Production Companies Ireland – What to ask.

Most companies will end up working with a video production company in their lifetime. Considering video is such a popular medium for conveying a message, whether for business or other reasons, picking the right production company is vital. So it’s time to take a look at a few factors to take into consideration before you choose a production company to work with.

1. Their Portfolio

Every good production company will have a selection of their work available for the public to see. Some display all their videos on their website, while others prefer to use YouTube or Vimeo. Either way, the first thing you’ll want to do before making a decision is see the company’s work with your own eyes. At first, just check for basic production values and knowledge of their craft.

2. Company Culture

A company’s culture will play a big role in how they approach projects. Depending on the tone of your project, this will become very important. Are you looking for a young, innovative company to give you a video that’s outside the box? Or perhaps you want something more traditional and business-minded? Figure out what you’re looking for, then find a company who can match it!

3. Their Expertise

This should be obvious, but you need to make sure the company you find can actually do what you ask of them. For example, don’t go to a company looking for an animated video if that company has never produced animated videos, no matter how good their other videos look!

4. Their Client List

Production companies don’t necessarily have to work with big clients to be good at what they do. In fact, there are companies that specialise in working with smaller, independent clients. But what you should do is research the clients, and make sure that the company did actually produce video content for them…You’d be surprised how many companies embellish their client list!

5. Audio

When you’re researching production companies, don’t just watch. Listen as well. Whether you need a voiceover artist or music for your video, audio is one of the most important aspects of a video. If audio doesn’t match the visual imagery or the tone of the video, it can ruin the entire experience. Be sure that the production company has access to music or a competent voiceover artist that will suit your project.

6. Budget Experience

In any form of media, handling the budget is a very important part of the project. Depending on your budget, you will have to find a company that has experience with that budget range. If you’re going for a huge, ambitious, big-budget video, you won’t go for a company that specialises in smaller, independent projects.

7. Pricing

So if you’ve narrowed your choice down to a few companies, a price enquiry is the next step. Financially, what are you hoping to get out of this project? Is value for money important? Or is a hefty price tag worth it if you know the company can deliver something special?  

8. Understanding

This might be the most important step of all – does the company understand what you want? Budgets and production values don’t matter if the production company doesn’t know what you’re trying to achieve with this video, and what message you’re trying to convey.

9. Communication

If you’re working with a video production company, it’s important that their lines of communication, whether over the phone or by email, are always open. Chances are, you might want something changed, or maybe you forgot a detail you want to see in the video. Perhaps you just want to see how things are going? Either way, it’s important to know that the company will answer.

10. Aftercare

Finally, what about when the video is delivered? It’s rare that a video will be perfect on its first draft. Are the production company willing and able to make some alterations after the project has been delivered? Admittedly, make changes at the end is not ideal, but it’s just a phase of life in media.

So there you go – 10 things you should research before hiring a video production company. While these aren’t all the factors you should take into consideration, they’ll certainly give you a basis to help you make an informed decision. Good luck with your search!