It’s clear that videos are a consumer’s favorite medium for shopping products and services, and that churning out relevant, high-quality video content is your best bet to compete for their attention. Internal teams are easily overwhelmed trying to juggle all the pieces of new campaign strategies, and outside help could be just the lifeline you need.
The path you take to creating video content depends on four factors: the needs of your company, the goals of your campaigns, the level of growth you want to see, and how quickly you want to see it. But with such an oversaturated market of options, deciding between a production studio or a creative agency for additional support can be next to impossible. A production studio gets great results, but so can a creative agency, with the right resources and steps. So how can you choose?
If you’ve been toying with the idea of hiring a video production studio or agency to simplify your workflow and generate high-value projects – or working with (spark) to combine the powers of both – this is the space for you. Let’s explore your options.
Creative Agency vs. Video Production Studio: Which Partner Should You Choose?
Whether you’re partnering with a creative agency to signing on with a full-service production studio, there are clear advantages and drawbacks to both. Here’s a bird’s eye view of the benefits and challenges that each option brings to the table.
Creative Agency
A creative, advertising, or marketing agency is an umbrella solution for brands that need a little bit of help in multiple areas. Specifically, a creative agency can provide account management, research and strategy, creative development, and media placement, all without breaking a sweat. They can design websites, write a script – pretty much do the grunt work while your internal team is freed up to focus on more pressing issues.
An agency tends to offer a wider range of services than a production studio, so your on-paper benefits might look like they cover more ground. It’s worth noting, however, that there are a few drawbacks to partnering with a creative agency. Gaining this level of support across so many areas of marketing can make working with a creative agency much more expensive than your budget allows. An agency also may not have the depth of expertise in video, photo, and content production you need to complete a high-quality campaign. To supplement their resources, they may hire a production studio for your project and then add on their own fees for managing the project.
Video Production Studio
A production studio, as its name suggests, is a team of highly specialized creatives who produce video, photography, and other content for any digital, audio, or print platform you can imagine. A production studio doesn’t handle such a wide range of tasks like a creative agency might, but that’s because they’re laser-focused on planning, shooting, editing, and publishing video at the highest level.
Because video production creatives have such a pulse on advertising, the benefits of partnering with a production studio are endless. From website and social media trends to the latest broadcast, radio, and print crazes, a production agency lives and breathes video development so your internal team doesn’t have to. A good production studio acts as an extension of your marketing team, so they’ll collaborate with creative agencies when necessary instead of being competitive.
Another benefit of working with a video production studio is cost management. Brands often find that budgets can be more closely followed because an experienced production team only charges for the video services you need. For example, a full-service video production studio may offer editing, audio mixing, color grading, animation, scriptwriting, and content development services, but you can discuss your needs in advance to customize the work.
When Is a Production Studio the Best Choice?
Choosing between a creative agency and a production studio boils down to your company’s goals, budget, and preferred content. There’s a time and place for most services in the world, so if now is the time for your brand to work with a creative agency that dabbles in many areas without giving you much depth in any category, that’s great!
However, some projects and budgets are simply more suited for a video production studio. If your brand needs to drill down into the bedrock of video creation to meet consumers where they’re at with top-notch video content? Well, then a production studio (or a hybrid studio-agency like the Leap Group Network) is your solution. Here’s why.
Projects You Could Develop With a Production Studio
A video production studio is the ideal choice for creating all the most common branded video content your company needs. Interview or recruitment videos and social media content is just the tip of the iceberg. Here’s a more detailed look at potential projects you could develop in partnership with a production studio:
- Digital ads, commercials, and product or service showcases
- Corporate videos for stakeholders and employee trainings for new hires
- Instructional how-to videos or product demonstrations
- Behind-the-scenes videos and mini-documentaries
- Brand essence videos with product photography
- Brand photography libraries
The Award-Winning (spark) Advantage
When you partner with (spark), you’re not only gaining decades of combined video production knowledge, but you’re also brought into the entire Leap Group Network of powerhouse creatives. The Leap Group Network gives clients simplified access to four different specialty agencies: (spark), (amp), (matter), and (human)x. Through our bespoke model, clients only pay for the services they want, when they want them. They sign a single contract and have a single point of contact – simple, straightforward, and effective.
You should also choose your production agency based on real results. (spark) stands above other production agencies thanks to our unique combination of production expertise and full-service digital marketing capabilities. We have decades of experience creating measurable gains for our clients across diverse industries and multiple areas of video production. Remember the award-winning mini-documentary, “Gilda Wabbit”? That was us. Did you happen to see the giant video animations for Hershey’s in Times Square? The (spark) team led that charge.
(spark) also helps you maintain your production budget by offering you access to the entire Leap Group Network, giving you the capabilities of a full-service agency if you need it, but not forcing you to pay for it if you don’t. In this best-of-both-worlds scenario, we can work with your brand to create award-winning video content that’s memorable, relevant, and grows your business. Ready to take your production value to the next level? Contact (spark) about your next project!
