When looking for a new house or apartment we can tell the good from bad, and great from the good based on the character and selling points (or lack of) each one has. Anyone who’s ever hunted across websites and property agents in that race against time will know how important these qualities are, and how exciting and memorable it is when we finally find ‘the one’.

Explainer videos are the same. When it comes to turning your message into an explainer video, there is no shortage of options out there and while they all share some basic features, some explainer videos blow us away and some feel just a bit … forgettable. Again, it’s down to their qualities. A good animated explainer video will engage a viewer, inform them and connect with them while a bad one will leave people unmoved and indifferent. And then there are the great explainer videos that leave us feeling inspired with an instant list of friends in mind who NEED to see them.

There are certain qualities and explainer video considerations which take it from just good to great and harness the story supercharging powers which will serve your message so well. We have been creating explainer videos since 2004 and in that time we’ve learnt what a great explainer video needs, we even pioneered a new genre - whiteboard animation. But before we get to the great, we need to look at the good.

What makes a good explainer video?

Even the most determined seller can’t hide certain things when they’re trying to sell a house. As hard as they might try, if there is a hole in the roof or a missing window, no amount of smooth talking will hide the fact that it’s not a good house. It’s the same with explainer videos, there are certain things they need to if they’re going to bring your message to life and engage your audience. A good explainer video needs:

A script

This is the starting point and the foundations of your explainer video. It locks your message, sets the tone, the length of your video and provides the blueprints for the visual thinking, voiceover and any on-screen text.

Visual Thinking

If your explainer video is based on shot footage, this includes locations and props. If your explainer video is animated, visual thinking offers a whole other world of options. From characters to illustrations and visual metaphors, if you can imagine it then it can be included. Filmed or animated, your visual thinking is critical to the way your message is presented and perceived.

Storytelling

Storytelling is a thread that has run throughout humanity’s history and in today’s world it is for important than ever. Storytelling presents your message in a full and complete way, packaged perfectly for the brain to receive and make sense of. Storytelling is massive part of an explainer video’s ability to be engaging and memorable.

Smooth Animation

Animation is the cement of a good animated explainer video, holding the illustrations together and creating a smooth transition. Not only is this is a key part of storytelling, but it also focusses the viewer’s attention on what is important in each moment.

A Good Quality Voiceover

Voiceovers are the sales agents of the explainer video, building on the other elements of the video to present your message and story in a way which is memorable, informative and persuasive.

A Call To Action

A call to action is what transforms your explainer video from something watched passively to something which inspires your viewers to take the next step. It could be visiting a website, making an enquiry or applying your message to their daily lives to name but a few.

The qualities that make a good explainer video great

Now we can talk about the explainer video qualities that turn good into great. The features that turn an uninspiring new build into a house bursting with character, original features and light. These are the feature walls and fireplaces of an explainer video, the things that hold attention and leave a lasting impression.

Personality

Just like a new build on an estate with hundreds of near identical houses, there are plenty of services that offer you a range of templates, stock illustrations and characters. And just like new builds, explainer videos made this way run a very high risk of not standing out from the crowd. Our first quality that the best explainer videos have is personality.

This comes through your video in several ways, but each times it shows your audience the essence and values that make you unique. This can come through the tone of your video in areas like word choice, visual style and the choice of voiceover artist. It can also be introduced through your branding and the things synonymous with you. And then there is the ultimate injection of personality, including people from your own organisation as characters or voiceover artists.

Being bespoke

Being bespoke goes further than stamping your personality on your explainer video. Another way a good explainer can become great is through bespoke illustration and animation that is exactly tailored to and created for the story you are telling. Why make do with a stock image that only goes half way to explaining your point, when you can create the perfect illustration or visual metaphor that perfectly communicates your message.

Beyond the advantages this brings for audience understanding and the impact of your explainer video, it also ensures that no one else will have a similar video and will help you stand out from the crowd.

Accessibility

This is an aspect of explainer videos which can be crucial. The point of an explainer video is to make your message accessible and available to everyone in your target audience, and explainer videos give you many ways of doing this. Things to consider include:

• colour choices

• easy to read text

• captions and subtitles

• transcriptions

• audio descriptions

The Bureau of Internet Accessibility offer lots of great information about making videos accessible and this is a key quality in the best explainer videos. There’s another aspect to accessibility, which can also dramatically improve the impact of your explainer video - social media. In 2018, Animoto found that video is the #1 type of content users want from brand. This is a testament to the power of video but it also means we need to think about how people view it. Often it’s viewed without sound, so creating an explainer video that works with and without sound can be essential.

Being emotive, relatable and relevant

This is the gold standard for an explainer video, taking it from a good explainer video to the best kind of explainer video. We’ve already spoken about the options explainer videos give you to create the exact content you need and when that content tells your story in a way which truly resonates with your audience, makes them care and feels like home, you are accessing the real story supercharging qualities of an explainer video.

The combination of relevance and relatability allows you to take being bespoke to a new level by making the content speak to your audience at a deep level, while showing them you understand them and their experience. This is a big part of creating that lasting impact that not only makes your message memorable, but inspires your viewers to share and talk about the video.

What is the purpose of an explainer video?

An explainer video brings your message, values and identity together under one roof - and not just any roof. Explainer videos are well placed to tackle the storms and tremors that life can throw. Their purpose is to make complex ideas easy to understand and dry content enjoyable to watch. Explainer videos make your story engaging, memorable, entertaining and far reaching. The extent of this reach was highlighted in 2019 when a Google commissioned sudy revealed that in the U.S YouTube reached more 18-49 year-olds than all cable TV networks combined.

We did our own research into explainer videos, and compared ‘talking head’ videos with whiteboard videos. We were joined in this research by Professor Richard Wiseman, Professor of the Public Understanding of Psychology at the University of Hertfordshire, which made us very happy as we are fans of his work. Together we found that compared with the ‘talking head’ videos:

• Viewers were 66% more likely to share the whiteboard video

• The whiteboard video resulted in a 15% increase in information retention

• The whiteboard video was 33% more entertaining

These findings show the ability of animated explainer videos in fulfilling their purpose, and they help to explain a little more. The entertainment factor helps animated explainer videos to win out against the distractions we all face in an increasingly remote world. The increase in sharing shows how animated explainer videos are well placed to take spread your message far and wide and the increase in information retention underscores their ability to make your message memorable.

We hope these explainer video considerations help you as you plan your video. We are visual storytellers who aim for great with every explainer video we create. Find out more about how we work here. Our mission is to make the messages of our clients powerful, engaging and memorable. Since 2004 we have done this for clients like Coca Cola, Deloitte, Oxfam and The RSA, and we’d love to apply our visual storytelling skills to your message. Book a discovery call today!