Agree or not, the sole driver of any business is convenience. And to ensure maximum profits, this convenience should be reflected in every aspect of your company. You must ensure that your target audience finds value in the very introduction of your brand and services. But how? Well, there are many options for you out there, with video explainers among the most effective ones. And that’s not just a statement.
According to statistics, 90% of customers find short video explainers helpful in making decisions, with videos less than 15 seconds shared 37% more often than longer ones. And as of now, about 95% of businesses are using video explainers (in various styles) as a primary marketing tool.
But the question is, why are these videos still popular today when there are so many options available at your disposal? Luckily, we have a whole article dedicated to answering this.
So let’s walk through it together!
How Do You Know If A Video is A Video Explainer?
A video explainer is pretty easy to identify due to certain distinguishing elements, given as follows:
1. It’s short
It is mainly used for brand and product awareness. As the main point is to get the message across, the video tends to be as short and detailed as possible, with intriguing content that makes the viewer watch to the end.
2. It emphasizes problems and solutions.
It will refer to your problems from the very first second from different angles. And once you’re completely immersed in the video, you are presented with a solution from the specific brand.
3. It’s entertaining and detailed.
Keeping the audience engaged is one of the main goals of the video explainer. It entertainingly presents different scenarios, usually in the form of a story. This increases the chances of the targeted audience ultimately falling into the company’s conversion funnel after watching the video.
4. It’s brand-oriented
A video explainer uniquely presents the brand in every part; it ensures that the brand is endorsed without giving the “feeling” to the audience. That way, the video remains relevant to the user’s intent while fully reflecting the brand message through helpful content.
5. It contains a strong call-to-action.
After fully delivering the brand’s message, a video explainer gives the audience a solid call-to-action. If the video is persuasive enough, it is most likely to increase your conversion rate by a huge margin.
Why Are Video Explainers Still Relevant Today?
Such videos have been around for quite a while now, and their use is even increasing over time. About 88% of business owners are satisfied with the ROI of video explainers, with more than 90% of businesses currently using it in their marketing strategy, compared to 57% back in 2013. So the question is, what makes video explainers relevant or even trendy today? Perhaps the following facts will be enough to make you understand:
- A video explainer has the potential to break down complicated ideas in a simple; step-by-step guide. This, when combined with interesting and detailed visuals, makes it easy for the audience to digest and retain the provided knowledge. According to research, the human brain is able to process visual information 60000 times faster than text.
- As stated, about 90% of consumers prefer videos over text, so there’s more chance for the video to get viral when backed up by an effective marketing strategy. According to data collected by G2.com, video explainers generate 1200% more shares than text and image content combined.
- Video explainers are incredibly engaging and informative due to visually pleasing aesthetics, script, and characters. Besides, they are equally versatile and can be used at different stages of the sales funnel. This makes them an integral part of a company’s overall marketing campaign.
- They work great for every business and industry. As they are mostly script and character-driven, you can always find ways to reverberate your company’s narrative in the form of relatable story.
Making A Video Explainer
Already interested in making a video explainer for your brand? Perhaps you should reach out to an excellent video production company to do that for you. It’s a pretty long and complex process that requires high skill and experience. Since animation and video production studios have a whole team dedicated to each task, you will rest assured that the final product will be high quality. For general information, the following steps are involved in creating a compelling video explainer:
1. Research
Research and understanding of industry and audience is a critical part of video explainers. The client needs to share every detail regarding the targeted audience, industry, and demands. After getting the basic idea, the animation company starts researching and developing different ideas regarding content strategy.
2. Scriptwriting
After a deep understanding of the audience and the product/service, the next step is scriptwriting, which is handled by a highly creative team. It is concise and tailor-made to hit the tingling spots of the audience, in compliance with the results obtained from research.
3. Style frames creation
Once the script is complete, the next step is making style frames to be used in the video. This is one of the most important processes. It will give you an idea about the video’s visuals and what you should expect as a final product. You can also request changes here.
4. Storyboard presentation
After you approve of the style frames and overall visuals involved in the video, you will be presented with a storyboard that demonstrates how the story will proceed in a step by step manner. You can make revisions here as per your needs. It ensures that there’s a minimum hassle when the video making begins.
