The cost of a business video depends on what it needs to communicate, the planning and filming involved, and the finished content you need. A company introduction film, three customer testimonials and a collection of social videos are different briefs—even if some footage comes from the same shoot.
At Up Imagery, we quote commercial video as an agreed package. Planning time, filming days and editing all inform that price, alongside the intended use and lifespan of the content.
Start with your audience and message
The best starting point is a conversation about your audience.
When someone asks us for a website video, our first question is who they’re trying to reach.
Are prospective clients unfamiliar with the business? Do they understand the product? Is there a process that would make more sense if they could see it? Would hearing from the people behind the company help explain how it works?
Then we ask where that audience will encounter the video. That influences its format, structure and the footage we need to capture.
It also helps distinguish between two different jobs: a website banner that creates an immediate impression, and an About Us film that explains the business through interviews and a fuller story. Both can have a place, but the brief should say which you need.
Advance Build: the process and the people
For Advance Build, the brief centred on explaining their factory-built homes and the people behind the business.
Photographs of completed homes could show the finished product. The film needed to reveal more of the process: what happens inside the factory, how the homes are created, and how they prepare to leave for their sites.
The family business was another important part of the story. Including people helped show the decision-makers and the close involvement they have with clients.
That gave the filming a purpose. We needed the process and the people, alongside the homes themselves.
For a business planning its first film, this is a useful question: what do your customers need to understand that they rarely get to see?
Watch Advance Build — Who We Are. A film bringing together the factory-built home process and the people behind the family business.
What the quote accounts for
The finished video is the visible part of a project. The quote also accounts for the work needed to get there.
We also discuss the expected useful life of the content. A film introducing the company may have a different purpose and lifespan from a short campaign tied to a particular launch.
That helps us decide what is worth investing in and what might date quickly. It doesn’t mean a video comes with a guaranteed financial return.
Plan website films and social content together
One shoot can produce material for several marketing purposes. The useful crossover needs to be identified before filming.
A wide shot that explains a factory floor may lose its meaning when cropped vertically. An interview framed for a website film may need a different composition for a portrait edit.
When a brief calls for both, we typically use two people filming: one capturing landscape footage and the other portrait footage. This gives us more control over the material for each format.
We also plan what the shorter videos will actually say. Possibilities include:
A clear answer to a common customer question.
A useful industry tip.
A short explanation of a process.
A customer’s experience.
A detail from a current project that deserves its own story.
Supporting footage can connect those ideas to what the business does. A collection of useful social videos needs enough distinct material to support it; the number of files alone doesn’t tell you much.
Agree the scope and the project price
We use planning time and filming rates to build a quote, then present an agreed project price.
That gives the client a clear scope and budget. Within our contracted obligations, we absorb reasonable variations in the time the work takes.
A change to the brief is different. Adding interviews, locations or finished videos can create extra filming and editing work, so those changes need to be discussed and priced.
The quote should make the deliverables clear: how many videos, their approximate lengths, their formats and the revision allowance. That makes it easier to understand what you’re buying and compare proposals meaningfully.
Make a smaller budget work harder
With a limited budget, we prioritise good planning and a focused set of deliverables.
One confident spokesperson with a clear message may serve the film better than several interviews covering similar ground. Concentrating on the most useful locations and processes can also keep the shoot manageable.
Being decisive early makes a difference. Agree the audience, message and essential content before filming, then have the relevant decision-makers review the edit together.
We include one revision within the agreed scope. Further revisions or substantial changes can cost extra. A change of direction near completion may involve rebuilding the story, rather than making a few small adjustments.
The most useful way to simplify is to decide what the video must achieve first, then prioritise the work that supports it.
Delivery, captions and source footage
Tell us how you want to work with the content after delivery.
Some businesses need finished videos ready for their team to publish. Others want access to source footage so they can create further content themselves. For commercial video projects, source-footage delivery can be quoted separately, with the supplied material and permitted uses agreed in advance.
Caption requirements should also be included in the brief.
If you want a larger collection of social content, we can discuss an intensive filming schedule or a recurring arrangement. The appropriate number of videos depends on the ideas, access, interviews and editing involved.
What to include in your brief
A short brief is enough to begin. Include:
Your audience: who you want to reach.
Your message: what they should understand after watching.
Your channels: where the videos will appear.
Your deliverables: the main film, shorter edits, formats and caption requirements.
Your people and locations: who is available and what we can film.
Your timing: any launch date or deadline.
Your budget: a working range so we can suggest realistic priorities.
Your usage needs: which organisations will use the content and whether you want source footage.
Filming in Northland and across New Zealand
Up Imagery is based in Whangārei, works regularly throughout Northland and has completed projects in Auckland. We are available to travel across New Zealand, with direct travel expenses and staff travel time accounted for in the quote.
Discuss a commercial video project. We’ll help shape a brief and quote for the content you actually need.
