You ever wonder what it costs to produce an advertisement? At Ydraw we turn down a mountain of clients each and every week because they feel our prices are just too much. But how do our prices stack up against other companies? And just how cost effective is a whiteboard animation compared to other forms of advertising on the market?
Let’s do this thing.
I’m going to start with whiteboard animation, since that’s what Ydraw is primarily known for — though our library is quite diverse in terms of the types of products we offer.
A whiteboard animation running sixty seconds costs $7,500. This includes the customer’s choice of voice over artist, visual artist, a screenplay, and music/SFX.
Here’s an example:
Now, check out these prices for various forms of advertising, per Adage.com:
$400,000
The average outlay for a commercial during the fifth season of AMC‘s “The Walking Dead,” making it the costliest scripted series on TV. The Oct. 12, 2014, season premiere drew 17.3 million viewers; the March 29 season finale, 15.8 million. According to averages from media buyers compiled by Ad Age during the upfronts; ratings according to Nielsen.
$750,000
The amount Snapchat demands per “Brand Story” ad, a branded post (or “snap”) that appears within the app’s “Stories” feed. Snapchat doesn’t disclose user numbers. According to media buyers interviewed by Ad Age, January 2015.
$35
The cost for a thousand impressions on Hulu for standard run-of-site in-stream video ads, with a minimum requirement of two ads per campaign. According to Hulu’s rate card, March 2015.
$1.55 million
The cost of 30 seconds of ad time in the championship game of the 2015 NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Tournament on CBS, when Duke will take on Wisconsin. That’s up from $1.49 million in 2014. Last year the championship game averaged 21.2 million viewers, down from 23.4 million in 2013. According to Kantar Media, Nielsen and media buyers interviewed by Ad Age.
$112,000
The average cost for 30 seconds of commercial time in prime time broadcast TV last year. That’s up from $110,00 in 2013. According to Nielsen
$344,827
The average cost of a 30-second commercial during “The Big Bang Theory” on CBS, the most expensive comedy on TV. “Big Bang” averaged 16.7 million viewers this season through March 12. According to Ad Age interviews with media buyers during the 2014 upfronts; audience according to Nielsen
$50,000
The cost of one full-color ad on the front page of The New York Times. To appear on the Times’ front page, though, marketers must commit to a certain frequency, such as front-page ads every Tuesday for six months; the total cost of running frequent page-one ads would likely top $1 million. According to current and former Times executives interviewed by Ad Age, March 2015.
$24.76
The average cost of a thousand impressions for a 30-second commercial in broadcast prime time in 2014, down from $25.06 in 2013. According to Nielsen
$20
The cost of a thousand impressions for a sponsored photo on Instagram, down from $40 in 2013 when Instagram first rolled out ads. Instagram says more than 300 million people around the world check out the photo-sharing app each month. Instagram’s minimum ad spend is $200,000. According to rate cards provided to media buyers by Instagram in spring 2015, before any discounts; minimum spend is according to a media buyer interviewed by Ad Age, March 2015.
$30
The cost of a thousand impressions for a sponsored video on Instagram. According to rate cards provided to media buyers by Instagram in spring 2015, before any discounts.
$2.5 million
The cost of four weeks on Times Square’s biggest billboard, Clear Channel’s eight-story sign on Broadway from West 45th Street to West 46th Street. According to sources familiar with the sign’s cost as of March 2015.
Can you imagine paying over a million dollars for an ad that runs less than one minute?
Obviously, these are extreme examples. Here are some you might be more familiar with, according to this website:
National TV Advertising
Setup Cost — $63,000 to $8 million
Cost of Media — Approx. $342,000 per 30 second ad
National Magazine Advertising
Setup Cost — $500 to $397,800
Cost of Media — Approx. $250,000 per ad
National Newspaper Advertising
Setup Cost — $11 to $1.4 million
Cost of Media — Approx. $113,000 per ad
Direct Mail Marketing
Setup Cost — $50 to $7,200
Cost of Media — Approx. $51.40 per order
Telemarketing
Setup Cost — $1,000 to $5,200
Cost of Media — $7-$70 per hour, or $35 – $60 per lead
National Search Engine Optimization
Setup Cost — $4,000 to $10,000
Cost of Media — Free, though it’s roughly $500 per month for an internet marketer
National Pay Per Click Marketing
Setup Cost — $4,000 to $10,000
Cost of Media — $0.05-$3 per qualified visitor, plus $500 per month to internet marketer
National Email Marketing
Setup Cost — $4,000 to $10,000
Cost of Media — $0.05 – $3 per qualified visitor, plus $500 per month to internet marketer
Web Content Marketing Campaign
Setup Cost — $6,000 to $12,000
Cost of Media — Free
A Whiteboard video falls in line with the final choice: Web Content Marketing Campaign. So, while the upfront cost of $7,500 for a sixty-second ad might throw you off, consider it a lifetime investment in terms of how you can promote your business.
