Having creative produced is one of the most exciting things that results from a client’s relationship with a marketing firm. Seeing the final product for the first time that resulted from hours of meetings, photo/video shoots and initial proofs is somewhat like opening presents on Christmas—you have an idea of what’s there but you aren’t sure until the wrapping comes off the package.

To further the Christmas analogy, postproduction is like the week before Christmas—time seems to drag by as you wait for the final payoff. The tree is up, the stockings are hung and the presents are wrapped, but you have to wait until the clock strikes midnight to receive the final payoff.

Here are five tips to help get you through the postproduction period and to ensure that your final present is one with which you will be proud to share with the world:

  1. Have patience. While it seems that all the work has been done, postproduction can be a tedious chore depending upon all of the raw audio and video available to the creative team. Have patience, our creative team is making sure the final “present” is something that makes both of us proud.
  2. Have trust. Through the whole process there has been a back and forth between you and the agency with ideas, thoughts and direction, and once work gets into postproduction that communication tends to dissipate. Have trust, though, our team knows your desires and goals for the final product and they are working to make the final deliverable meet your expectations.
  3. Let it go. Postproduction is not the time for new ideas you think might make the final deliverable considerably better. Everything has already been shot and recorded—postproduction is the time for assembly. Save that idea and incorporate it into preproduction for the next piece of creative!
  4. Be prepared. The final deliverable isn’t always what you envisioned through the whole process, usually it’s even better. Be prepared to discuss everything that was done in postproduction with us so you understand the logic behind it and can see why it enhances the final product.
  5. The big reveal. As excited as you are about the new creative, make sure you plan an internal “big reveal” for all of the stakeholders in your company. Instead of showing your team the new creative one person at a time, schedule a time where you can get everyone together and generate excitement for your new “present”. While every day can’t be Christmas, you can make it feel that way any time of the year!