Script to Screen is a Direct-to-Consumer marketing agency that has been making successful, profitable DRTV infomercials for over 30 years. When someone asks us, “How do I make an infomercial?” our answer is a lot more detailed than most sources. In many ways, the question really should be “How do I make an Direct-to-Consumer campaign?” An infomercial created using the right strategies can become the central part of a successful Direct-to-Consumer marketing strategy.

To describe that process, we created this series of videos featuring one of our clients, coffee brewer manufacturing giant Keurig. You will learn the essential strategies needed to create an infomercial that will not only generate buzz for your product or service, but immediately generate sales.

Strategy 1: address your product’s largest challenges head on. 

When we started with Keurig, they were already the best known brand in pod-type coffee brewers. They had a perception problem though, where the general public saw Keurig more for convenience, than as a brewer of quality, high-level coffee. This video details how we examined their perception issues, as well as how we changed their narrative.

We achieved this by:

• Leveraging credibility with known coffee brand partners, including Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts, Peet’s, etc.
• Confronting myths about Keurig’s quality by educating customers on the Keurig brewing process using animation.
• We validated our claims with demonstrations and testimonials from coffee experts and customers.

Strategy 2: pick the right locations for your infomercial to be shot. 

Creating the proper environment for your product or service can be the difference between you making a sale or not. It is imperative that you pick a location that compliments your “brand-feel,” but also fits within your budget.

For Keurig, we found a kitchen that was large, bright and aspirational. In this one location, we were able to shoot product shots, b-roll and large demonstrations of the Keurig brewer. Additionally, we used a local outdoor mall to shoot “man on the street” interviews. We created an organic, high profile amphitheater to shoot authentic, real-life reactions to people blind taste testing Keurig brewed coffee.

Strategy 3: use expert testimonials to add outside perspective to your claims

You need to boost the credibility of your campaign, as well as the authenticity of your selling message. If a company spokesperson comes on screen and tells the audience that they should purchase a product or service, you are going to suffer from a lack of credibility. But if you can get a third party expert to offer their advice, you are one step closer to making a sale.

We leveraged the expertise of coffee roasters from around the country, like the head roaster of Dunkin Donuts.. Customers learned not only about how good their Keurig-brewed coffee tastes, but how coffee is roasted in the first place. They were taken on a journey to discover the chemistry and science behind what makes a good cup of coffee.

Strategy 4: create product demonstrations as a powerful visual method of product education.

 A combination of live product demonstration as well as animation can show your customers not only how a product is used. They also highlight your product’s inner workings, giving customers an insider’s view of your product.

It is easy enough to show a cup of coffee brewing. But what we did was tear open a K-cup, showing customers exactly what was inside of the pods. Additionally we created animation that explained what was happening inside of a Keurig brewer while coffee was being made.

Strategy 5: cast the perfect host. 

An infomercial host is your salesperson, so you want them to align with your demographic and product category. A great host will deliver a consistent performance and work efficiently on shoot day.

Keurig let us know exactly what their customer demographic was — the average customer was over 40 and more female than male. We went through over 30 people in the casting process to find the perfect host. Not just someone who looks and acts the part, but someone who understands delivery, pacing and how to communicate a message through a screen. When you are on set, every second spent costs money. You want to have a professional who knows how to present properly.

Strategy 6: use customer testimonials to create authentic, believable reviews for your product or service. 

It is not enough to just ask customers what they think of your product, or curate reviews off of Amazon. Obtaining the perfect testimonial is a set of strategies in and of itself. You need to do the right preparation to determine the perfect questions to ask, creating authentic, real responses.

Testimonials have to be unscripted or they won’t have the right affect you want on your sales. If you want your testimonial to include specific language, that’s a red flag. Questions can be tailored to lead a testimonial in a certain direction, Still, iif the testimonial is not authentic, your audience will not believe in it.

Somewhat different is the “man-on-the-street” testimonial. These are incredibly powerful because you can show someone’s immediate, first-time reaction to a product.

Strategy 7: have the right production team 

You need everything to go smoothly and quickly when you are actually shooting your infomercial. On a set, time is money, so it is important that everything goes as perfectly as possible.

It is imperative that you do as much work possible before you even start to schedule your shoot. Every element of creating a successful infomercial requires experience.  If you do not have an experienced team planning and shooting your infomercial, you are going to spend far more money in time wasted than you would have in hiring a team that knows what they are doing. You need experts in every aspect of production for success. That means on-screen talent, directors, lighting, cameramen, sound, teleprompter, and more, all of whom need to work in harmony.

Strategy 8: have the best post-production team possible. 

You could have shot the best infomercial footage in the world. But without the right team assembling your footage, applying text and graphics, and building animation, you don’t have an infomercial. What you have is random footage. You need a team with experience editing in software like Adobe Premiere to craft your footage into something that will motivate your audience to turn into customers.

Strategy 9:  have your marketing team ready to implement everything your infomercial promises. 

You have created an amazing infomercial that seems guaranteed to sell your product or service. Now what?

You need to get your infomercial on the air. The back-end logistics have to be ready to fulfill your product, long before the infomercial is even shot. You are going to want to create media for other media platforms other than television so that you can have an omnichannel presence, reaching your customers wherever they might be. Your Direct-to-Consumer channel has to be self-contained, so that your company reaps the benefits. All this is going to take an experienced team that knows what it is doing.

The strategies laid out in the videos have been tweaked and modified for the specifics of the Keurig campaign, but ultimately can be applied to any commercial. What you need is an experienced team that knows how to apply and execute them in a way that works for your product or service.