Cheap TV Spots! - How We Work

WE'RE SO CHEAP...

for these simple reasons:

We give YOU room to grow! We provide these low cost production options because we know that small businesses who advertise on TV become big businesses, and we want to grow with you.

Customer Information Force. Nobody at Cheap TV Spots® is trying to make sales quotas or boost their commissions. We don't use a boiler room of "salespeople" -- our no-pressure, Customer Information Force is notorious for talking you into the least expensive option for your advertising campaign! We realize that you may just want more information before leaping into TV advertising. We'll spend time talking with you, even if you're not ready to get started on your campaign.

GUMBALL BILLING. Put in a quarter, get a gumball. Just like a gumball machine, we're a "pay-in-advance" service. This pay as you go method eliminates billing hassles, and helps you keep your costs down. Simpler billing is cheaper billing... and WE PASS THE SAVINGS ON TO YOU.

Other companies charge premium rates. They break up your production into multiple payments, but they're actually covering the entire production cost with your down payment. So, when you pay your 2nd (or 3rd!?) payment, it's all gravy for them. That's how they work. You just think you're getting a fair deal.

We take charge of the creative process. Before we begin production, we LISTEN TO YOU, to get the complete picture of what you need. From there, we take the bull by the horns. No foolin' around. It's actually our official policy.

Why we take charge of the creative process:

OUR GOAL is to HELP YOU get more business. Some TV commercial producers will agree with anything their customers ask, simply to sell you their service and pad their bottom line. We take charge of developing and presenting the most effective message for YOU. First, we listen to your thoughts about your campaign. We'll tell you honestly if we believe a concept won't work for you. We can even provide a detailed analysis of your existing TV spot or campaign, describing for you exactly what is working for you, and what isn't.
We're not here merely to dazzle you -- that's why the concept is included in the package. We don't spend our time submitting dozens of ideas to potential clients. This saves us big bucks in marketing costs, and allows us to concentrate on YOU, the customer. It's another way that we can keep costs low while keeping your TV spot high quality -- and of course, we pass every price break directly to you.
Time is Money. Once we get started, we don't bother you with every little detail, wasting hours of your time with meetings and racking up hours and hours of costly production time. You're already in the loop at all of the key decision points.

NO Charge for Hand-Holding. If you're looking for one of those hand-holding advertising agencies that wine you and dine you, then propose a bunch of off-the-wall ideas, bring you into the editing suite, and spend countless hours discussing every detail with you, Cheap TV Spots® aren't for you. The hand-holding agencies charge a bundle for that kind of treatment, and you get an ad that looks like there were too many cooks in the kitchen.

At Cheap TV Spots®, we are dedicated to keeping your TV advertising costs reasonable. All we ask is that you let us do what we do best -- design great commercials and get them in front of your customers.

Yes, You Do Get Your 2 Cents In. When we complete your TV spot, you'll get to review your new TV spot via the Video Proof on VHS tape for your review before it goes on the air. And of course, we'll fix any typos or bloopers you find, free of charge. For information on this process, see Production Options for details.

Air Time -- A Better Way

You got your fabulous looking - yet modestly priced - Cheap TV Spot® so that you can be ON THE AIR. We have you covered there, too, with our Airwave Orchestration Service.

Here's how it works. You set a budget. We work with it.

You look at your company's business plan and finances to determine what your air time budget should be. We discuss options with you for places to air (locations, channels, time of day). You send us your air time payment (typically 1 month's air time budget). We begin the process of presenting your ad to networks for their approval (the "clearance" process). Once clearance is obtained, we buy the best airing schedule we can wrangle out of the networks. We negotiate with the networks to position your ad in the best time slot that can be purchased with the budget you've given us.

1.) You send us the amount that you can afford for air time.

2.) We focus on the target market for your product or service.

3.) We work to obtain clearance (the big "OKAY") for the ad from the networks.

4.) We purchase targeted air time on your behalf.

5.) We make sure the broadcast tape of your ad gets to the network.

There are literally millions of places and times to air your ad. We take the pain out of this for you, by taking charge of the air time process. You don't have to know the ins and outs of the entire advertising industry -- you can trust us to be your guide.

We air only over legitimate cable, broadcast and satellite networks, so you can be assured of getting the most for your television advertising dollar.

