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7 Things Clients Look For in a Video Production Company

By Jourdan Aldredge

Published: May 15, 2019 Last Updated: May 15, 2019

Land new clients and earn their trust by making sure your video production company adheres to these 7 simple (yet crucial) practices.

If you’re already in the video production industry, then you know there’s nothing more important than a client pitch meeting. It’s the most essential part of the business, and it’s the biggest difference between small-time operations and bigger video production companies.

And while your pitch will always be the most important part of landing new clients, there are some very concrete, helpful, and even surprisingly simple things that all clients look for when considering different video production companies.

1. Brand Reputation

Image via A Lot Of People.

To begin with, ask yourself Have your prospective clients heard of you already? Do they know how great your company is and what wonderful projects you produce? If not, why not?

Building a strong brand reputation happens two ways. One, you do solid work for solid clients, delivering the goods time and time again for years. And two, you get out there and tell people — networking, advertising, marketing, and showcasing your biggest and most-accomplished projects. Look into submitting projects for awards. Find press and publicity. Word of mouth is always great, but to really push your company forward, you’ll need to find as many solid ways as possible to get your name out there.

2. Similar Work

And while brand reputation might get the clients to give you the time of day, by far the most important element on this list has to be the ability to showcase similar work. Ideally, if you’re pitching a car commercial (for example), you want to showcase car commercials you shot in the past.

Pro tip: If you don’t have similar projects to showcase, try your best to re-frame your other projects so they share some similar aspects to the project you’re pitching.

3. Real Team, Real People

7 Things Clients Look For in a Video Production Company — Real People

Image via Diego Cervo.

Having worked professionally on both sides of this industry, I can tell you that there is absolute value in simply being a real person in the process. Clients look for people they can connect with, solve problems with, and ultimately succeed with. So, if a company is just handing off edits to sub-contractors, this quickly becomes apparent, and you lose that genuine connection.

4. Solid Point of Contact

Similarly, when a client is going to sign on for a project — especially when it’s more than a one-off video or something with multiple deliverables and phases — they want to know exactly who their point of contact will be — and when and where to reach them at all hours of the day.

This doesn’t mean you can’t set boundaries. You should. Regular business hours are important. But if you can provide a real person, one who can consistently respond in a timely manner with accurate, up-to-date information and support, your clients will sleep easier at night and be more willing to come back again.

5. Clear, Professional, and Upfront Finances

Having worked with companies and clients both big and small, I can tell you that the one thing that will always remain the same is the need for clear, concise, and upfront finances. This will benefit both parties in the long run. Clients will always appreciate clear and accurate quotes for how much a project will cost.

It’s even better if you can line-item costs so clients can see exactly where their money will be going and why. The last thing you want to do is change things up and ask for more money later. Clients hate that.

6. Results-Driven Attitude

7 Things Clients Look For in a Video Production Company — Results-Driven Attitude

Image via TZIDO SUN.

When clients reach out to video production companies, they’re not looking for a robotic, manufactured product. They’re looking for a creative partner or a marketing consultant. If you can spend the time to really work with your client to understand their needs, and what problem they’re trying to solve, not only can you provide a greater product, you can also help them with their bottom line — which will always win you more work in the future.

7. The Little Perks

And finally, clients appreciate the little things. You’d be surprised by the seemingly insignificant gestures that some clients will say won them over to sign a contract. Whether it’s someone greeting them at the door with a smile, a small gift, or a nice followup email. It never hurts to make the effort to show clients you appreciate them and that their business actually means something to you and your company.

Cover image by FrimuFilms.

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