Budget Explainer Videos

During the 90s, having a website was a status symbol for many companies rather than understanding the importance of it. As time and technology made advancement and the people got educated about the facts and figures of website, that’s when websites became compulsory.

Standing at the dawn of social media interaction, websites started having more interactive content like video which is an integral part of communication. During 2009- 2010 there was the onset of these peppy animated explainer videos. It was a costly affair then and a big company only was thinking of getting one done for them. There were a few agencies that made hefty bucks at that time, but no more!

Affordable Animated Explainer Video

At this point of time the tale has changed. There are quite a few good companies out there in the market. Their charges are reasonable (neither high like $10K, nor trashy like half K). So, a simple-short-cute-animated explainer is affordable.

You should actually know for what all you are paying the prices. The production of explainer videos does not require a huge studio with huge manpower, and at the same time an individual is not multi-talented in 6 different ways. A good video demands versatile talents working together. Here is quick look at it.

Explainer Videos Within Budget

You need people who understands your product and the motto of making the video and then come up with a script. They are typically Script writers. You need a Visualiser who develops the look and feel of the video and an Illustrator to do the Storyboarding- a typical role for the Art Director. There should be an Animator who will do the animation or motion graphics. A voice over artist to do the narration with a sound editing and synching expert. And finally a music and sound mixer.

Seek for one stop studio where all these 5 things are dealt in-house, so that you do not have to run around in 5 different places with 5 individuals. This will ultimately save you money, time and headache.

Make sure your video works and doesn’t go to trash. So don’t opt for a cheap service. Love your product and at the same time respect your money. A neat, smart, meaningful and effective video can be made with a very reasonable budget. Do your research well. If the price fits your pocket, first and foremost: go through the artist’s or studio’s portfolio. Take review from their past clients. A confident one should be ready to share that too!

Explainer Video Making Process

Planning to make an animated Explainer Video for your product/service explanation? Your research must be on – to understand several criteria before you invest in that. The 2 most obvious things that come into your mind are:

1. What is the process and time involved in production?

2.  How much does it cost?

Well, today we will answer your first question. It is a simple 7 step production process and starts with a round of discussion.

Step 1: (DISCOVERY DISCUSSION)

In this discussion session your product or services are discovered. This Video Discovery Brief is very important because targeted questions are asked that are used to find out your company's story for the video.

Step 1: The Discussion Round in Making of Explainer Video

Step 2: (SCRIPT or STORY)

After the discovery session, the script writer goes through and understands the brief. All the data that have been dumped, the cream of the information is funneled to create a crisp script.

In simple terms, the script is a story, combining of narrator’s script with the actions that are going to happen along with it.

Step 2: The Script Development of Explainer Video Production

Step 3: (STYLE and STORYBOARD)

Style: How do you want your video to look? Will it have stick characters? Would you love some goofy looks? Or a more corporate icon character? Choose a style and then go onto the Storyboard illustration based on this style.

Step 3: Choose a Video Style in Step 3

In the Storyboarding phase, the written script that tells the narrative story gets developed in illustrated form. All the key scenes/shots will be illustrated which later will be animated in the video.

Step 3: The Storyboarding Round

Step 4: (VOICE OVER RECORDING)

Choose from the male and female voice-over actors. Voice-over of the script is recorded in a professional recording studio with sound engineers to clean-up and edit the multiple takes.

Step 4: Voice Over Recording for the Explainer Video

Step 5: (ANIMATION and MOTION GRAPHICS)

Animation (giving motion to the static illustration) is developed around the video storyboard.

Step 5: The Animation Round

Step 6: (SOUND and MUSIC)

On the animated video sound effects and music gets added.

Step 6: The Editing Round for Explainer Video Production Process

Step 7: (RENDER and DELIVERY)

Your shiny new Explainer video is delivered in any rendered file format needed.

Step 8: The Final Step in the Animated Explainer Video Making Process

What is The Need of a Video in Your Website Home Page???

Many of you, who are reading this blog, are either making your first website or product launch or you are revamping your site according to some marketing strategy needs.

Of late, videos have started becoming a part of the websites. You know, ‘The Home Page Video’ which explains your product and services just in a matter of minute.

Well, so before you make one for your product or site, have you asked yourself--- do you really need one? And if so, what message the video is going to give? What purpose is it going to solve?

It could be so that you just need it for the sake of doing it because everybody else is doing it. Then we suggest NOT to do it at all!! Because these product videos or explanatory videos serve a purpose and can really bring you results if you can create it beautifully and channelize it tactfully. So, if you are doing it for no good reason, then your video just lies idle and later you keep asking yourself ‘do you really need one???’

Hmmm… so before you plan a home page video for your website, do these question answer session. Take a call with your marketers and sales guys, discuss with them, know their social media and market strategies, etc, etc. You will know their difficulties and then you will understand what message the website home page video is going to give! You will know what purpose the videos are going to solve and accordingly tell your creative agency to write a story and do the video on those lines.

If you do these short rounds with your team or even with yourself, your video does not get lost. It tells exactly what it wants to say and a video on your home page makes so much more sense!

Here is a short video from team an-e-motion! Hope you enjoy!!

A Homepage Video for your Website

Video – The Marketing Tool Through Sharing

Pretty much everybody on earth, whoever is creating something, producing something or making something is so eager to know how his product is! We always knew we are working with a very exceptional idea and we wanted to share this grand idea with the globe for appreciation and the sense of accomplishments. But it has always been so difficult to get across the pool of people out there.

There was a time when the world dragged itself somehow without the trend of every individual feeling special. Only a handful raised the toast and fewer stars shined. Thanks to our stars! Gone are those days. Came Facebook and we are saved. Sharing!!! Is the way for it. Sharing is so important for any talented individual, brands and businesses.

