actions almost always work in advertising. For example children, babies, animals, celebrities and sex.
Another element that distinguishes a good commercial is a carefully considered dramaturgy. Stories with unexpected twists and interesting highlights always remain in the audience's memory. At last, the advertisers should pay attention to the target groups. While it is not always possible to tailor a commercial to just one group, a precise target group definition should be pre-determined. That way the chance is higher that the spot is being well received. Finally, it must be ensured that the spot does not take too long. Especially in the social media, the average attention span has decreased significantly in recent years. Therefore a commercial should usually be within 30 to 60 seconds.

Productions and Costs Involved in a Commercial

At the beginning of production you need to look for an advertising agency or production company. In the first phase of the conception they will come up with several proposals for the realisation. We from Picmention work very closely with you, especially at this stage, to accommodate all your needs. Once you have chosen an idea the storyboard will be developed. After you accept the storyboard the exact costs are calculated. Now the actual producing begins: Casting, location search and organisation are on the agenda. If you value regionalism that is no problem! Our team also produces directly on site. Just contact us!
Now the actual shooting begins. Most of the shootings only last a few days, the technical and personnel effort, however, is similar to a feature film. The last step is the post production. The produced material is sighted, edited and corrected in colour. Afterwards, the clip is supplemented with sounds, music, speech and / or animation. We offer all these steps from a single source, thanks to our large team and permanent employees.

Depending on the concept, the costs and expenses can differ for producing a commercial. Usually we work with 5 to 15 employees within 1 to 3 days on your project. In addition there are the fees for acting, room rental and props. For TV and cinema commercials, you have to expect additional license costs, which can vary from provider to provider. A typical calculation basis, for example, providers for local broadcasting in cinema and TV 50%, of the production costs as additional license costs. For a nationwide broadcast it can be up to 100%.

In the following you can see the cost factors for a cinema or TV commercial.

• Pre-production: 2.500 - 5.000 Euro
• Production: 7.500 – 20.000 Euro
• Play: 1.000 – 5.000 Euro
• Post production: 7.500 – 15.000 Euro

Props, rentals and similar things are not included. That means that there may be additional costs.

How much does it Cost to Display a Commercial on TV?

In addition to the actual production costs, you must remember that even the delivery of your advertising will cost money. There is a big difference between public and private channels. Another cost factor is the broadcasting time in which the commercial should be broadcast. A clip that is broadcast on a private channel after 8pm costs around 60.000 euros. However, if an event such as a Formula 1 race is broadcast on a Sunday afternoon, the cost can be up to a 150,000 euros. In public channels the costs are much lower. That’s because public channels are only allowed to broadcast advertising until 8pm. It costs around 20.000 euros to broadcast a commercial on a public channel. The variant of a tandem commercial, which is continued after an interruption of another spot, costs about 1.5 times more. In addition to the broadcasting time, in which you can reach a different amount of people depending on the time, the position is significant. The first and last spot within the advertising block is usually remembered best by the viewers.

The Difference between TV and Cinema Commercials

The biggest difference between classic cinema spots and TV commercials is that movie clips are made visually more spectacular and with a strong dramaturgy. Humour and drama are far stronger factors for cinema than for a TV spot. In addition, the audience is often addressed directly in cinema. Age ratings (FSK = German voluntary self-regulation of the movie industry) should not be ignored in cinema advertising. For example in Germany, if a commercial has an age rating of 12, it may only be shown before films with FSK 12, 16, or without a youth release. Thus, it is relatively easy to reach a specific target group. It is also worth noting that advertising for alcohol or cigarettes may not be shown before 6pm. Of course we will comply with age regulations in other countries.

Cinema Advertising

The interesting and attractive feature of cinema advertising is that it can be broadcast regionally, nationally and also depending on the target group. It is even possible to organize the placement of advertising in every single cinema auditorium. Due to the environment and the big screen, cinema advertising makes it very easy to enhance the emotional character. The most common topics of cinema advertising are, besides alcohol and tobacco, especially drinks and sweets. But especially local companies benefit from being able to present their products in regional cinema. Another advantage of cinema advertising is that, in addition to the above-average recall value, it can be individually combined in a cross-media way.

How much does a Cinema Commercial Cost and how Expensive is it to Broadcast it?

Cinema advertising is usually cheaper than you would expect. This is mainly because the costs have dropped significantly in recent years. The main reason for this reduction is the digitisation. But in the end there is not a big difference between TV and cinema commercials. After the shoot, one-off costs will be incurred for a company that is responsible for the regional distribution of your cinema advertising. These costs are different for each cinema. Further costs, which only accrue once, are for the adjustment of the sound standard LEQ82. Whereby additional cost accrue for the adjustment per film and cinema auditorium. The cinema commercials must be controlled by the age check to get an age rating (e.g. FSK = German voluntary self-regulation of the movie industry).

The Webspot

In addition to television and cinema commercial webspots on the Internet become more and more important. Countless videos are watched and uploaded every day on the worldwide-used online video platform YouTube. You may have already noticed that short videos are being broadcasted before some videos. These can be aborted by the viewer after a few seconds. If the clips are not completely watched, the advertiser does not have to pay anything. He pays only if the spot is played for more than 30 seconds. With webspots, it is especially possible to advertise very cheap if the most important information is already mentioned after a few seconds. Overall, the broadcast of advertising clips prior to YouTube videos is cheaper than a broadcast on TV.