Study commercials and make note of their three-act structure. A commercial presents a problem, advances a solution, and provides reinforcement and/or validation that the solution was a smart one. Example: A woman panics that her disapproving mother-in-law is coming for a surprise visit. The house is a mess and there's no way she can clean it in time. Solution: a disinfectant "bomb" that can miraculously sanitize and sparkle everything in only 45 minutes and also give it a yummy, apple-blossom scent. She uses the product, the mother-in-law compliments her on what a wonderful housekeeper she is, and the inference is drawn that they will now have a more harmonious relationship.
Identify the positive attributes of the product. Examine how the absence of this particular product could impact the lifestyle, self-esteem, economics or safety of your target demographic. The strategy of many commercials is to point out a problem consumers may not even know they have until they're presented with a comparison that favors the product being pitched.
Determine the characters and settings will best sell your product. Commercials often are all about minimalism; specifically, small casts, few props and only 1-3 backdrop locations. For a commercial to resonate, the context must be instantly relatable to the viewer. It's for this reason that lots of commercials hawking baby food, cleaning supplies, microwave meals, medications, and pet products take place in home environment. Many commercials tie in to imagery associated with pop culture (i.e., movies, music, art) or historical figures viewers will immediately recognize.
Create an outline that identifies the visual elements of your commercial and the monologue/dialogue that will be spoken by your actors.
Open a new document in Word, set your margins for one inch on each side, set single-spaced lines, and choose a 12-point font that's easy to read (i.e., Courier, Times New Roman). Create two side-by-side columns by clicking on "Page Layout" at the top of the toolbar. Label the top of your left-hand column "Video" and the top of your right-hand column "Audio."
Use a compelling hook that poses a provocative question or cites a startling statistic that viewers should pay attention to. Play on the concept of illusion by displaying an opening image that hints of the exotic or mysterious and then pulls back to reveal something totally ordinary (i.e., a toilet bowl).
Type your first video scene in all caps in the left-hand column. Type the corresponding audio elements for each scene in upper and lower case in the right-hand column directly across from it. An example can be found at cybercollege.com/commerc.htm.
Incorporate sound effects and music to enhance your commercial's message.