IN[FOCUS]

The importance in packaging

While you shop, do you pay attention to the way products are packaged?  Some scream more loudly for your attention than others.  Some are simple while others are complex.  Branding and packaging should reflect the image that one is trying to create in the market place.  

We are going to discuss the importance of how you deliver your end product to the Bride and Groom.  First impressions are great for booking the wedding, but the impression you deliver at the last stage with your client is a significant part of what will drive them to refer you again and again. 

Our clients are visually driven.  Initially, we focused on the look of the website, business cards and demos, but we didn't create a separate experience for the client when they received their DVD’s. However, after attending Re:Frame in New Orleans, our eyes were opened to this importance. Therefore, we set out on a mission to create a more attractive deliverable.

Inspiration

To find the right packaging, start with some fresh inspiration.  Stay current with styles and design trends by looking through magazines such as Elle, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, or Esquire.  Grab the latest edition of a wedding magazine like WedLuxe, Martha Stewart Weddings, or Bride Magazine.  Go online and peruse the wedding blogs, Weddingbeepro, Stylemepretty, Thebridescafe.   Take special notice of invitations, how they are designed, their colors, shape, and stock.  

Our Packaging

For our packaging, we wanted something that was of higher quality and more aesthetically pleasing than a standard black-plastic dvd case.  We found Jewelboxes (see figure 1 below), and we print images and text directly on the DVD itself (figure 2).   We also provide the couple with a leather DVD case from Art Leather, setting their dvds apart from the rest of their order.

If you subscribe to Rangefinder magazine, there are advertisers that have variations of these cases. 

Beyond cases, we began to pay more attention to the packages as well.  We went to retailers and turned boxes over to discover the manufacturer, and then we would locate that manufacturer through a google search.  We currently use the beautifully designed boxes you see below which we found at www.pfile.com.

Inside the box, we will also place popcorn and chocolate.  Depending on our client’s tastes, we might also put a bottle of wine, bag of gourmet coffee or even a cigar.

As artists, we spend time finding just the right shot with just the right lighting and use just the right music score to ignite as much emotion as possible. Transfer some of that creative ability when you deliver your final product to your client.  Your business should be an experience for them from beginning to the end.

John and Jennifer Moon

A few years ago before beginning our business, John traveled to Alaska to track the Iditarod dog sled race.  While there he noticed the beauty of the Aurora Borealis, the northern lights.  Each time the lights emerged they were different in form, color and movement.  In creating our video studio, the Aurora Borealis seemed a fitting metaphor for what we intended to accomplish.

Northernlight Filmworks seeks to continually evolve and create something unique for our couples with changes in form, color, and movement.

Northernlight Filmworks was born about 5 years ago in the basement of our home.  Our studio consists of John and Jennifer Moon and John’s brother Steve.  While John has the left-brained creative side, Jennifer is the glue that keeps the technical side of the studio running smoothly.  At Northernlight Filmworks, having fun is a must!

Our success rests upon high production value, marketing and branding.   Much of our inspiration comes from music, high fashion photography, movies, music videos, etc.  All of the tools we use, whether Super 8, 16mm, 35mm adapters, sliders, cranes, etc. are the paint brushes we utilize to tell the wedding day story.

We are excited to be part of IN[FOCUS], making our contribution to the elevation of the world of wedding cinema.

John and Jennifer Moon

For the past year or so we have been using Basecamp which is a web app created by 37signals.  We use it primarily as a way to manage the projects that our editors are working on.

With it, you can send/receive files and create due dates and have them automagically sent to the editor when the due date is getting near.. it also has become a great time saver in that there are fewer places for me to look for items like emails, most up to date project files, and a streamlined conversation.

One thing I did not mention in the video is the RSS feed option… you can subscribe to the feed and if/when there are changes/updates to the project, you will be updated -automagically- via your feed reader.

The other thing I mentioned in the video was Groundwork which is the app for the iPhone.  I purchased it but haven’t used it enough to love it or hate it. I really like the format – the only thing that I wish was that the other web apps I use could all “speak” to each other.  All in good time, I guess…

Speaking of all in good time, I did get my hair cut since my last post… my wife thinks I’m cute again.

Ryan Koral

Epic Motion is a photo + video studio specializing in weddings and events. Based in suburban Detroit and led by Ryan Koral, Epic Motion has been named one of the Top 25 Event Filmmaker Studios in the World.

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