Case Study: It’s Like a New Boat
It’s July in Michigan. Our Chicago crew has all made it over to Gravel Lake in Lawton, and we’re getting ready to prep for our shoot the next day. We began passing out our production shirts – The SeaDek logo on the front and the words “It’s Like A New Boat” on the back. We can’t help but beam with pride. “It’s Like A New Boat.”
A catchphrase that was coined only a few months prior…
Flashback to earlier Q1 of 2023, SeaDek (based in Rockledge, Florida) reached out to us, looking for a video marketing strategy that would shake things up a bit. We reached out to Ryan Cheevers, a creative writer based in St. Joseph (Michigan), to help us come up with a concept that would set things apart from the typical commercials we’d been producing. Without hesitation, we quickly began our creative brainstorming, and in less than 3 weeks since the initial conversation, we’d be heading to Florida to pitch the SeaDek team in person.
01. THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
We all spent several meetings throwing darts at the creative dart board, playing with ideas and concepts that felt right. We needed a throughline, a theme to follow. We all agreed that comedy was the route we wanted to take, because according to "The Happiness Report," 90% of individuals recall advertisements that incorporate humor, and 72% of individuals prefer a brand with a humorous approach over its competitors.
Before we could be funny, though, we had to get serious about who SeaDek was, and what they stood for. When someone installs SeaDek flooring, it elicits a feeling of having something new. The flooring transforms a boat in a way that makes it feel Like a New Boat. It’s like when you pull up the carpet in your old house and find beautiful wood floors. In many ways, you feel like you have a new house. Just like that, our theme was born: It’s Like A New Boat!
02. THE PITCH
Once the foundation was created, we had a whole universe to run with the comedy. We flew to Florida for a 24-hour trip to pitch the team at SeaDek. We flew in as a 4 person team consisting of a producer, director, writer, and digital strategist. Within our meeting, we conducted table reads of each 30-second script and even watched through a few funny Progressive and State Farm ads to help convey the tone we were going for!
Aside from the creative, we also dove deep into the strategic end of our campaign to help properly convey how we will distribute all the commercials to the right audience. The SeaDek team found our comedic and engaging approach refreshing, and agreed to launch the campaign! It was go time for the JV Studios team.
03. PRE-PRODUCTION
Our dates were set to film three of our spots on consecutive July days: “My Wife’s New Boat,” “Nosey Neighbors,” and “Grown Ups Are Weird.” Johnny, one of our co-founders, began doing what he does best…..producing. With the help of Ryan & Joey, he started locking the locations, hiring the crew, securing equipment, building pre-production decks, finding boats, installing SeaDek, obtaining permits and insurance, and tying up all the loose ends. As the Director, Vince went to work on storyboards and shot lists, with help from our DP (Chris Beauchesne). Vince worked directly with Ryan on locking scripts and securing talent. These three commercials needed the right actors to make these pieces pop, and we certainly found them! When it was all said and done, we employed more than 16 crew members and 12 cast members. A true JV team effort!
04. PRODUCTION
Our 3 days of production included two different locations on Gravel Lake, and a finale on Lake Michigan (Jean Klock Park in Benton Harbor). This also involved the coordination of 3 different boats with SeaDek on them, which was a challenge in its own right. And of course, Mother Nature made her presence felt. Rain was expected on our final day, but we managed to wrap just as a major storm hit Lake Michigan!
We filmed all of these commercials using the Red Dragon 6K Camera from Red Digital Cinema and an assortment of Tokina Cinema Vista lenses from Tokina Cinema. We wanted to ensure these videos had the look and feel of a true TV commercial.
With the ability to shoot in 6K Full Frame and export in 4K, our post-production team had a lot of freedom to reframe and recut clips. Having the ability to film in a 12-bit color space also gave our team flexibility when it came time to color grading and dialing in the vibrance accordingly. Since all of the spots were filmed in exterior locations, it was important to have a 1-2 ton G&E van onsite for on-the-go lighting support. Having this type of gear readily available sets us up for success, especially when we need to set up a 12x12 on the fly to diffuse & bounce light.
04. POST-PRODUCTION, STRATEGY & DISTRIBUTION
This is where the magic happens! Vince got to work on editing, working with a Colorist/ VFX Artist (Kevin Ford) in California, a V.O. artist (Jason Renault) in Florida, and a Graphic Artist (Brendan Cunningham) in Chicago on the intro/outro graphics. Meanwhile, we pulled in our strategy distribution partner Youtech, a full-service digital marketing agency in Chicago. We soon began collaborating with them and SeaDek on the distribution strategy that would get these videos in front of the right people. It’s one thing to create high-quality content; but without a roll-out strategy, the campaign wouldn’t have achieved the success it deserved.
WATCH THE COMMERCIALS
With a staggered release beginning in October, the three commercials have been viewed more than 210,000 times via Facebook and captured more than 285,000 new organic impressions. Our Facebook campaign boosted videos for 2 weeks each to optimize for views and audience building for future campaigns. The three videos reached 157,575 new people outside of SeaDek’s network and generated 284,512 impressions. Our OTT campaign ran these videos in a targeted manner around the Ft. Lauderdale boat show. This campaign ran through an OTT provider and generated 81,535 impressions to individuals likely to be our customer target.
GO BEHIND THE SCENES
05. GRATITUDE
If we had to sum up the whole experience in one word, from initial ideation to the release of these spots, it’d be “gratitude.” We’re grateful to SeaDek for being such creative and cooperative partners. And once again, our amazing and talented crew not only brought their “A” games, but they also brought the attitudes it takes to successfully produce several high-demanding shoots. We love what we’ve created together, and we’re excited for what’s to come!
Interested in starting your creative journey with us? We’d love to hear from you. Connect with our producer John today!
