Animation is a powerful medium to communicate your brand story, engage your audience, and showcase your value proposition. But how do you ensure that your animation aligns with your business goals and delivers the results you want? In this article, we will share some tips on how to plan, create, and measure your animation project to achieve your objectives.
Before you start any animation project, you need to have a clear idea of why you are doing it and what you want to accomplish. What is the main message you want to convey? Who is your target audience? How will you distribute your animation? How will you measure its success? These are some of the questions you should answer to define your purpose and scope. Having a well-defined purpose will help you align your animation with your business goals and avoid wasting time and resources on irrelevant or ineffective content.
Once you have your purpose, you need to choose the style of your animation that best suits your message, audience, and brand. There are many types of animation styles, such as 2D, 3D, motion graphics, whiteboard, stop motion, and more. Each style has its own advantages and disadvantages, depending on the complexity, cost, and impact you want to achieve. You should consider factors such as the tone, mood, emotion, and personality you want to convey, as well as the technical and creative skills you have or need to hire. Choosing the right style will help you create an animation that resonates with your audience and reflects your brand identity.
Develop storyboards that align with your business goals. Every element in your animation, from characters to visuals, should contribute to the overarching message and purpose, helping you achieve the desired business outcomes.
The next step is to plan your story, which is the backbone of your animation. Your story should be engaging, relevant, and clear, and follow a logical structure that includes a beginning, a middle, and an end. You should also use storytelling techniques, such as hooks, conflicts, resolutions, and calls to action, to capture your audience's attention and motivate them to take action. To plan your story, you can use tools such as scripts, storyboards, animatics, and mood boards, which will help you visualize and refine your ideas and concepts. Planning your story will help you create an animation that delivers your message effectively and persuasively.
The next step is to create your animation, which is the most challenging and time-consuming part of the project. You need to use the appropriate software, tools, and techniques to bring your story to life and create a high-quality and professional-looking animation. You should also follow the best practices and principles of animation, such as timing, spacing, easing, anticipation, squash and stretch, and more, to create a smooth and realistic motion. You should also review and test your animation regularly, and get feedback from others, to ensure that it meets your expectations and requirements. Creating your animation will help you produce a final product that showcases your skills and creativity.
You can include compelling CTAs in your animated content. Whether it's encouraging viewers to visit a website, make a purchase, or subscribe, a well-crafted CTA guides your audience towards the desired actions aligned with your business goals.
The last step is to measure your results, which is the most important part of the project. You need to track and analyze how your animation performs and whether it achieves your business goals. You should use metrics and tools, such as views, likes, shares, comments, conversions, retention, and more, to measure the reach, engagement, and impact of your animation. You should also compare your results with your benchmarks and objectives, and identify the strengths and weaknesses of your animation. Measuring your results will help you evaluate the success of your animation and improve your future projects.
Establish KPIs aligned with your business goals. Seek feedback from your audience and stakeholders. Use the insights gained to iterate and refine your animated content continuously. A feedback loop ensures that your animation remains aligned with evolving business goals and audience expectations.
Embed a clear call-to-action (CTA) in your animation, guiding viewers towards business-aligned action. Ensure the CTA is concise, noticeable, and seamlessly integrated. Prompt actions like website visits, subscriptions, purchases, or social engagement. Utilize tracking tools for impact measurement—assessing conversion rates, website traffic, and engagement metrics. Leverage analytics for real-time insights. Continuously assess performance, analyzing viewer feedback and adapting to evolving goals. Embrace an iterative approach. Make data-driven decisions to enhance the animation over time. Ensure ongoing alignment with business goals and audience expectations through consistent refinement.