SaaS commercials, made from a brief
A commercial for your software: the problem, the product on screen, the result, and a sign-up call to action. Free storyboard, pay once per ad.
What a SaaS video ad needs to show
- The problem moment, in one picture: a person at a desk, a pile of email, a spreadsheet that will not add up.
- Your product on a real screen. Generated footage cannot draw your real interface, so a screenshot or a short screen recording, uploaded to your media library on a paid plan and picked in the brief, becomes the product shot that shows it.
- The result: what is different for that person ten minutes later.
- One fact you can prove. A number of customers, a rating, a time saved. The storyboard writer is told to use only the facts in your brief; read every line before you approve.
- A call to action, which is what you ask people to do at the end, like "Start free at brightdesk.com", and the web address.
A 30-second SaaS commercial, beat by beat
Most good 30-second software ads follow this plan. It is practice, not a rule, and the storyboard (a shot-by-shot plan with a picture for most shots) shows you yours before you pay.
| What | Seconds | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Hook | 0 to 3 | The problem moment, up close: the first two seconds that make someone stay. A push-in, the camera moving slowly closer, on the pile of work. |
| Problem | 3 to 8 | Two shots of the pain: the clock, the person sighing. The AI spokesperson, a realistic presenter who says your lines on camera, can carry this. |
| Meet the product | 8 to 12 | Your screen recording or screenshot, with the product name on screen. |
| How it helps | 12 to 22 | Three or four shots: the screen doing the job, a result, the person with time back. B-roll, the footage that plays while someone talks. |
| Proof | 22 to 26 | One fact you gave us, on screen. |
| Call to action and end card | 26 to 30 | The end card, the last screen with your name and what to do next. |
What to put in your brief
- What the product does, in one short sentence.
- Who uses it: a job, not a market segment. "Owners of small online shops" beats "SMB e-commerce".
- The problem they have before they find you.
- One screenshot or a 20-second screen recording, uploaded to your media library and picked in the brief.
- The exact call to action and the web address.
Which format fits
For a feed on Meta, LinkedIn or YouTube, a short video ad: a 15-second cut, vertical or square, built around the problem and the screen. For your website, a sales page or YouTube ads that play before a video (pre-roll), a 30-second or 60-second commercial in wide 16:9. Every commercial is delivered in all three shapes from one approval, so pick the length first and the shape takes care of itself.
15-second social ad
0:15Short enough for a feed, long enough for a problem, a product and a reason to tap.
- Hook 0–2 s
- Problem 2–4 s
- Product reveal 4–7 s
- Benefit 7–11 s
- Offer and call to action 11–15 s
60-second story
1:00Someone with a problem finds your product and life gets better.
- Open 0–5 s
- Character and problem 5–18 s
- Discovery 18–25 s
- Demo montage 25–42 s
- Result 42–50 s
- Proof 50–54 s
- End card 54–60 s
The times are the storyboard's. The finished file also opens on a short title card with your title and logo, and closes on a card where the voice says your call to action, what you ask people to do next. Those cards are not billed.
What it costs
A software commercial costs the same as any other here: the storyboard is free and you pay once, for the finished length, when you approve it. After someone signs up they need to learn the product. That is a how-to video, not a commercial, and our sister product howtovideos.ai makes those.
Commercials open soon
Email us and we will tell you the price before anyone pays.
Commercials aren't taking new orders right now. Email support@customcommercials.ai and we'll tell you when they open.
Email us- Done-for-you, taken together (human creators, AI services, freelancers): $60 to $250 per ad (billo.app pricing, checked November 4, 2026).
- Small agency or production company: $5,000 to $50,000 and up per 30-second commercial (vidico.com, video production cost, checked November 4, 2026).
Commercials open soon
We are not taking new orders yet. Email us and we will tell you when they open, and what the price is before anyone pays.
Questions
How do you show software in a commercial?
With your real screen. Add one screenshot or a short screen recording to your media library and pick it in the brief; it becomes the product shot, with the product name on screen. Generated footage carries the people and the places around it; it cannot draw your interface, so we never pretend to.
How long should a SaaS ad be?
Fifteen seconds for a feed, where people scroll; 30 seconds for YouTube ads that play before a video (pre-roll) and your website; 60 seconds when you want to tell a story about one customer. Say which in the brief.
Can the ad show my real screens?
Yes. Upload a screenshot or a screen recording to your media library (uploading your own media needs a paid plan) and pick it in the brief. It becomes the product shot. A photo or screenshot is cropped to fill a wide frame (and again for vertical and square), so use a landscape image with the product in the middle, or a screen recording, which is shown whole on a blurred backdrop. Text inside generated footage comes from our on-screen titles, not from the video model, and the storyboard writer is told not to show readable screens, so check every B-roll preview still before you approve.
What does a SaaS commercial cost?
A set price for each format and finished length, shown on the storyboard before you pay, with the storyboard free. For comparison, a done-for-you ad from a creator, an AI service or a freelancer runs $60 to $250, and an agency charges $5,000 to $50,000 and up for a 30-second spot (checked November 4, 2026).