Animated video production is usually a new and unfamiliar process to marketing professionals, which makes it difficult to know where to start.
To help you begin your animated video production and approach it in the right way, the team at Venture have outlined a three-step process for you to follow that will ensure you get the best results from your project.
Step 1: Writing a brief for your animation
Before you approach any potential suppliers that will be helping you with your animated video production, you should create a written brief for the project. This brief should include the following information:
Company information
- An overview of your business
- What makes your product or service special?
- How you are positioned compared to your competitors?
- Your brand guidelines
Content needs
- Why do you need video?
- What do you want to produce?
- Who is the target audience?
- How will the target audience discover and watch the video?
- What are the key messages that need to be communicated?
- Why are they important to your target audience?
- What is your budget?
- What are the deadlines and milestones for this project?
Having the answers to these questions will help you write a written brief for your animated video production. A written brief is absolutely essential when approaching the animation studios and the top video production companies. It is one of the first things they will ask for.
They will use this information to develop a proposal which answers your brief. A proposal that outlines one or more routes which will work for both your brand and audience, within the confines of your budget and timeline.
Step 2: Finding the right animation agency
Once you've written your brief for your animation, the next step is to find a suitable animation company that can help you bring your story to life. There are lots of agencies to choose between, so you'll need a list of criteria to evaluate them by. In our opinion, the following factors are a great place to start.
How good is their work?
The quality of an agency's work is a great yardstick of what they are capable of. If it looks like they are able to deliver at the level you need, this is definitely a good sign.
Taking a look at their showreel will give you a good idea of the type of work they produce. Here's ours, for reference.
Have they produced the type of video you need?
It is also helpful if they have produced the type of video you are looking to create. This tacit knowledge will be of real value in the production process and ensure common pitfalls are avoided. For example, if you are looking for a professional video, then you will want to work with a company who has a good track record of creating good aniamted videos.
Do they have any industry specialisms?
In an ideal world, the agency would also have experience in your sector. Again this can be of real value in the production process, and ensure the agency is bringing more than just their production capability to the production.
Step 3: Requesting a proposal/ quote
Once you have found a selection of potential animation agencies that you think could be a great fit for your needs, it is time to request a proposal or quote from them. Before you do so, you should consider the following points:
How many agencies should I approach?
We recommend that you approach no more than three agencies for a creative proposal. Asking for more than this, will infuriate the agencies involved in the pitching process, and make them think twice about developing a creative proposal for you. The time taken to develop a creative proposal is significant, and the internal time to develop yours must be justified. Pick 3 who you think stand out in the area you are looking for specifically. If you're looking for animated video production company, they should demonstrate great skill in that area.
How should the pitching process be run?
The best approach is to request creative proposals from the agencies that you've selected. Some of these will simply send proposals back to you, others will request presenting them to you in person. You will need to decide what you are comfortable with.
What criteria should I judge them on?
If you've followed our advice you will have made it clear in your brief exactly what you are looking for, and made it clear what is important to you. This list of criteria should make it very easy to compare the agencies and their creative proposals. It will also help you figure out more specifics, such as animated video per minute.
In addition to an agency's ability to fulfill a brief, you will also want to make sure you think you could have a great working relationship with each other. There needs to be a great fit.
Summary
By taking a look at a range of animation companies, and getting to grips with their creative process, you should find an animated animated video service which suits you perfectly.
If you're looking for a place to start, why not begin with us, Venture! We are very experienced when it comes to animated video production with experience in animated video production, motion graphics, 2D and 3D animation. Our work is of a very high standard, and we would encourage you to take a look at our portfolio.
Of course, if you would like to just find out a bit more about animated video production we would welcome any questions you might have. You can get in touch here.