Other campaigns, such as magazine or newspaper ads require constant updates and monthly fees. And while you’re certainly guaranteed to get a lot of impressions, chances are only a small percent of them are catering to your audience.
You have a little more leeway in this regard with a television or radio ad since you can choose which time of day, or programs to run it; therefore, guaranteeing the audience is at least fit for your product.
But, again, the fees. Lots and lots of fees. Plus, such ads quickly become dated. Or, they may not even be seen at all!
According to an article written in The Guardian in 2010 (!), it was reported that nearly 90% of audiences skipped through TV advertising. Such is common practice in today’s high-tech world of streaming services, and DVR satellite systems that let you fast forward through advertisements.
Ask yourself: when was the last time you truly paid attention to the commercials during a TV show, sporting event (outside of the Super Bowl), or movie you were watching?
In my house, we have our smart TV connected with our Google Movies account. Between that and Netflix, Hulu, and HBO Go, our exposure to TV advertising is quite limited.
Same with radio, where most ads go unheard because there are so many more convenient streaming options for music these days.
Now, the thing about a Whiteboard video, specifically, is that it features eye-catching visuals that are designed to attract an audience’s attention. And there are so many inexpensive ways to market them.
Yeah, Facebook charges a fee to advertise on their site, as does YouTube, and Instagram. According to FitSmallBusiness.com:
The short answer is $0.65 per click in the US. In other words, every $65 you put into Facebook gives you around 100 clicks on your ad, according to the Salesforce Advertising Index Q3 2015.
You can put your Whiteboard video on Facebook, and then, using the site’s unique features, ensure it gets seen by your target audience. You can customize the features to allow only specific states or regions to see your content, and you only pay when a potential client clicks your ad. That cuts out a lot of needless excess cost.
No, I’m not here to advertise for Facebook, but merely to demonstrate the myriad of ways you can use a Whiteboard video. You can post them on YouTube, or simply post them on your website. You can share them with clients, potential clients; use them at shows, and even put them on TV if you’ve got the budget.
And you can do all of this for $7,500!
There’s no worrying about OCD directors, stuck up actors, shooting schedules, or the myriad of problems that exist with a live-action commercial production. Check out this quote from JLB Media Productions:
The DGA (Director’s Guild of America), of which I am a member, considers low budget commercial work to be $75,000 per day, up to $225,000 for a three-day production. Most national commercials are several hundred thousand dollars up to a few million dollars. Directors are typically paid anywhere from $10,000 to $50,000 per day of shooting, but many times that means $25,000 for a one-day shoot that also involves two weeks of prep and another week bidding on the job against other directors.
And that doesn’t factor in the aforementioned cost to advertise your product. Smaller production companies will charge less, but the result more often than not looks like this:
Yikes! Does that ad reflect the company it’s promoting well?
Now, check out this Whiteboard video, which cost less to produce:
See the difference? Which business looks more professional? Which one required the least amount of time and headaches to produce?
So, before you dish out a gazillion dollars on a thirty-second TV, radio, or newspaper ad, give Ydraw a call. Our process is simple and guaranteed to produce the results you’re looking for.
Every single day multi-level marketers are asking the same tough questions:
• How do we communicate more in less time?
• Or: How do we communicate more, and not only make it stick, but also actionable?
• Or even tougher: How do we communicate more, and make it stick, actionable, and worthy of sharing—in less time?
Tough indeed.
The deficit of attention is killing your organization
You’ve already heard that America is suffering from a deficit of attention. In fact, the whole world has the same diagnosis.
Attention spans have measurably shrunken. In 2008, Lloyds TSB Insurance commissioned a shocking study that found our average attention span halved in a decade, from twelve minutes to five minutes.
Then, just this spring (2015), a study from Microsoft had researchers announcing that the average human attention span was just eight seconds! Think of it: twelve minutes to eight seconds in 15 years.
Don’t think for a minute that the direct sales, also known has the multi-level marketing industry, hasn’t been affected by the short attention span trend.
Direct Sales offices from Amway to Zurvita have been struggling with this phenomenon—and it’s not going away or getting better.
What should direct sales do? What does the future hold for multi-level marketing companies that are determined to grow?
