Creative Q&A
Got some questions? Well we might just have the answers.
General
It’s a good idea to have specific goals in mind before you start a production. Knowing your target audience, the message and purpose of the project, your deadline for distribution, and your available budget will help you burst out of the gate with the most potential. Only have a few of these? We’re always happy to help you pin down the specifics when we talk.
Although we have expertise in a few niche industries, our clients are those who appreciate creative work and are not looking to cut corners. Are they budget-conscience, yes. Do they see our work as a commodity, no. We gladly serve anyone and everyone looking to market themselves creatively through any advertising medium, but who may lack the time or ability to do so. Be sure to check our website for the most recent work we’ve done and our current client list.
Absolutely! We’ve worked for clients in Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Pennsylvania, in addition to all over Illinois. OC does work as locally as in-studio and as far away as California. Typically, we can meet anywhere that’s within a day’s travel with minimal complexity. For any location further than that, though, arrangements can definitely be made!
What exactly do you get when you hire OC? You get a dynamic team who listens to your needs, examines your client base, and considers your budget to craft the perfect solution to fit your business or organization. This approach allows you the flexibility to get exactly what you need, from mailers to promotional videos to vehicle wraps. The experts at OC will walk you through each step of the process, managing your expectations and concerns while delivering on an award-winning promise of quality in everything we do. Whether your projects are simple or massive in scope, OC Creative will give you the care and service you expect from a leader in the field of creativity.
No job is worth rushing in to. It takes time and resources to craft a great product, and your project is no exception. We always take your concerns seriously, and the best interest of your company is of the utmost importance to us. We will take the time to make sure you are getting the results you deserve, delivered to the right audience, and with a message you can be proud of.
Branding
We consult with you on your overall brand, paying attention to your logo and website, your marketing materials and social media, and anything else that makes up your company’s current identity. Taking the elements that work for you and designing around them, we can tweak or recreate anything you need, from vehicle wraps to specific company style guides. Check out our branding page to see some of the clients we’ve worked with.
A brand is the sum of people’s perception of a company, so establishing a brand is like deciding what reputation you’d like to have. When you rebrand, you can custom tailor your image to attract new clients, different clients, or to strengthen a particular aspect of what you already offer. Think about brands you love—their logos, colors, and advertising campaigns all work together to reinforce your positive opinion of them. With a strongly established brand, a single well-designed logo can speak for everything you stand for.
Of course! We’re here for whatever you need. We can polish your logo, redesign your website, clean up your copy, and rebuild your brochures. If you’re already happy with an aspect of your branding, why change it? Instead, we’ll work with you to build on what you love and get rid of whatever isn’t working for you.
Yes. We love to partner with marketing departments and other agencies as their creative arm! We have the ability to provide video production start to finish or to supplement your marketing at specific points in the process. You’ve spent a lot of time and energy crafting your brand. We understand how important that is, and providing a message that fits that brand is our job and our passion.
Design
Absolutely! This is a team effort, and without your input we can’t be sure the final design will fit your organization’s flavor, mission, and values. OC always welcomes you to submit a list of comparable projects or examples you admire so we can establish a place to start. Generally, we work to incorporate your existing branding into any project we tackle.
At our first meeting, we’ll discuss with you what ideas you have for the project, helping you determine the audience, distribution, and purpose for the work. We’ll go through other examples you admire and make sure we have a firm foundation on which to build. After that, we generally rough out a few ideas until we find a direction we can agree is best, and we go from there, making sure to keep you in the loop throughout the process. You have the final say on design, and we’re not satisfied until you are satisfied.
Our official proposal typically accounts for two to three rounds of revisions to your project. These are accounted for in the original quote you will receive from us. We won’t be satisfied with a product until you are satisfied, so we’ll include you in every step of the process.
A master document that lays out how your brand’s elements can be used and how to develop new marketing materials is essential to keeping a solid brand presence. Over time, a company’s branding and marketing can become disjointed without a graphics standard manual to keep everything tidy. With a style guide, everything from logos to colors to fonts to formatting documents can be catalogued and laid out with simple guidelines for use. That way, anyone you bring on board knows how to effectively use the elements of your brand without a huge learning process.
You might have design programs and some free time, but a creative agency provides decades of experience in making organizations just like yours look good. Often, the logos and websites and marketing materials are the first point of contact a potential client has with your company. That first impression isn’t something you’ll ever get a chance to make again, so why not go with the pros?
