The season starts well before the date everybody has in mind, and it does not start on the same day everywhere. Two facts that decide the production calendar.
The buying window opens in August
It is longer than people think and it has two phases.
A first, preparatory purchase, based on the list supplied by the school, covering the essentials. Then a second purchase, two to three weeks after term starts, when something is missing, when an item has broken or when the child has seen what the others have.
Almost nobody produces content for that second phase, even though competition there is weak and intent is very strong.
The provinces do not share a calendar
A national campaign pegged to a single date is necessarily wrong somewhere.
Return dates, public holidays and break weeks differ from province to province. Build your calendar on the real dates of each priority market, and run staggered rather than launching everything on the same day.
The cost of that rigour is nil; the cost of the error is a week of budget spent too early or too late.
What actually sells in this season
Not only stationery.
Clothes and shoes, lunch containers, sports items, home-study equipment, childcare and activity services, and everything to do with transport.
The argument that works everywhere is the same: will it last a full school year.
Quebec and the start of term
It is not a translation, it is a shoot.
The language, the school references, the vocabulary of supplies and the calendar do not transpose. A dubbed video is heard immediately and loses the closeness you were after.
So plan one video shot in each language by somebody from there, rather than one video translated twice.
What to avoid filming
An identifiable school, a recognisable uniform, and above all children who are not those of the household.
The rules applicable to the image of minors are strict and require the written agreement of those holding parental authority, with conditions depending on the place and the intended use. They are checked before the shoot, and a doubt is resolved with a lawyer.
What gets ordered, and when
| The advertiser | Their order | When they order |
|---|---|---|
| A stationery retailer | The product in use | Six weeks ahead |
| A clothing brand | The outfit worn | Two months ahead |
| An after-school service | Enrolment explained | One month ahead |
What can be filmed with a child, and on what terms
Written parental consent, a short shoot and no identifying detail: school, name, address. These rules are not formalities, they determine whether the video can be published.
What most often goes wrong on this theme
A shoot started too late. A video delivered at the end of August arrives after the buying, and the client pays for something that never serves, which jeopardises next year's order.
Produce in June
It is the only window where everything is possible.
The creators are available, the children are still at school for context shots, and you have time to redo a video that is not right. In August, rates rise, lead times lengthen, and you buy what is left.
