Define the one job the video has
A video that has to explain a service, build brand awareness, recruit staff and sell a product will do none of them well. Pick the single outcome and let everything else follow from it.
State where it will be published and how long it should run. A 30-second vertical cut for social and a three-minute film for a website are different productions, even from the same shoot.
Agree the structure before shooting
For interviews, write the questions and share them in advance — you get better answers and shorter shoot days. For instructional content, agree the chapter breakdown first so nothing essential is missing when the crew leaves.
Decide who the approver is. A single decision-maker on the client side is the difference between two revision rounds and six.
Plan the reuse at the start
One production day can produce the main film, vertical cuts for social, still frames for the website and B-roll for future edits — but only if that is planned before the camera is set up.
Ask for the deliverables list in the quote, including formats and aspect ratios. Recutting later is possible; reshooting is not.
