Marketing Videos 101: How the Video Production Process Works

Every stunningly produced corporate video you’ve seen is the result of a meticulous video production process. Contrary to what some may believe, producing a corporate video isn’t as easy as hitting record on your camera. There’s a lengthy process that goes on behind the scenes to help bring a business’s vision to life. Of course, the exact process will vary a little depending on the style and type of content required. But generally, there’s a basic video production methodology that all professional producers tend to follow. 

At Kartoffel Films, we’ve got years of experience producing promotional videos for both well-established and growing businesses. We’ve learnt a lot along the way and developed an efficient process to deliver a range of high-quality videos. 

Curious as to how we get to our end result? We’ve detailed all our steps for a behind the scenes look into how the corporate video production process works. 

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But first things first:

You must kick off the video production process with a detailed creative brief. This brief should include your objectives, as well as information on your target audience, brand tone and personality, and key messages you want to land. You should also specify your budget, deadline and required deliverables.

Back to the process –– let’s start by breaking it down into stages. Video production is made up of three main stages: pre-production, production, and post-production, as illustrated in the video production process flow chart below:

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 Read on for a better idea of what to expect in each phase of the process: 

Pre-Production 

At Kartoffel Films, we kick off all video creation with a pre-production phase. Now, this could very well be seen as the most important stage of the process. It’s the planning stage and is all about preparing and organising everything for the impending production. 

During this period, we’ll look at the business’s brief in great detail and decide what is needed. We’ll organise ourselves ahead of time so the production phase can be focussed purely on content creation. 

Pre-production can include the following steps:

• Taking a closer look at the objectives and developing a strategy to meet them
• Breaking down the budget to make the best use of it and ensure everything is covered
• Picking a narrative that conveys the product or brand message in a way that will resonate with the target audience (and, most importantly, make sense!)
• Concepting and storyboarding
• Developing a timeline of the project 
• Developing a script if requested
• Selecting the talent if there are any characters in the story
• Scouting for the best locations to film in 
• Deciding the production team
• Lining up the equipment required to bring the vision to life.

Pre-production is the stage where most discussions happen around the project. This is the correct stage in the process for the producer to ask a business all the necessary questions. Your production team will likely hold an initial meeting to discuss your objectives for the video. Within this meeting, be prepared to answer any specific questions around the brief, including more details about your brand personality, tone of voice, and target audience. You don’t need to have all the answers, but the more information you can share about your business, the better.

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Next, your production company will hold a pre-production meeting, where details such as the timeline, narrative, and location specifics will be finalised. It is helpful to have a representative from your business at this meeting, even if it’s just over the phone. 

At the end of the pre-production phase, a professional company should have a finalised script and story, approved by all stakeholders. They should also have a schedule in place, with all locations booked and equipment ready. Time to start filming! 

Production 

Quite literally, this is when producers actually start to produce. The production phase involves filming all the necessary footage for your corporate video content. 

Now, if all the steps in the pre-production process have been followed, production itself should go off without a hitch. A professional video production company will spend this time capturing all the footage required to bring your brand or product story to life. 

The production phase can include the following: 

• Setting up all the sound, filming, and lighting equipment 
• Capturing all footage
• Conducting any interviews
• Recording any voice-overs
• Producing any animation

This is the stage where you can sit back and put your faith in your producer’s creative talent.

Post-Production 

Finally, we’ve got the post-production phase. This is when we edit together all the various parts we’ve filmed into one video. The video producer and editor work closely together to review footage and organise all elements into a coherent narrative. The final piece should convey the necessary brand and product messages while also telling an engaging story for your audience.

Post-production usually involves: 

• Reviewing all footage including any interviews
• Editing all the elements into one story 
• Selecting background music 
• Editing down to the required length
• Getting final approvals 

Post-production can be a lengthy part of the process that many businesses don’t expect. At Kartoffel Films, we’re always transparent with our timelines and will clarify how much editing time we’ll need at the pre-production stage. If you’re looking for a quicker turnaround, extra staff can be brought in to help speed up the editing process. 

A key part of the post-production process will be getting input and approval from your business. You’ll receive an edit of the video once it’s all been put together. Get all the key stakeholders to review and provide any changes to the producer in one go. Once these edits are made, you’ll get a final version of the video to approve. Keep in mind that multiple rounds of edits may not be available within your budget, so discuss this beforehand. 

Finally, your video will be delivered to you in the formats and specifications of the deliverables listed within the brief. You’ll also receive a full-length version that you can use for future edits.

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Every production company may adopt a slightly different video production methodology, but the phases listed above offer a glimpse into the process that most follow. 

For any business looking for corporate video production, it helps to have an understanding of what to expect once you’ve submitted your brief. Greater awareness of the production process will also help you understand when is best for you to provide your input, and when you can sit back and trust the producers to do their creative best.

At Kartoffel Films, we’ve worked on over 1000 video productions across a range of sectors. Take a look at our showreel for some examples. We pride ourselves on our ability to create engaging and compelling content for a diverse set of audiences. Get in touch to find out how we can help you with your production needs.