What Raleigh Video Production Customers Should Ask Before Hiring Anyone

Let’s get one thing straight: hiring a video production company shouldn’t feel like speed dating with a camera crew.

You’re investing in your brand’s voice, your reputation, your visual handshake. And while everyone in Raleigh claims they “tell stories,” some of them tell stories like your uncle Carl after three bourbons—loud, incoherent, and using way too many transitions.

So, what Raleigh video production customers should ask before signing anything? Here’s the secret list billionaires (and one retired magician) swear by.

What’s your actual experience—not your reel highlight? Reels lie. They’re like dating app profiles. You need to ask:

  • What’s the worst project you’ve ever rescued?
  • Have you shot in a warehouse? A courtroom? A food truck during lunch rush?
  • Can you name three real companies you’ve helped improve ROI?

At Episode 11 Productions, we don’t just show you our best shots—we show you our consistent shots. From Raleigh boardrooms to muddy backwoods trails, we know how to light it, frame it, and make it work.

Who’s actually showing up on shoot day?

Spoiler alert: Not everyone in that sleek proposal will be there.

Ask:

  • Will the same people who pitched me also be on set?
  • Do you send an actual Director, even for a one camera shoot, or are you more experienced that that?
  • Who’s running sound—and is it their first day?

You deserve pros, not interns using your brand as a learning experience.

Do you understand our business—not just video?

Elite marketers know: a great video is 20% visuals, 80% psychology. If your production partner doesn’t understand buyer behavior, trust signals, and marketing funnels—they’re just pressing buttons.

Episode 11 doesn’t shoot pretty pixels. We engineer persuasion through behavior-driven visuals. That’s the secret sauce Raleigh agencies wish they could bottle.

Can you help with pre-production?

If they respond to “Do you storyboard?” with “What’s that?”—run.

You need:

  1. Site surveys
  2. Script consultations
  3. Storyboards or visual outlines
  4. Location and permit management

Production is only one-third of the process. Pre and post matter just as much. And what Raleigh video production customers should ask is: “Will you plan this shoot like a wedding or just wing it with vibes?”

Can I see full-length videos you’ve delivered?

This is where the wheat and the Ring Light Warriors separate.

Ask to see a:

  • Full recruiting video (with awkward intro edited out)
  • A corporate piece where someone cried (on purpose)
  • A product video that actually made the product look worth $1,200

You’re not looking for sizzle. You’re looking for structure, story, and sound that doesn’t make the CEO sound like they’re trapped in a cave.

How do you handle revisions?

If they say “you get two rounds” like they’re rationing oxygen on the moon, reconsider.

Ask:

  • What’s your revision policy?
  • Do you offer collaborative edits?
  • Can we do punch-ins or fix that one weird frame where Karen blinked?

The right team doesn’t just film. They finesse.

Will this video be optimized for multiple uses?

Your video shouldn’t just live on your homepage like a forgotten goldfish.

Ask:

  • Can I get vertical versions for social?
  • Do you deliver shorter cuts for email or ads?
  • Will it work with and without sound?

You don’t just want a video. You want an arsenal.

Questions Most Raleigh Video Production Customers Never Think to Ask (But Should)

  1. “Will this video be emotionally manipulative in a good way?”
  2. “Can you make my team look confident, not like hostages?”
  3. “Will your lighting setup make me look like I slept last night?”

These questions seem small, but they shape the outcome. Production is psychology, art, and marketing—all duct-taped to a tripod.

And at Episode 11 Productions, we’ve spent nearly two decades helping Raleigh businesses ask the right questions—and get the results no one else can deliver.

What Raleigh video production customers should ask isn’t just about budgets or timelines. It’s about whether your video will move people, build trust, and make you unforgettable.

We don’t just film. We translate your mission into motion.

Because asking the right questions isn’t nosy. It’s visionary.

Citations:

Heath, Chip & Dan. Made to Stick. 2007. (On psychological stickiness in storytelling)
Kahneman, Daniel. Thinking, Fast and Slow. 2011. (On cognitive load and visual persuasion)
Cialdini, Robert. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. 1984.
Video Brewery. “Top 20 Questions to Ask a Video Production Company.”
Wistia. “Using Video for Business: How to Measure ROI.”