How To Create An Effective Animated Explainer Video

Explainer videos can be a really effective way of communicating a business's value proposition to prospective customers. When done well, they captivate audiences, inspire action and drive results.

Over the years, explainer videos have become incredibly popular, with most companies now having at least one of them in their marketing mix. For this reason, standing out from the crowd has become more challenging. This means the content you need to produce must be both compelling and enjoyable to watch.

To help you achieve this, we have identified a number of areas for you to consider when creating an animated explainer video:

1. Tailor your content to a specific audience

The most effective explainer videos are created with a very specific audience in mind. The story they tell is based on an audience's unique situation and needs. As such they are far more likely to connect with them on a human level and be relevant to their needs.

Whilst it is undoubtedly more cost effective to produce content which serves a range of audiences and needs, the potency of the explainer video content is usually diluted by this approach and you are unlikely to meet their needs on the level they need.

2. It's not all about you

The best explainer videos feature a two part story. A story that begins by identifying the situation or problem that the audience currently faces, and concludes with how your brand can solve the audiences problems.

All too frequently brands forget the first part of this story structure, and instead just launch into the benefits of their product or service. Without this key introductory section, a brand is unable to show their understanding for an audience's needs or situation. And the audience is less likely to connect with the story and take the next step, whatever that might be.

3. Reaching your audience

Producing a great explainer video is only half the battle. Making sure the content reaches its desired audience is incredibly important too. Whilst the majority of explainer videos are used on website homepages, there are plenty of other places where this content can be of value to your target audience too e.g. social media, trade-show stands, etc...

A clear idea of how you plan to use your explainer video is critical, right from the start. The use of your explainer video will influence which "formats" the video is produced in and "duration" the content is kept to. Social media channels such as YouTube and Instagram for example have very different advertising formats, and this needs to be considered right from the start if you want to end up with the right content.

4. Keep it on brand

An explainer video should be designed with your brand at its heart. It is a key piece of communication with prospective customers, and must complement the rest of your marketing if you are to give your target audience a consistent brand experience.

If an explainer video company is producing the content for you, you will need to share your brand guidelines with them right from the start. Their creative ideas and approaches should be based around these to ensure it fits your brand personality.

If you don't have a set of brand guidelines, you should simply share your logo and colour palette with them instead. This will give the explainer video agency a strong starting point.

5. Don't underestimate an explainer video's value

An explainer video is one of the most important investments a brand can make. It is one of the first things a prospect sees when they engage with the brand, and how they understand its value proposition. As such, it is not something to scrimp on. It is the initial step in the process that leads prospects to a working relationship with your business or brand.

Great content marketing is all about persuading an audience to think, feel or do something. For this reason, a poorly created explainer video can do a business or brand a lot of harm and damage KPIs such as lead and sales generation, whilst also affecting LPIs such as website conversion rates and bounce rates.

This is why its rarely a good idea to scrimp on the creation of explainer video content. The cost of animated explainer video production may well be a significant investment, but it is worth every penny.

6. Finding the right explainer video company

Finding the right explainer video company can be a challenging process. With so many animation studios to choose from, the process of finding and select an agency can seem daunting.

One of the first things you'll want to review is the quality of an agency's work and experience it has with the type of video you want to create. The more track record the better. It will give you a better idea of what they are capable of.

Here at Skeleton, we pride ourselves on creating high-quality explainers in a variety of industries. If you'd like to check out some of our latest work, simply click here. You'll find animations for world famous brands such as Amazon, Natwest and Airbus.

If you want to know more about explainer video production, please get in touch!