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| 10 Point Client/Producer Checklist: |
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| This area is more applicable to the post production and development of your show or spot. Here is a checklist that any experienced Direct Response Producer would use during the post production process.
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| 1. Has the lower third of the screen been left available for phone # placement throughout the show or spot?
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Planning ahead now and leaving space will save time and money later. Often clients request to have disclaimers or support text placed in this area. This is perfectly fine as long as it is within title safe, and it adheres to text size requirements, which can be no smaller than 18p. Anyone who is planning on putting a phone # up with a URL address should think ahead for spacing. Keep in mind that there may be additional disclaimers to add later for legal reasons such as "must be 18 or older to call", or "individual results will vary", etc.
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| 2. Is the placement of the phone # consistent?
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Placement is crucial. It is preferable to keep the number in the lower third throughout your show or spot with the exception of the blue screen/end tag panel or call to action.
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| 3. Are there opening and closing disclaimers?
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This is applicable to infomercials/program length advertisements. You need to have both disclaimers appear in video/text graphics and audio/voiceover.
Example: The following is a paid program for/by (product or service).
Example: The preceding has been a paid program for/by (product or service).
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| 4. Does a text paid program disclaimer appear twice within your show?
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This is applicable to infomercials/program length advertisements and customarily revealed before each CTA (Call To Action).
Example: This is a paid program for/by (product or service).
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| 5. Will the post production facility provide an EDL for phone # placement?
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An EDL is an Edit Decision List. Thinking ahead and discussing with the producer or editor where you want your phone # to appear and not to appear is very important. Titan is perfectly capable of using our discretion for phone # placement. However an EDL for phone # placement provided with the master tape from the postproduction facility saves time, and eliminates guesswork.
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| 6. How do you want your end panel to appear? The elements we need to create your end panel / blue screen tag are the following:
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- Price Point of the product or service.
- Special disclaimers such as "No CODs, Must be 18 or older to call", etc.
- Payment methods you honor
(Visa, MasterCard, AmEx, Discover and check-by-phone) .
- Address for mail in orders.
- Address for the marketer or manufacturer.
- Spacing available for phone # placement during the end panel.
- Voiceover Script if applicable. This is only needed if your show or spot requires an individual read of the phone # during the end panel. To customize your creative with voiceover we will need the time allotment as well as an approved script that fits into that time frame. A good rule of thumb for scripting your end panel's call to action is to read it aloud within the time provided. If it can't be read within that time frame, or if it sounds too rushed or hurried, then you will need to trim it down so it works.
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| 7. Has your show or spot been mastered to tape in Drop Frame Time Code with the first frame of video at one-hour (01;00;00;00)?
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You will want your show or spot to be mastered to Drop Frame Time Code as well as start at the one-hour point (01;00;00;00).
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| 8. Does your tape master have color bars and tone on it?
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All shows or spots must have a minimum of thirty seconds of bars and tone. If your master comes to us without bars and tone, our engineers will do their best to setup the tape's colors for broadcast quality color correctness, as well as the audio levels. This however is not a good process to go by. The bars and tone are there for a reason. They
are broadcast industry standard.
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| 9. Does your tape master have an identification slate on it?
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Each master needs to have a tape identification slate on it. This should appear for five to ten seconds following the bars and tone.
Key elements to include on a master tape's slate are as follows:
- Product name or the title of the show or spot
- Code or Version #
- Price Point of offer
- Date
- Audio (mixed / split / stereo)
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| 10. Do you want to encode your show or spot for detection / tracking purposes?
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If you are planning to have your show or spot encoded for tracking purposes, and/or you want to have your show or spot closed captioned, please advise us prior to the customization and duplication of your creative. Encoding typically is Nielsen or Verance Encoding. A discussion with your media agency should determine if this is a service
that will benefit you. Closed Captioning is becoming more prevalent. This is also an area that you should discuss with your media agency to see if it may be a requirement for your campaign. Prior notification to Titan of programs or spots to be encoded and/or closed-captioning will help us get your tapes to the stations as efficiently as possible.
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We hope this checklist has been a useful tool for you. Please click here for more information regarding Direct Response Television and our requirements for master tapes submitted.
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