Starting a Video Production Business (page 2)

Now we come to the question that you might have thought would be the first on the list: can you produce professional -quality video? Sadly, you have a better chance to stay in business if you are a good business-person and a so-so videomaker than if you are a great videomaker but a poor business person.

Is your work at a professional level? To answer this question you have to step back and look at your videos with the eye of a customer. Would you pay to have a similar video produced? How much? Are there weak links in your production chain that would turn away customers (such as substandard audio from the lack of an external microphone)? What will it cost to upgrade your equipment?

You not only have to be able to create professional video, you have to satisfy the demands of the client and you have to do so on time and within budget.

Let's say you've done great work on your own videos. Can you do just as well on someone else's? To find out, it might be a good idea to do a couple of projects for demanding friends to see if you can adapt your creativity to their ideas. See if you can do this within a certain time frame. Give yourself two weeks. Can you meet the deadline? Business is all about deadlines, so you should get used to that as well.

Who will pay you to create videos? It depends on what sort of videos you plan to make. Will you be a wedding videographer? Will you be shooting and editing TV commercials for advertising agencies? Or will you create documentaries for public television? In each of these cases, you would be serving a different market. You can sell to as many markets as you want, and in some cases the markets might overlap, but you'll probably have better results if you focus your attention on one market at a time.

Before you start your business you should research the potential market. You may be the best video producer who ever lived, but if you can't find people who want to pay for your services, you're out of business.

Let's say you want to become a professional wedding videographer. Start with a quick check of the demographics in your area. If ninety percent of the population is of retirement age, then the market may be small for matrimonial service providers. Call a few shops that deal with weddings (florists, tuxedo- rental shops, wedding-gown shops) and find out how business has been and what they forecast for the coming year.

You must also consider the competition. Check the yellow pages in the phone book to see what sort of competition you'll be up against. If you live in a town with 20,000 people and there are already four wedding videographers, then you have a difficult market to break into. However, if there is only one listing in the yellow pages, the market may be ripe for a new supplier--you.

Another way to determine if you should make the jump to professional video is to get advice from folks who already work in video. Check to see if there are any professional organizations in your area such as the International Television Association (ITVA) or a chapter of the Advertising Federation. Find out if you can attend a meeting. If you can, do so and start picking brains.

You may find that there is already more work in your area than these people (your potential competition) can handle. Someone might even hire you to help out on existing jobs. As long as you don't try to steal a client away from your new boss, you can gain excellent experience this way.

On the other hand, you might hear that there isn't enough business for the companies that already work in your area. This could mean that either there really isn't enough work for everyone, or that the video producers haven't been satisfying their clients. How can you tell the difference? Ask a lot of questions and read between the lines.

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