Electronic Retailer - May 2012 - 33

from your producer’s music library and pay the much more affordable license fee rather than paying for an original music score.

shopping appearances and international rights.

6. About those Testimonials …
Nothing sells like a sincerely satisfied user. Real people in real situations sell products, but it’s very time consuming to develop or gather a group that is willing to endorse your product on camera. Come to the negotiating table with those testimonials and save the producer the labor intensive task of searching for them and you’ve saved a bundle. But don’t scrimp on unretouched “before” and “after” shots. They are the magic moments in any beauty or fitness infomercial and worth their weight in gold. Testimonials are the lifeblood of the infomercials. If you spend the time and money to develop those satisfied users before you select a producer, the process is much less costly and the producer can make the final selections.

4. Set Building is So Yesterday.
Why buy when you can rent a house? Find an attractively decorated home with large rooms and a mellow homeowner and for a few hundred dollars you can demonstrate most household items efficiently and affordably – except in the state of California where each homeowner believes his bungalow should command a $5,000 location fee. While spacious bathrooms and kitchens can be rare animals, a few well-placed ads in libraries, supermarkets and Craigslist can yield a set that rivals any Hollywood sound stage.

split, you can easily edit a spot with an alternate ending. Voiceovers should be recorded with many different price points so that you can retest later without re-recording expensive audio artists in expensive audio recording studios. Producers who constantly work with crews and studios, actors and voiceover artists can negotiate the best rates.

9. Shorten the Approvals Process.
Again, thanks to the wonders of technology, the entire process of editing can be streamlined with a radically shortened timeline. Now, instead of the “back and forth” between client and producer for approvals, the client can virtually attend the edit session in real time via Skype or iChat. The savings in time and travel is formidable, and it helps accommodate long-distance clients. One of the best ways to reach consensus is to create detailed storyboards in advance of a shoot. Although you provide clients with a script or blueprint, it’s always an eye opener to realize how people interpret “the visuals” differently. It helps with talent selection, prop selection, location and graphic elements.

5. Save Money by NOT Using Friends and Family.
Your niece is adorable, but her Mom does not want to take her out of school until 4 p.m. the day of the shoot resulting in overtime. Your sister believes she should be paid half the profits for her cameo appearance. Your daughter does a “deer in the headlights” freeze on camera and wastes an expensive hour of shooting time, and friends and family cannot endorse your product legally. In short, leave casting to the professionals. It really pays to negotiate all terms and conditions before you shoot. You can hire an actor to appear in just one scene for your direct response commercial, but, today more than ever, chances are that actor will appear in the web spot, on the package and possibly in a print ad. Negotiate all rights up front, and you won’t be held hostage for additional monies when you have a successful spot. Unless you are hiring a bona fide celebrity, the cost of talent should not break the bank. Think long and hard before you do sign a celebrity – the cost can outweigh the return on investment if the celebrity is not the ideal representative for the product. Hire the best demonstrator/host available and reward his performance with a bonus based on sales. Remember to negotiate all rights to TV, home

7. Ask the “Man on the Street.”
Go to your local mall, indoor or outdoor, or set up a camera and microphone on a busy “Main Street” or coffee shop (make sure you acquire permits or permission from the merchants) and try your products out on passersby or shoppers. The genuine responses from firsttime users will provide authenticity. Just be certain to acquire releases and use the proper disclaimers in the commercials. It helps to bring a few production assistants to wrangle the shoppers. Signage, balloons and a make-up artist should create the necessary buzz to attract a variety of curious demonstrators.

10. Hire an Experienced Producer Who Works with Other Experienced Professionals in DRTV.
Any commercial production can only perform for you if you have the right media placement, the right Web presence, the right telemarketing service and t he r ig ht f u l f i l l ment compa ny. Remember, if the phone isn’t answered or the URL isn’t “live” when you air your spots, you will not get a refund. Add up the media money spent and the cost of the commercial that no one viewed. There will be no ROI and that’s an expensive commercial! Collette Liantonio is president of Concepts TV Productions, which she launched in 1983, and a member of the Electronic Retailer Magazine Advisory Board. She has been recognized as “One of the 25 Most Influential People in DRTV,” and has served on the Electronic Retailing Association’s Board of Directors. 33

8. Prepare Properly for “Tweaking.”
Some of the most successful spots require a “tweak” or two. Maybe it’s just a price point change, or maybe it’s a new premium or giveaway at the end of the spot, but those changes can be very costly if not prepared for early on – as in, before you shoot and before you record the voiceover. To save money on post-production, plan to shoot different product configurations and bonus items at the time of the initial shoot. Therefore, if you want to test an “A-B”

May 2012 | electronicRETAILER

Electronic Retailer - May 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Electronic Retailer - May 2012