Animated videos can work for any business. There, we’ve said it. No, don’t hang up!
It’s undeniable that the number of videos we see shared online as ways to express news, thoughts, feelings and ideas, rather than just text-based communication has rocketed.
Text is now, by many, considered a bit of a chore to consume as it is more difficult to quickly digest and less effective at portraying a sense of emotion. This may be why video popularity has soared in recent years to market products and services.
If you are looking for a new way to market your business, or engage with a particular audience, have you ever considered an animated video? If you haven’t, you could be missing an important trick to make your brand stand out from the crowd.
Animated videos have risen by a whopping 40% in the last year as a marketing tool: this figure is proof that they are a highly effective strategy. So how could they be beneficial to you?
Here are 5 reasons why animation should be a consideration for businesses in any industry, especially technical brands in finance and technology.
1. Simple communication
What’s easier to consume, a 10-page technical product document or a 2-minute product explainer animation? We’d argue that it’s the latter.
Documentation, brochures, white-papers, wikis – they still have their place and should be part of any technical brands marketing mix. However, if you’re looking to attract attention, educate, inspire and influence – video content is more effective.
An animated video puts the message and proposition of your brand across simply and effectively, without the viewer having to think too much. If you charge out of the gates with a document full of technical jargon, then you may quickly find that eyes begin to wander and information isn’t digested properly.
The beauty of animation is that technical messages, products and services can be broken down and delivered in a visual way that is more digestible and memorable. Especially if you partner with a video production agency that specialises in working exclusively with ambitious technical brands – that’s us by the way.
Example: Impulse – Brand Animation
2. Share-worthy!
As most animations tend to be highly visual they are inherently shareable. Whether an animated video has been produced to entertain, educate or inspire, they can and are shared all over the world.
From animation that visualises complex technologies or products to those that are more conceptual or narrative-based, it’s so easy for these to be shared – why not factor this into your video production strategy?
To give you an idea of the scale of how much video content is shared online, 400 hours of video content is uploaded to YouTube every minute!
In order for your content to be shareable, the video itself needs to be worthy of it. Make sure you choose a video production company who are specialists in your industry, who know how to transform the technical into the digestible, the complex into the captivating.
3. Timeless
Animated videos tend to have a longer shelf live than some live-action filmed videos. We take steps to ensure every video has the longest shelflife possible, but brands do change, whether it be the messaging or identity.
It’s absolutely right that brands get the most from their investment when producing video content. That’s why during the initial development stage of every video we produce, we look at the wider strategy to ensure it stays relevant for as long as possible.
The benefit of animation over live-action filmed content is that, should a brand change in any way, we can quickly adapt the animation to suit. New logo? No problem.
4. Let your imagination run free
Due to the fact that there is no physical recording when producing animations, video production studios are only really limited by their ability and imagination – which we like to think we have by the megaton.
it’s a fine line to walk, however. Creativity must be calculated, anchored by the brand and shaped by the waiting audience and commercial objectives. That’s why we have developed a 4-step process for producing video content – to ensure that every creative decision along the way has been taken with the objective of the video at the helm.
Rule number 1 when producing video content – it must do the job.
Example: J.P. Morgan – Product Explainer Animation
5. It’s not just a cartoon
Animation, motion graphics, motion design, are all largely the same thing, however, what they’re aren’t is just another term for a cartoon. When produced by an experienced video production agency (ahem), the style of your animate videos should perfectly suit your brand and message.
It’s true that some animated videos are playful and include characters, but these have been carefully crafted for suitable brands to benefit a waiting audience. Brands wanting to build a more personable, warm and welcoming identity may suit a character-based animation.
On the other hand, the majority of the animations we produce (for us at least) are for technical brands within finance and technology sectors. These are much more on the ‘serious’ side and set a suitable tone in order to convey more complex information and technologies.
If you’d like more information on how animated videos can work for your brand, book in a free strategy session and we’ll gladly show you what’s possible.
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