MF: Say I'm an independent filmmaker who has just completed a film. And, odds are that my budget is just about out. What is the submission process like? How easy is it for me to post my film on CustomFlix, and Amazon?
DP: Setting up a title on CustomFlix is easy. Just follow these easy steps below.
STEP 1: Create a CustomFlix Account
To create a CustomFlix account, visit www.customflix.com and click “create new account” at the top of the page to start the self-guided process. Your CustomFlix member account allows you to manage all aspects of your account from adding a new title to viewing your existing account information.
STEP 2: Create Your Title Listing
To create your title listing, first sign into your member account. Next, click “Add New Title” and follow the instructions on the pages. You will be asked to provide a description about your title as well as other basic information. If you request special services, such as authoring, you will be prompted to inform us at this time.
STEP 3: Upload Your Artwork
- Provide Your Own Artwork
If you already have artwork for your DVD or CD, simply upload this artwork to our database using your member account. DVD artwork includes the cover of the DVD case, the DVD disc face, and the DVD menu. CD artwork includes the two sided tray card, the CD disc face, and a four page cover booklet. You may change your artwork at any time.
- Need Artwork?
If you would like artwork created for you, CustomFlix’s graphic designers are ready to help. Please contact a CustomFlix representative or visit the CustomFlix website for additional information.
STEP 4: Send Us a Copy of Your Master
Before you send us your materials, make sure to label all contents with your Title ID before sending them to CustomFlix. This is a six-digit number assigned to you by our system during the title setup process.
You should send your materials using a traceable shipping method such as FedEx, UPS, or DHL to the CustomFlix Corporate Headquarters. Once we have received your materials, you will be notified by e-mail.
STEP 5: Approve Your Proof
Once we receive your disc and your title information has been completed in your member account, we will send you a proof copy to ensure you’re satisfied with the final product before your CustomFlix E-Store and/or Amazon.com Retail Page goes live. This proof is exactly what your customers will receive so be sure to examine it carefully. Once you’ve received and reviewed your proof, log on to your member account to approve it.
STEP 6: Sell on CustomFlix and/or Amazon.com
- Sell on CustomFlix
Your title's E-Store is hosted on www.CustomFlix.com, but it may be customized to align with the aesthetic of your own website, to give your customers a more seamless shopping experience. Many CustomFlix Members focus their marketing efforts on driving customer traffic to their E-Store.
- Sell on Amazon.com
By selling your title on Amazon.com you can gain access to tens of millions of customers. Through our Amazon.com Retail program, your title will be listed on Amazon.com just like any other DVD or CD available there. Features such as Browse, Search, and Recommendations will enable shoppers to discover your title.
STEP 7: Receive Royalties for Titles Sold
At the end of each month, you will receive royalties for titles sold through your CustomFlix E-Store and/or your Amazon.com Retail page. CustomFlix keeps a small fee for each unit sold. This fee decreases with the more units you sell. Amazon.com uses a revenue share percentage to determine royalties. For more information about unit fees and revenue share, just view the price list on the CustomFlix website.
MF: And for the more ambitious filmmakers out there - tell us about what you offer in the way of "Special Edition" and Multi-Disc sets for films.
DP: Of course! We offer both multi-disc sets and multi-case collections. A multi-disc set can contain up to four discs in the same DVD case. A multi-case collection consists of multiple DVD cases which are sold together as one unit. Each DVD case in the collection may be a normal single-disc title or a multi-disc set.
MF: Let's say I'm a filmmaker who just completed a film, but I haven't authored a DVD myself. Sometimes there just isn’t money left to author a DVD, especially if the filmmaker doesn’t own an editing system of his/her own. Can they still get the film posted on CustomFlix?
DP:Yes, we do offers professional video digitization and DVD authoring for content owners and filmmakers who wish to turn their tapes into high-quality DVDs. All tapes are professionally digitized and stored in the CustomFlix Future-Proof Archive™ service, a secure storage and formatting platform that allows content to be repurposed into future digital formats.
MF: Marketing is crucial to the success of every movie. While it’s terrific to have the film available to a worldwide audience, the challenge becomes making the worldwide audience aware of the film. What does CustomFlix do to help market the films in its catalog?
DP: All films in the CustomFlix catalog can be sold on Amazon.com for maximum exposure among tens of millions of potential shoppers. We have also found that most filmmakers know their audience best so they take the lead on behalf of promoting their titles to their target audience. As a result, we’ve seen our members be successful for many different reasons.
Most filmmakers create target marketing campaigns, reaching out to their potential customers. Offering titles through multiple channels is also wise because it gives more exposure to DVDs and with CustomFlix DVD on Demand, filmmakers can reach a worldwide audience of millions on Amazon.com, through a CustomFlix E-Store, on their own website, or even all at the same time. CustomFlix Members who choose to sell on Amazon.com can also take advantage of Amazon.com’s automated discovery and recommendation features to direct interested customers to detailed pages about their title.
CustomFlix Members can promote their titles in all sorts of ways – some have been lucky enough to be featured on Oprah while others have created co-branded products recognizing that consumers often value and frequently purchase mixed media products. For example, one of our members, Joel Harper, leveraged the recent success of a best selling book "You On a Diet: The Owner's Manual for Waist Management" with a compelling DVD “You on a Diet Workout.” He wisely anticipated that a supplementary, co-branded product could strengthen sales for both titles – and he was right. The book reached No. 1 and the DVD hit No. 7 in sales ranking on Amazon.com simultaneously.
