Tips on Choosing the Right Video Production Companies in Washington DC

Filmmaking is a highly competitive industry, especially in Washington DC. As such, when you begin your search for the right video production companies in Washington DC to work with, you’re likely to face several different companies that are all equally vying for your project.

Choosing the most appropriate production crew for your needs requires a bit of research and planning on your part, but is well worth the effort in the long run.

Follow these tips on choosing the right video production companies in Washington DC to help you get the most out of your upcoming video projects:

1. Plan Your Project Needs

First, you’ve got to plan out your project needs. How can you possibly choose a production company if you don’t even know what kind of skills or techniques you’re most interested in for your project?

You should be thinking about what type of videos you’ll create, what the goal is for your video content, and what kind of style or techniques you’d like to see used. Will you need an animator? A live motion artist? Someone who specializes in case studies?

This is important – take your time!

2. Seek Local Production Companies with These Skills

Next, you’ve got to start your task of finding local production companies that possess the skills required to produce your project.

Choosing the right video production companies in Washington DC for your project will require some research and a bit of time as you analyze the skills of each crew. 

Look at portfolios and demo reels to get a good feel for what a production company is capable of. You should be looking for past projects that relate to the type and style of project that you’re interested in producing. It’s also important to analyze technique at this time too.

3. Review Past Client Feedback

Once you’ve found a couple of video production companies in Washington DC that appear to have the experience and skills you require, it’s time to dive further in.

This is your chance to review the past client feedback for each company. Begin with a search for local reviews for each company and analyze those. Follow up with a couple of phone calls to past clients in which you can ask the following questions:

• Were you happy with the project that you worked on with the production company?
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• Did the project turn out the way you had wanted it to?
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• Would you work with the company again?
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• Why or why not?

4. Discuss Timeline, Budget & Expectations

Once you’ve got an idea of the top video production companies in Washington DC for your project, it’s time to start communicating directly with them.

You need to know if they are interested in your project and whether or not they will be able to fulfill the project on the deadline that you expect and within the budget that you’ve set forth.

Discuss the timeline expectations and budget with each production company upfront. Then, ask for a written quote that you can later compare.

Although budget should never be the only deciding factor in choosing a production company, it certainly will play a role and must be considered.

5. Compare & Contrast Experience, Budget & Professionalism

The final step to choosing the right video production companies in Washington DC to work with for your project is to compare and contrast the various notes that you’ve come up with for each of the production crews and to make a decision.

Don’t decide on just the budget or just the experience alone. Make your final decision based on all of the data that you acquired — how professional the company was with past clients, how much experience they bring to the project, and what they want to charge.

These are all keys to making your final hiring decision!