purpose of a music video

purpose of a music video 

Promotion- It used to be that videos promoted the single, which promoted the album (which was the most important part of the product). Stations like MTV and in other countries specialized programs would play them. They were cheap to play as they were promotional tools and were usually given out to stations for free. As videos grew in popularity, directors made more elaborate videos for big artists and many were established or up & coming film directors. These days the Internet has eroded record label income and music stations such as MTV play less video content, so many labels charge stations for videos now. They have become a revenue stream in themselves through iTunes and DVDs. However sites like youtube have become a new avenue for video promotion & consumer technology lets anybody make expensive looking videos for almost nothing.

Extension of income- Music videos are a good way for companies to make money; it cashes in on the success of a song, and helps to boost sales of other products linked to the singer. A music video can be sold on DVD or to other companies for broadcast, this would get money for the production company, the singer or artists featured in the song would likely get a percentage deal. Their would be repeat fees if the show was broadcast on TV. A music video extends the income of the singer-they would get money for doing the video, and from promotional duties and products.

Michael Jackson’s Thriller for instance took over $500 million in sales, no doubt boosted by its massively popular video, Jackson himself banked over $120 million. When it first aired on Top of the Pops it was played several times in the first evening. 

extension of outcome- A music video gives the company and artist numerous ways to expand its potential audience. A music video more than doubles the way a song can be accessed. A music video can be seen in many different ways- on a special DVD or blur - ay, often bundled with the soundtrack (e.g. Christmas promotions at HMV), on a Television channel, or on the internet. This ties in with publicity and other areas. People who buy a music video may not necessarily listen to music; a video can attract fans of the song or fans of the video maker, they could even design different editions to attract specific parts of the audience. A music video can connect with a wider audience than a audio track. A music video once made public can easily spread to other people, for example someone can ‘like’ a video on face-book and provide a link to it on youtube, or can spread word of it through conversations, this isn’t directly an outlet but it helps to expand the audience, music labels could make a video free to download for a small period-this ties in with publicity, then people would rush to watch it and word would spread.


Synergy- is where two products or companies combine to make a video, and use the video as a platform to give them success in their respective areas. For example a music video may be made to increase publicity for a film, but may prove successful in its own right. One example is the music video ‘You know my name’ the official video for the James Bond film Casino Royal (2006) starring and sung by Chris Cornell.
A very successful film, it helped to increase sales of the song and soundtrack for the film, the music video remains popular and has won Cornell several awards. A music video helps to provide synergy for the artist starring in it; a popular music video helps to expand their audience but also serves to increase their power in the industry. If a video is shown on YouTube for example companies may pay to advertise on the video or through product placement, this would give them synergy through the video-they would be associated with the video and hopefully improve publicity.

Producers strategy- To make a video successful a producer could use many techniques.  A music company would do audience research before the filming of the video to figure out how to market it, and how likely they are to be successful.  A producer of a music video would probably help to fund it so would have a definite idea of what direction he wanted to go in. The crew they hire for the film would also indicate what strategy they are going for- the director would have a certain technique or style which would affect the video, the producer would collabaorate closely with the artist or band in the video, helping them get what they want. 

The band or singer may even act as a producer in their own right to ensure this happens. Where and when the video is released can also effect how successful it is and how it is perceived. A producer may decide to include product placement or references to popular culture. A music video may be designed for a specific audience i.e. a Video may be designed with an Asian market in mind, so would include Asian themed costumes and props to make it more accessible to that audience. The video for the Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson song Scream was the most expensive video ever made at the time of its release and featured two of the world’s biggest stars the video was designed to illustrate this with lots of close ups of the two stars, the video also showed their famous dance moves and reinforced their image in the public’s eyes.