What Makes an Effective Movie Trailer?

Trailers should set up the basic premise of the film. They should include enough information on the plot so that the audience can know what to expect in the film. Trailers should aim to make the audience want to know more about the film so that they will view it when it is released. This is often achieved through the use of cliff hangers.

Film trailers should be very polished and include the story of the film in a highly condensed and concise manner, as over the years the industry has become more competitive and therefore companies seem to have been increasing the quality of trailers for an effective advertising technique. The trailer should make the audience want to know the rest of the story; it should excite and entice the audience without giving away crucial plot points in the film. Parts of the narrative will often be explained so that the audience can know what to expect from the film but they will also be left speculating. Film trailers often have a structure of three parts. The beginning (the plot is laid out), the middle (the story is developed and the best parts are shown), and the final part (a montage of scenes with a soundtrack which leave the audience wanting more).

A huge factor that gets the audience hooked immediately is dialogue between characters. Voice overs are also used but character dialogue engages the audience more.