5. Voiceover recording, animation, and sound compiling.
When all the aforementioned formalities are done and the company gets a green signal from your side, the production team will get to the video making process. It involves voice-over recording (of your choice) followed by animation. In the end, the video is filled with pleasing background music and interesting sound effects to give it a lively feel.
Styles of Video Explainers You Can Use
Although there are countless styles of video explainers that you can choose from, the following are some of the most popular and effective ones you can confidently use for your business:
- 2D animated video explainers
- 3D animated video explainers
- Motion graphics video explainers
- Whiteboard animation video explainers
- Live-action video explainers
- Screencast video explainers
- Kinetic typography explainer
Qualities to Look For in A Video Explainer Company
There are thousands of video production companies selling their services online. So as you consider your options, ask yourself some questions and see if any of them has the following qualities:
- Is the company well-reputed and experienced in making videos for your type of industry? If yes, then half of your worries are already gone. However, those with significant experience in making video explainers for closely related industries and favorable customer feedback can also be a good option.
- Does the company possess expertise in live-action or animation? This primarily depends on your needs. However, animation is quite popular these days for its cost-effectiveness.
- Can the company handle your workload? If your video marketing campaign is of a considerable volume, going for a bigger company is always a better option.
- What are the revision costs? As the video-making process consists of trial and error, those with reasonable revision costs are ideal.
- Check online reviews of past customers and portfolio samples on their website to confirm the quality and credibility of the company’s services.
Using Video Explainers in Your Marketing Funnel
Your marketing funnel, as you may well know, comprises three stages:
- Top
- Middle
- Bottom
Since each of these stages has different requirements and roles in persuading the leads, here’s how you can use different video explainers at different levels:
1. Video explainers at the top of the funnel
At this stage of the funnel, you need to develop awareness among the audience and get them interested in your brand. In other words, here, explainers are used to generate leads. Using the following tactics will increase your chances at this stage:
- Producing helpful/educational videos on topics your target audience may watch and integrate some hints of your brand within the video.
- Making videos that promote the aims and mission of your brand and what it stands for.
- Creating videos that effectively present your product to a general audience
2. Video explainers at the middle of the funnel
At this stage of the funnel, the audience is aware of your product and is considering you as an option, along with many others. To make sure that the audience moves to the bottom, your explainers should be:
- Focusing on the salient features of your product/service and how your brand stands out.
- Including some case studies where your products/services helped people.
- Including testimonials
- Showing Interviews of your past customers.
3. Video explainers at the bottom of the funnel
At this stage, you’ve already successfully persuaded customers to buy your product. Your videos here should just concentrate on “how your service/product works,” etc. Here’s what you can do here:
- Making FAQ videos that clarify the process
- Making personalized videos that solely concentrates on customer needs
- Creating videos that contain detailed information about using your product/service
Things to know before making a video explainer.
Video explainers will decide the whole direction of your marketing campaign. Therefore, understanding some tidbits before you jump into the process won’t be a bad idea. Following are some of the necessary factors you should keep into account as you proceed towards making this type of video:
- Understanding your target audience, their watching habits, and their interests is the key. This helps in increasing user engagement.
- Know their problems. This will help in relating with them at a deeper level and create a sense of understanding. As they say, think like a customer, sell like a salesperson!
- The script is everything. To make sure it’s attractive enough, consult someone inside your company/industry rather than an outsider. It will ensure that the script connects with the audience at a deeper level.
- Know where to market it, and then develop a strategy accordingly. Your SEO team will play a massive role in making your content visible on different platforms.
- Keep the video concise. Remember, you’re dealing with an audience with the attention span of a goldfish.
- Include the key message and value proposition in the first 30 seconds of the video.
- And finally, keep your budget in check and act accordingly. Usually, well-reputed companies will charge you more.
Summary
Despite being quite old, video explainers continue to be in trend and remain an integral part of every marketing strategy. And if we look closely at the statistics, the use of such videos only seems to be increasing in the future as the world moves towards convenience. Besides, everyone loves them for their concision, clarity, and ability to engage. So if you’re thinking about leveling up your marketing approach, now might be a good time to consider using a video explainer.
Summing up our article on this note, don’t forget to explore our blog for more such content if you found it helpful. Until next time!