Help for anyone asking for a quote
Let’s say a business owner who needs a one-minute introductory video for their company sends requests for quotes to animation studios.
Often, though, the quotes they receive are very different. One quotes 500 euros for the clip, another 50,000… So how do you decide? Should you choose the cheapest supplier? Or rather go for a mid-priced animation? In fact, it is very difficult for the client to make a decision this way, because general quotes are usually not comparable with each other. Why? The point is that animation as such can be made up of many different elements, such as illustrations, a script, music, photos, video clips and the work of actors and models, not to mention different techniques. Getting a message across doesn’t always require meticulously precise animation with lots of details; at the same time, there are cases where it is precisely the wealth of detail and standing out that become important. A moving image can also be made with very simple means – even by filming an artist’s hand as it draws, and so showing how the whole picture comes into being. Simple means may be cheap, but an idea that properly supports such an execution needs working hours to grow. When to use what is something video marketing people love to talk about. So, back to the beginning: when requesting a quote, it is important to give as much information as possible about your goals, your needs and your possible budget. The overall size of the budget sketches out the boundaries of which elements, animation techniques and solutions to offer the client. To put together a good quote, we need above all the following information:
How special and original should the commercial be? Does the music need to be bought from a sound library or commissioned from a composer, should a professional actor’s voice be used… It is ideal to work with so-called real actors (who are generally also members of the Actors’ Union) and who can use their voice to add a layer full of meaning to the soundscape. At the same time, there are capable voice-over readers for commercials who may not bring out the meaning of the text quite so well when reading, but who are otherwise impeccable and do a proper job on a project with a smaller budget.
In which media channel, and for how long, is the clip to be shown? This determines for how long and on what terms we buy the rights to use the music or the actor’s work.
So far, for example, music prices for usage rights have been clearly in favour of online video compared with TV advertising.
The length of the clip. Is it a 10-second TV commercial (on television the client pays for every second broadcast) or, say, a 6-minute animated film to be shared online? Human attention has its limits. That is why, for a typical introductory video distributed online, the recommendation is to keep it to 1.5 minutes. That is enough time to calmly set out a problem, show the solution and recommend your product or service. The same elevator pitch rule applies to commercials, of course – say everything as quickly as possible – but situations vary, and sometimes it is precisely more interesting when the other person doesn’t fire away like a machine gun but settles into an engaging, deeper conversation. Interludes, a chapter structure, humorous little details, contrasts in movement and colour, or sound effects help to hold the attention of drowsier viewers.
Does the client already have visual material that can be used in the animation? Sometimes the client already has characters or mascots, an idea or a clear vision based on an example picture, film, piece of music or video. The same of course applies to logos and colours – it is much easier to start from an existing style guide.
All this may seem a little complicated at first glance. The client doesn’t actually need to find their way around all of it. It is enough to know to ask what is actually included under one line or another of the quote. For 5000 EUR, are you being offered just a video in which an artist’s hand draws a static picture, or an original script and complex animation? What usage licences does the animation studio provide with its work? If unlimited usage time and an unlimited geographical distribution area are promised verbally, does the service provider actually have the legal basis to promise all this to the client?
We, for our part, like to put together quotes that are as precise as possible, to help the client make the right decision.