Video
We break video production into pre-production, production, and post-production, with the emphasis on pre-production. When you’ve shot as many videos as we have, you learn that more planning, better structure, and more specific branding guidelines allow for a better final product, one that is more efficient in message and cost and can be done with minimal edits.
We start with what you are trying to accomplish with your video, and we work our way backward. When we are all clear about your target audience, the best ways to distribute your video, and that ever-important purpose, we lay the groundwork for a production that will really wow your audience.
We make all kinds of videos! In the past we have made television commercials, promotional videos, animations, social media videos, explainer videos, documentaries, and corporate videos, to name a few. Whatever you need, we’re on board for.
We are happy to scout a location and arrange for the video to be shot there. Conversely, we could have you consider shooting in-studio, which has several advantages over the unpredictability of a live location.
Yes. We love to partner with marketing departments and other agencies as their creative arm! We have the ability to provide video production start to finish or to supplement your marketing at specific points in the process. You’ve spent a lot of time and energy crafting your brand. We understand how important that is, and providing a message that fits that brand is our job and our passion.
That all depends on your location, the kind of video you want to shoot, and how long that will take. If you want interview footage, all it requires is a quiet space away from the public. If you want to film scenes in your beautiful front office, it will have to be optimized for video production and controlled like a set. If you want to do a promotional monster movie that takes place in your building, that might require a little more than a quiet afternoon and some lighting changes. We’ll be sure to address any concerns you have if you decide to shoot on location so there won’t be any surprises.
Having fully understood your brand, its messaging, and what you envision for your final product, it’s our recommendation that our creative team craft a draft of your script. You’ll be the final judge of how that script looks before we shoot your video, of course. But rest assured that our team will put together a script that makes you and your organization shine on camera!
We often provide a teleprompter on shoot day, but know that delivery will be more natural and effective if you’re familiar with your script.
Although we’re not opposed to using your employees in your video, in some cases it might be better to hire actors or volunteers who fit the situation or image you’re going for. We can fill in gaps in your cast or hire a whole crowd, depending on our shared vision for your project.
OC Creative employs professionals who are cross-trained on makeup and hair, so you don’t have to worry about saving face. Come pre-coiffed or as a blank slate. We’ll get you video-ready before you step in front of a camera, because nobody wants you to look bad on film!
We typically use industry resources for royalty-free music. Our goal is to find the best fit for the mood of your production, the tone of your message, and the attitude of your brand.
Typically our projects span from $2000 to $20,000 depending on production requirements, crew, length of video, gear, depth of editing, and animation needed. Each video we produce gets full attention from our entire in-house crew, including design staff, video editors, marketing professionals, and more!
Although it is important to be conscious of the viewer’s attention span, there are many techniques we include to ensure even a five minute video is watched to the end. The length of a video doesn’t determine its cost, necessarily. The content of the video is a more important factor in that determination. A video of any length is capable of being effective, provided that the content is compelling and well-crafted.
Our official proposal typically accounts for two to three rounds of revisions to your video. These are accounted for in the original quote you will receive from us. We won’t be satisfied with a production until you are satisfied, so we’ll include you in every step of the process.
When your video has been finalized and approved, we will prepare the final product for whatever format you require. The choices can range from 4K to 720p for play on your laptop, for projection at a presentation or banquet, for release on social media, for showing at a training seminar, and more. Whatever your chosen format, we’ve got you covered!
We’ve seen the best returns from television commercials, videos on social media, email newsletters, and web pages, all of which we can offer to design and manage. The launch of your video is the most important part of the process, and where to do that is the most important question you can ask yourself. As an ancient philosopher so succinctly put it, “if you make a great video and nobody sees it, is it still a great video?”
Measuring the effect of a video can be as easy as checking the built-in analytics of your chosen distribution channel. Google, Vimeo, and YouTube all have simple programs that track the reach your video has.
If it’s a return on investment (ROI) you’re after, that is a little more complicated. It all starts with setting S.M.A.R.T. goals, which are Specfic, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. With more concrete goals, it’s easier to see how effectively you’re reaching those goals. We have a series of blogs dedicated to this topic on our website that go into far more detail than we can cover here. Check them out!
Copyright of the final product is transitioned to you upon receipt of the final payment. As for the raw material, we’ll house it for a minimum of 3 years should you want us to use it in a future project. You never know—that drone footage of your property might be perfect for the beginning of next year’s fundraising video!