Category Making the Ad

DOP, gaffer, grip, focus puller, DIT: a plain-English guide to the people who make a TV advert and what each of them does.

If you’ve never been on a film set, the shoot day can be a bit of a mystery. Here’s what to expect, what you’ll be asked, and how to get the most from it.

Filming is only half the job, so here’s what happens in the edit, what you’ll be asked to approve at each stage and how to keep it all moving.

A promotional or social media video can sometimes go on TV, though rarely exactly as it is. Here’s what usually has to change, and why.

There are quick, inexpensive ways to find out which message your customers respond to before anything is filmed, and limits to what they can tell you.

With animation, everything on screen has to be designed and built from scratch. Here are the four stages, and what you’ll be asked to approve at each.

A storyboard shows you your TV advert, scene by scene, before anything is filmed. Here’s what goes into one and why it saves time and money.

Airtime is priced by length, so ten, twenty, thirty or sixty seconds is a real decision. Here’s what each length is good for and how to choose.

Why do some adverts stick for years while others are forgotten by the end of the break? What the research says, and how we use it.

Putting staff, customers or people you know in your advert can keep the cost down, but it comes with risks. Here’s when it works and when an actor is the better choice.

A few notes or a few words can bring a brand to mind in a second. Here is how sonic triggers work, and how a smaller business can use one.

The right famous face can give a business instant credibility with the right audience. Here is how to work out whether it would do that for yours.