What would you charge?

P

pulpwoody

Well-known member
This is the age old question, and I know the prices can fluctuate between companies. So with that said, I have to put in a bid for a promotional video for the local police department. They need a script, storyboard, all the fixin's. I don't really know their budget, hence the RFP. We already have a script done, and most of the shots figured out, and it's looking like it'll be around five minutes long, and pretty involved. Lots of locations, lots of people, some gear rental etc.

Ball park? Anyone?
 
Im in a similar situation at the minute, We have just been working out the costings of crew, kit, locations etc etc multiplying that by the days itll take to shoot, as well as the costs of planning and the edit and then adding a percentage on top of that for our company...

Hope that helps in some way.



Tom
 
finchy said:
Im in a similar situation at the minute, We have just been working out the costings of crew, kit, locations etc etc multiplying that by the days itll take to shoot, as well as the costs of planning and the edit and then adding a percentage on top of that for our company...

Hope that helps in some way.

Tom
Click to expand...

This is how I calculate costs as well. It's pretty standard.

Don't be afraid to call the client and ask what budget range they had in mind for project.
More often than not, they'll tell you. I often say that a 30 second commercial can cost
$100,000 and if they can give me a range, I can provide a more accurate estimate.
It's amazing how often they say, "Well, no more that $30,000" or something like that.

If you can't get the range, and you're worried about overcharging and not getting the job,
consider providing 2 or 3 different estimates. I do this when I'm submitting a proposal "in
the dark" and don't know the budget. Here's an example:

$10,000
Based on 2 shoot days and 2 different locations. All interviews will be arranged at a
single location. Costs include all shooting, editing, scriptwriting, equipment, etc.

$15,000
Based on 3 shoot days at 3 different locations. All interviews will be arranged at one
or 2 locations. Costs include all shooting, editing, scriptwriting, equipment, etc.

$20,000
Based on 4 shoot days at a minimum of 4 locations. Interviews can be recorded at
multiple locations. Costs include all shooting, editing, scriptwriting, equipment, etc.

I always add "It's important to remember that budget will never affect the quality
or the impact of the completed video, only the scope of the production".

What I mean by scope is that the video can be just as effective whether you're
shooting at multiple locations or one location. It's up to the client to decide what
they want spend. But the impact never changes.

I hope this is helpful. Good luck with the RFP.

Peter
 
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