What is an Explainer video?

You don’t need us to explain to you what an explainer video is do you? Oh, you do? Okay then! If you don’t know what an explainer video is, then we at Beast Production Company UK  are here to help – we wouldn’t want to keep you in the dark about the whole explainer video thing. Explainer videos are a really important in digital marketing these days, and they are an excellent arrow to have in your quiver of online digital content. They can benefit your business in a tonne of ways too; so, you might be biting our hands off to get you one, once you know what they are all about.

Unsurprisingly, explainer videos explain things – that’s the nub and the gist of them, they do pretty much what they say on the tin! They are short digital marketing videos, which companies use to inform a consumer about an aspect of their business. They are often used to provide information about a product or a service a business offers, and are placed on a sites home page or on a product page. They are often animated, making them a really popular way to market your stuff and build up your video content portfolio online. They are popular with businesses and popular with consumers as well; they are a fun way to market a product and everyone loves a video, don’t they?

Here’s one we made earlier:

There are a few different types of explainer video, and the one which is the best fit for you, will depend on what you are marketing with your video production.

1. Live action: these aren’t animated and are mostly used to market products or services that are people-oriented.
2. Animated: these are often used when you don’t have a tangible product to market and they are the most popular.
3. Whiteboard: animations are hand drawn, then rubbed out on a whiteboard.

There are other types of explainer videos about, but these are the ones which are most popular, and the ones you are most likely to have seen. So, let’s have a quick look at why they are great options, and some of the limitations too.

1. Live action: having real people in your videos can allow a viewer to experience an emotional connection, and we know that an emotional connection is what consumers want from us. You are stuck with “real world” when you create a live action explainer video, so you aren’t as able to jazz it up and enforce your point with animated magic. People are also expensive, so this isn’t a great option if you are on a super tight budget.
2. Animated: If you do these properly, they are incredible and you can still create an emotional connection for your consumer, but if done wrong, they will just be another explainer video. You can be incredibly creative with these and you can really go to town on making them engaging and fun. They are easier to update and add to than live action ones, but again, animations are pretty pricey
3. Whiteboard: these are excellent if you are on a budget. They are super cheap and they are really easy to create. They look nice and “clean” and they are an efficient and interesting way to get your point across. You can have a voice-over to add your human element and you are good to go.

 Top tips for creating explainer videos:

Keep them short: no one wants to spend hours watching a video, so keep it around the few minutes mark. Short and sweet is better than long and boring, right?

Work on your script: you can have the coolest animation video, but if your script isn’t up to scratch, your video is going to get you nowhere fast. You should spend most of your time figuring out your script – you need to make sure you are covering everything and doing so in a fun and relevant way to your audience.

Music/sound effect: don’t have moments of silence in your video. You will notice that explainer videos always have some music running in the background or some neat sound effects, even if you have a voiceover.

Target audience: never forget your target audience throughout this process. You need to make sure you are appealing to them and aiming your content at them all the time. Don’t lose sight of the people you are doing this for.

Call to action: what is a video without a call to action? Well, it’s not really anything! Make sure you tell people what you want them to do during your video. If you want them to click somewhere or visit a site, then you have to tell them!

 How much should an explainer video cost?

A great question, and one we unfortunately can’t give a simple answer to. They can cost you as much or as little as you want. But if you want the pros to sort you out an epic explainer video, then you are talking thousands rather than hundreds. This might seem like a lot, but we know these types of digital marketing content deliver the goods. If you are on a really tight budget, you can make a DIY explainer video, but this is going to take a big chunk out of your time if you are new to it. If you don’t know what you are doing, get yourself a video production company to help you out.

How can an explainer video benefit my business?

People are more likely to buy a product or use a service if they can watch a piece of video content on it. Fact. This shows how effective video can be for your business.

Explainer videos help you connect with your potential customers and gives them total clarity on what you as a business are about.

We know that videos generate interest and they generate shares on social media platforms. They are perfect for getting your name out there, and the more people know about you, the more potential customers.

If you have video content on your site, you rank better in Google searches – and we LOVE that. The better your ranking, the more likely people are going to visit your site, and we all know what that means!