We're not "order takers." We don't simply take an order for air time and fill it. We research the marketplace for your product or service, and seek out the best way to put your message right where your potential customer is most likely to be watching. Nothing sours the impression an ad makes like having it show up at an inappropriate time or place. If it doesn't look like a sure fit, we won't put you there.

We don't sit on our hands. We reserve the right to change the placement of your air time if we determine that the placement is better on another network or time. This may happen if new information comes in regarding a particular network's viewing audience. Most agencies will just sit on their hands and let it run. We take action on your behalf.

Some things we don't do:

We won't place your airings on a network that rejects your product or service. For example, if the network does not accept advertising from certain types of businesses, or if a network suddenly changes its standards, we won't place your ad there. (For example, The Golf Channel, at one point, accepted only ads for golfing products.)

We do not guarantee placement on a particular network. We are happy to discuss the possibilities with you, but ultimately, it's the network's choice to accept your ad, and our responsibility to decide if it's right for you.

We do not guarantee dollar results. We believe fully in the power of television advertising to bring quality product messages to the TV screen of the consumer. We cannot force the consumer buy. There's no magic formula for results. This is why we urge our customers to think of TV as part of your long term marketing strategy. TV is a tool like any other, not a "magic bullet."

A note about "Clearance." As much as we love the networks, the networks are fickle and unpredictable (call it unrequited love). All this talk about the "liberal media" seems to melt away the moment someone at the networks becomes phobic about some little thing they see, or think they see, in an ad (a client's slogan, ad content or imagined content, message, disclaimer wording, etc). It seems to vary from network to network, time of day, cycles of the moon, blood-coffee level, boyfriend/girlfriend problems, and whether Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow. A network may give clearance to an ad, only to change their minds minutes before airing. If we get wind that a network executive's head has spun off, we'll simply switch to another network that addresses your potential customer.

What About Quality?

Cheap TV Spots® look, sound, and "feel" like a much more expensive TV commercial. Just check out these comments from some of our satisfied customers and take a look at our work.

Super-Secret, Streamlined System. We wanted to offer a TV commercial at a rate that even start-up businesses can easily afford. We took this rock-bottom price as our challenge to pack the maximum value into a 30-second TV spot... and WE DID IT! We call it our Rapid-Ad ™ service. This is not some stripped down ad, either. You get writing, directing, great music, narration -- even special effects! We offer options for every production style and desired level of client interactivity. Check out our Production Options and see what we can do for you!

Let's get started. It’s EASY!

Here's all you have to do:

Give us a call (1-866-343-SPOT) for your FREE consultation. We'll discuss your TV advertising needs in detail. If you want to get an idea of the quality level we can do, check out our Spot Samples.
Send your payment to Academy Leader, Inc. (We accept checks, money orders, official checks or cashier's checks).
Send us your product photos, brochures, sales materials, samples, print advertising, etc., whatever you can spare. Don’t forget your Company Logo!
We get to work at our studio facility to produce your unique, 30-second treat of sights and sounds, telling your customers what you’ve got, how to find you, and why you’re the best. Once production begins, we can create a 30-second TV commercial in as little as 1-2 weeks.
We send you a VIDEO PROOF -- a preview of the finished commercial in a Windows-friendly computer-viewable clip, or in VHS format, which can be viewed on any home VCR. Spot a typo or blooper? We’ll fix it free of charge.

Air Time: We're a full service TV production and air time placement agency.

We offer you two airing options:

Having Cheap TV Spots® place your air time. We provide 1 Broadcast Tape directly to the cable provider, satellite system, national cable network, or broadcast TV station where you will be airing -- of course, no additional charge! Also, when we place your air time for you, we include the Local License at no additional charge -- a $250 value. By far the best buy all the way around.

OR
Placing the air time yourself. This option is for those of you who have already arranged for airings on your own, or, let's say, your favorite aunt sells air time at your local cable company (and you wouldn't want to disappoint your auntie!). You'd simply purchase the Local License from us, and we'll provide the commercial for your use in the appropriate broadcast format, which you can take to your local cable provider or TV station.

How We Work

What We Do,

How We Do It, and Why

Handy Site Map

WE'RE SO CHEAP...

for these simple reasons:

Why we take charge of the creative process:

Air Time -- A Better Way

What About Quality?

Let's get started. It’s EASY!