Commercials have changed.

They aren't just 30-second spots that run between TV shows anymore. Today, a single commercial video might live on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, a company's website, a paid advertising campaign, a sales presentation, or a giant screen at a trade show.

The platforms keep changing. The formats keep changing. The algorithms definitely keep changing.

Good storytelling doesn't.

As a full-service video production company, we've worked on everything from product videos and social campaigns to corporate commercials and brand films. And we've found that the most effective commercials aren't necessarily the ones with the biggest budgets.

They're the ones built around the right idea.

So if you're wondering what type of commercial is right for your business, here are 10 formats worth considering—and when each one makes the most sense.

1. The Story-Driven Commercial

The product doesn't always need to be the star.

Sometimes, the best way to sell something is to tell a story that makes people care first.

A story-driven commercial follows a character, situation, or idea through some kind of transformation. The brand becomes part of that story rather than interrupting it.

Why it works

People remember stories far better than lists of features.

A good story creates tension, emotion, humor, curiosity, or some combination of all four. It gives your audience a reason to keep watching before they even know where the commercial is going.

Best for

• Brand awareness

• Brand films

• Consumer brands

• Nonprofits

• Recruitment campaigns

• Companies launching a new brand or product

The key

Don't make the brand the hero just because it's your brand.

Give the audience someone or something to care about. Let the product or service become the reason the story can happen.

That's when a commercial starts feeling less like an advertisement and more like something people actually want to watch.

2. The Problem/Solution Commercial

This is one of the most straightforward types of commercials—and for good reason.

Here's the problem. Here's why it sucks. Here's the solution.

Simple.

A problem/solution commercial identifies a pain point quickly and demonstrates how your product or service solves it.

Why it works

Clarity sells.

If your audience already knows they have a problem, you don't need to spend 60 seconds convincing them that the problem exists. Show it. Then show what happens when your product enters the picture.

Best for

• SaaS companies

• Healthcare

• Home services

• Financial services

• B2B companies

• Consumer products

• Service businesses

This format can work especially well for 15- and 30-second commercials, paid social ads, YouTube pre-roll, and other direct-response campaigns.

The trick is not overcomplicating it.

Show the problem. Show the solution. Make the difference obvious.

3. The Product-as-Hero Commercial

Sometimes, your product is interesting enough to carry the entire commercial.

This is where a product video and a traditional commercial can overlap.

Instead of building a complicated narrative around the product, the production is designed around making the product look, feel, and perform as well as possible.

Think cinematic lighting. Macro detail. Slow motion. Motion control. Creative camera movement. Sound design. Beautiful environments.

Why it works

Some products don't need an explanation.

They need to be seen.

A beautifully designed product can create desire before a single feature is mentioned.

Best for

• Consumer products

• Technology

• Automotive

• Beauty

• Food and beverage

• Medical devices

• Luxury products

• Consumer electronics

The goal isn't simply to document the product.

The goal is to make someone want it.

4. The Testimonial Commercial

Sometimes the most convincing person to talk about your company isn't your CEO.

It's your customer.

Testimonial commercials put real customers, clients, employees, or partners at the center of the story.

And there's a big difference between a testimonial that feels like an interview and one that feels like a commercial.

The latter is carefully crafted around a story.

Why it works

Trust is difficult to manufacture.

Hearing someone explain what your product actually did for them is often more powerful than hearing your marketing department explain it.

A strong testimonial combines an interview with thoughtful B-roll, visual storytelling, product footage, and carefully constructed editing.

Best for

• B2B companies

• Healthcare

• Education

• Professional services

• SaaS

• Recruitment

• Client success campaigns

For B2B brands in particular, testimonial videos can do double duty: they can build brand credibility while also giving sales teams a powerful asset to send to prospective clients.

5. The Aspirational Lifestyle Commercial

You're not always selling the product.

Sometimes you're selling the person someone becomes because they own the product.

That's the idea behind an aspirational lifestyle commercial.

Instead of explaining every feature, these commercials create a world your audience wants to enter.

Think fitness brands, automotive campaigns, fashion, luxury goods, travel, hospitality, and lifestyle products.

Why it works

People buy more than functionality.

They buy identity.

The right commercial can make someone think:

"That's the kind of life I want."

And suddenly, the product becomes part of that picture.

Best for

• Automotive

• Fashion

• Luxury

• Fitness

• Hospitality

• Beauty

• Travel

• Lifestyle brands

These commercials tend to rely heavily on cinematography, production design, music, casting, locations, and pacing.

In other words, this is where production quality really matters.

6. The Explainer Commercial

Some products are easy to understand.

Others absolutely are not.

If your audience needs a few minutes—or even a few seconds—to understand what you actually do, an explainer commercial can be one of the most effective types of video advertising.

The goal is simple:

Take something complicated and make it easy to understand.

Why it works

Confusion kills conversions.

If someone doesn't understand your product, they aren't going to buy it.

Explainer videos can use live action, animation, motion graphics, screen recordings, product demonstrations, voiceover, or a combination of all of them.