And now posed the biggest question: What are you going to share???  Well, we knew that your idea is already great, no doubt in that. But just by posting a simple content, are you going to win over the mass? How much ever great your idea is, until and unless it is presented well, public appreciation boils down.

Let’s come to the point more openly. Many things get shared across the social media. Namely, Art and Entertainment, Music, Games, Investment and Finance, Health and Science. The order at which it is written is also ranked according to that. In actual, Art and Entertainment gets mostly shared. Ever questioned yourself why does Videos get mostly shared? It is for this simple fact that Videos has got artistic or entertaining or fun elements in them.

But what if your Product, Brand or Business is not into Art and Entertainment?????? What will you do?????  Simple. Explain your Idea, Product or Service through Art and Entertainment. It will get told. It will get SHARED!!  Viral Videos simply does not happen. Put a bit of Art, Caricature and Entertainment into it to make it happen. Round it up all and you will get something called Animation. Animation videos simply have the capability to do this.

So the Mantra is: Whether you have a software product, an e-commerce service, finance package or a health care instrument-----take the route of explaining through entertaining animation video and walk the red carpet in limelight. Feel happy to see your video getting SHARED and you know the rest are going to follow!!!

What is an Animated Explanation or an Animated Explanatory Video?

Animated Explanation for your Product

In all these while, have you ever stumbled upon a website that is playing a short video in their home page?  A video… which has some basic caricatures of human figures and gadgets, a simple story telling  and their product or services getting explained in a couple of minutes???  Exactly, that is called Animated Explanation or Animated Explanatory Video!

Explanatory Animation Video

Well, say you have a business and you are trying to explain your brand or business or product or services….whatever. You take help of text contents or even images sometimes to explain your services in the home page. But somehow you always feel that something is untold or missing out. Basically the feeling is true, because text often misses out on the visual quality and your visiting customers if do not get a visual picture clear in their minds, your service often gets untold. So, here is the challenge.

Product Promotion Video

An Animated Explanatory Video of about 2-3 minutes often handles this challenge quite effectively. Tell your services or explain your product in a story telling manner. Keep the story simple, as if your child is sitting in front of you and you have to explain him. That simple, ah! And the caricatures and gadgets are simpler still, no big time artwork, really! Now, these caricatures or cartoons will act and tell your story. Add a simple and expressive narration and that’s all an Animated Explanation is all about.

Animated Product Demo Movie for Financial Software

So, in a matter of 2 or 3 minutes you can cinematically showcase your product to the market. Showcase it in your homepage, play it in your facebook account, ask your marketers to use it for presentations, tell your digital marketers to make it go viral on the internet, run it on the local TV or internet TV and of course win over every visiting customer to your site.

How To Go VIRAL With Your PRODUCT???

You want an immediate answer to your hard work?

Hmm…. Yes! Who does not want it!

Then you have to go VIRAL.

 But how?

Didn’t you post a question in the forums? Hadn’t you called the Marketers and asked for an answer?  

Yes, and from every corner these words are echoing back:

 “Digital Marketing, Social Media, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, …, …, …“

But still the basic question remains unanswered – HOW???

How to givE the right message to the right messengers in the right environment?

Well, the answer is simple! Viral marketing or viral advertising says, that ultimate goal of marketers is to create successful viral marketing program or viral messages that appeal to individuals with high social networking potential. Then only there is a high probability of being spread by these individuals with others in a short period of time.

So, what could be a successful viral marketing program or viral message that gets passed on in a short period of time? Video is the Answer.

Video Clips take the form of Viral Marketing or online marketing in a very rigorous way. Because only messages that are both memorable and sufficiently interesting to be passed on to others have the potential to spur a viral marketing phenomenon.

A viral video has the capability to make rounds and becoming popular through the process of internet sharing, typically through video sharing websites, social media and email. The most successful viral videos contain humorous content and include comedy sketches. Animated Explanatory Videos or Animated Video for Product Demo are a killer!

So, whatever be your Product or Services…think of making a video. And Remember: No brain storming session please! Do not think the conventional way.  It has to be cool, simple and fun. Think of crazy, cartoony, caricatures that shows your features and tells the world your story, your way.

Do You Need an Animated Explainer for your Product or Services??

Well, the answer is YES!!!

If everybody around you is speaking of Animation, Explainers and Product Videos or Marketing Video… there is a reason for you to get a little inquisitive about it. It could be either your own research or some body’s suggestion to you to make one for your site or your product or services.

Whatever is the case, but today your inquisitiveness will graduate you to a new level of understanding. Do you know when did Video Content take over text content?? When 3 pages of write up almost made no sense and made all yawn several times, a video content of 3 minute engages, explains and excites them about similar products or services.

For instance, when your site gets a visitor, you greet him or her with your enriched textual content. Hopefully he should stay for some time and go through the necessities. But it does not guarantee that your message gets across. But if you have an Animation that explains your product in a couple of minutes….he does not only understand your services but almost remembers it by heart! And then the magic happens: The magic of sharing!

With the onset of social media and social networking, people actually share their experiences. A textual explanation will not do the rounds in the social circle, but a video can!!!

Video which is fun, video that is light hearted, video that is visually enriching has all the capabilities of taking your product and services to the world. No matter how much you love your product, to the rest of the world it is at first boring. Now don’t make it all the more boring with some heavy words and explanations. Keep this little secret in mind: Keep it simple, keep it light, keep the fun. Then see the difference. See how the world loves your product the way you adore it. 

An Animated Explanations have an average attention span of over 90% with no stressful tries. If kept simple and fun, your message simply gets across!

So, the next time you see your competitor playing a cool Animation that’s explaining their product so well, don’t just sit back, Animate a little bit of yourself and the rest you know!