A big part of the answer actually lies in the past
More than four decades ago, a young Don Failla started an MLM empire by reducing his entire “presentation” to being able to draw it on a simple plain paper napkin. It was simple, visual, memorable, and repeatable!
You’ve probably already used a napkin presentation and not known it:
Imagine you’re sitting in a booth at a diner with a close friend. She asks, “Hey, tell me about _________.” You say, “Well, it’s really very simple…” You reach over, grab a napkin from the holder, and start to draw. And you explain as you draw it out. After a short moment, your friend says, “Oh! I get it! That’s cool!”
Message transmitted, received, understood, and remembered!
If you took that simple, effective napkin presentation and gave it a 21st century twist, you’d have a whiteboard-style explainer video.
What are whiteboard explainer videos?
Instead of a napkin, we start with a blank whiteboard and tell your story with fun drawings and images along with sound effects, music, and a professional voiceover.
Generally speaking, Ydraw whiteboard videos grab and hold viewers’ attention by telling a story—usually about a company, product, or service. Viewers often relate to the character in the video, which results in imagining themselves in the character’s position, using the product or service.
In fact, nothing is more powerful than a whiteboard video to hold the attention of an audience ranging from school children to business executives. (Their attention spans being roughly equal.)
And that’s exactly why Ydraw videos work so well—they capture and hold attention long enough for your message to be transmitted, and even shared!
Whiteboard-style explainer videos are an updated version of the napkin presentation!
Whiteboard videos allow you to leverage the power of social media
And here’s the best part—they don’t have to be presented one-to-one like the old napkin presentation. Your Independent Business Owners can leverage the power of email, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and personal websites to share a whiteboard video about your opportunity, or a new product or benefit.
Living and working in Utah makes it difficult to ignore the presence of the Direct Sales or Multi-Level Marketing industry. After all, about a dozen of the top companies make Utah their headquarters. We’ve consulted with several of them and been allowed “behind the curtain” to learn their biggest worries.
Nothing is more approachable and non-threatening than a brief whiteboard explainer video. Tell a simple “before/after” “problem/solution” story. You don’t have to focus on the mechanics of your business, instead, focus on the benefits of your opportunity: more income, more time, more freedom, more control, and so on.
Your Independent Business Owner places the video in an email or on their website or social media site and invites prospects to view the video and contact them if they’d like to know more. You can see the benefits of having a brief, fun, concise introduction to your company. Remember, at this point, your presentation should be more about the viewer and how you understand and can help them—than about your company.
2-Sales prospecting
Most of the companies we’ve worked with have two approaches with sales—promoting the benefits of their business opportunity and inviting the prospect to benefit from being their own Independent Business Owner; or promoting the benefits of their products and inviting the prospect to purchase the products.
Imagine if every IBO had both approaches posted on their sites, and could email one or the other to prospects!
3-Retention
Retention is a toughy because your retention campaign starts on day one. Retention works best through relationships and frequent and relevant communication. We don’t recommend “canned” videos—instead, if you want to use video, make sure it’s fresh and up-to-date.
4-Product understanding
Imagine having an entire video library of each of your products and product benefits! Your friend talks about her struggle with weight loss, then send an email or log on with her to watch a brief video about your amazing weight loss products!
If your company isn’t focused on health supplements, you still get the idea of how to use whiteboard videos to promote what you do.
5-Leadership training
Training is another sweet spot for whiteboard explainer videos! The number one complaint from the field is lack of training! The number one complaint from headquarters is untrained representatives!
Training doesn’t have to be complex or drudgery—especially when it’s fun and bite-sized!
Imagine an explainer video library available to IBOs from their first day on. Each one in the problem/solution format and ending in a challenge to try a specific action. An email is sent each week from headquarters to every representative inviting them to focus on the technique of the week!
6-You already have an in-house video department?
That’s perfect! Then you already know how important a role video plays in communication today.
However, side-by-side, whiteboard explainer videos outperform “talking head” videos at every level. Whiteboard-style videos create viewer anticipation—viewers pay attention and stay engaged in order to guess what’s being drawn next. Whiteboard viewers stay engaged with the video longer than a “live” video, and have better recall on four out of five memory tests after the video.
Well-crafted whiteboard videos do take time and resources, but it’s possible to begin a production schedule that eventually delivers two or three a month—and that adds up to messages that are received, understood, remembered, and appreciated!
Thank you for reading How Whiteboard-Style Explainer Videos are the Updated Version of a 40-year-old MLM Breakthrough!