Best for

• SaaS

• Technology

• Fintech

• Healthcare

• Education

• B2B

• Professional services

A good explainer doesn't try to explain everything.

It explains the thing your audience needs to understand to take the next step.

7. The UGC-Style Commercial

Not every commercial needs to look like a commercial.

In fact, sometimes making a video look too polished can work against you.

UGC—or user-generated content—has become a major part of modern advertising because it feels native to the platforms where people are already spending their time.

Think vertical video, handheld cameras, direct-to-camera delivery, casual environments, quick cuts, and authentic reactions.

Why it works

People are used to being advertised to.

UGC-style content doesn't always feel like advertising.

It feels like someone recommending something to you.

Best for

• Ecommerce

• Social media campaigns

• Product launches

• Beauty

• Food and beverage

• Consumer technology

• Lifestyle brands

And there's an important distinction:

UGC-style doesn't necessarily mean low quality.

You can create content that feels spontaneous while still having professional lighting, sound, direction, cinematography, and editing behind the scenes.

8. The Micro-Drama Commercial

What if your commercial was basically a short film?

That's the idea behind the micro-drama.

You have a character. A situation. A conflict. A payoff.

And you have roughly 30–60 seconds to make it work.

Why it works

People don't owe your commercial their attention.

You have to earn it.

A micro-drama creates an immediate reason to keep watching because the viewer wants to know what happens next.

Best for

• Brand campaigns

• Consumer brands

• PSAs

• Social media

• Product launches

• Brand awareness

• Humor-driven campaigns

The best ones don't feel like commercials until the end.

They're entertaining first.

Then the brand connection lands.

9. The Funny Commercial

Humor is difficult.

It's also incredibly effective when you get it right.

Funny commercials take something your audience recognizes—an annoying problem, an everyday situation, an industry cliché—and exaggerate it.

The result is something entertaining that people actually remember.

Why it works

People share things that make them laugh.

More importantly, humor gives your brand a personality.

A company selling software doesn't have to sound like software.

A financial company doesn't have to look like a financial company.

And a B2B brand doesn't have to make boring B2B commercials.

Best for

• Challenger brands

• Startups

• Consumer brands

• B2B companies

• Social campaigns

• Product launches

The important part is that the joke should serve the brand.

Funny for funny's sake isn't a strategy.

The humor should reinforce what makes your company different.

10. The Visual-Only Commercial

No voiceover.

No talking heads.

No explanation.

Just visuals, music, sound design, and editing.

Sometimes that's all you need.

A visual-only commercial lets cinematography and sound carry the story. It can be especially powerful when the product itself is visually interesting or when the goal is to create a feeling rather than explain a concept.

Why it works

We're surrounded by information all day.

Sometimes the best way to get someone's attention is to stop explaining everything.

Let the images do the work.

Best for

• Automotive

• Fashion

• Food

• Hospitality

• Events

• Luxury brands

• Art and entertainment

• Brand films

This approach puts a lot of pressure on the production.

If there isn't dialogue to carry the story, every frame matters.

The lighting matters.

The camera movement matters.

The music matters.

The sound design matters.

The edit matters.

That's what makes visual storytelling so powerful—and so difficult to fake.

So, Which Type of Commercial Is Right for Your Brand?

There isn't one answer.

A SaaS company might need an explainer video for its website, a testimonial campaign for sales, and a series of UGC-style ads for social media.

An automotive company might need a cinematic product commercial.

A hospitality brand might benefit from an aspirational lifestyle film.

A manufacturer might need a combination of product demonstrations, customer testimonials, and brand storytelling.

And sometimes the best commercial combines several of these formats.

That's where the creative strategy comes in.

Before we talk about cameras, locations, or production budgets, we ask a more important question:

What does this video actually need to accomplish?

Is the goal brand awareness?

More sales?

Product education?

A stronger social presence?

Helping your sales team close deals?

Launching something new?

Building trust?

Once we know the answer, the format becomes much easier to determine.

Commercial Video Production Is More Than Making Something Look Good

A great commercial needs to look good.

But that's only the beginning.

The strongest commercial video production combines creative direction, cinematography, sound design, editing, motion graphics, and storytelling with an actual business objective.

That's the difference between making a video and making a piece of marketing.

At Lasso, we work with brands to develop the concept, write the script, plan the production, shoot the footage, and bring everything together in post-production.

And because one commercial rarely lives in one place anymore, we can build the production around the entire content ecosystem—long-form commercials, social media cutdowns, product videos, paid ads, website content, and more.

One shoot. More content. More ways to use it.

Looking for a Commercial Video Production Company?

Whether you're looking for a cinematic brand film, product video, testimonial, explainer, social media campaign, or traditional commercial, the right creative approach starts with understanding what you're trying to accomplish.

Lasso is a full-service video production company based in New Jersey and New York City, working with brands across the country and around the world.

If you're ready to make something people actually want to watch, let's talk.

Explore our work or get in touch with the Lasso team to start building your next commercial.