How to make an explainer video?

Creating an explainer or brand video can seem like a daunting task. There are so many moving parts, and if you screw up, all that time and money goes in vain.?

I have been creating explainer videos for businesses across the world for 8 years now. In this post, I will go through the process I have developed, which ensures timely delivery, minimum revisions, and the highest client satisfaction.?

Here is a guide and a few words of wisdom for anyone who wants to make his or her first explainer video.?

Here are the steps:

1. Questionnaire:

This is your first opportunity to learn about your client, the goal of their film, the product or service they provide, and their company's overall vision. Remember that your video is only one piece of the puzzle, which is the brand's communication.?

The goal here is not to recreate the wheel but to integrate your film within the existing corporate identity.

Questions:

1. Company’s Purpose/mission
2. What adjectives can you use to describe the company?
3. What do you want to achieve with this video?
4. Who is your target audience?
5. What branding material exists already? Do you have a brand guide?
6. What do you consider to be a good design? Give examples.
7. Videos are references for quality expectations.
8. What is the budget range?

Inferences you wan to draw from questions above:

1. Purpose
2. Tone
3. Band guidelines
4. Design and style
5. Duration
6. Budget vs. quality expectations
7. Whether the project is worth your time and effort

2. Script ideas and visual references:

Craft compelling scripts by proposing problem-solving approaches, storytelling elements, and feature highlights. Supplement these with visual references that set clear expectations, ensuring alignment between budget, timeline, and expertise.

Visual references:

The purpose of giving visual references is to set clear expectations. If the budget, timeline or your expertise does not support it, do not provide any video or photograph as a reference.

Keep in mind that your goal is not simply to satisfy the client's needs but to persuade them to choose the most effective option. However, before pitching any proposal, keep the following key constraints in mind:

? Budget

? Duration

? Recognize that certain creative processes necessitate appropriate time. A shorter time-frame means a more straightforward treatment on the same budget.

3. Script:

Once you’ve settled on a solid idea, it’s time to put pen to paper or fingers to the keyboard. Your script should encapsulate all the brainstorming and creative exploration you’ve undertaken up to this point and should be an extension of the selected idea in the last step.

Here are some essential considerations to keep in mind while crafting your script:

1. Avoid repetition
2. Conciseness is key
3. Maintain Consistent Tone
4. Check timing
5. Authenticity Matters

4. Storyboard:

Translate your script into a visual narrative through story-boarding, emphasizing clarity, consistency, and engaging visuals. Leverage collaboration and feedback loops for iterative improvements.

Your storyboard is the bridge between the script and the final video. Here’s what to bear in mind during this critical phase:?

1. Visualizing the narrative
2. Clarity is king.
3. Maintain Consistency.?
4. Timeline Considerations
5. Engaging Visuals
6. Feedback loop

Here is a video example of good storyboard: https://youtu.be/tAfivf6evmE

5. Voice Over:

Choose a voice actor whose tone and style align with your project’s message and audience. Their voice should resonate with the brand’s personality. Encourage the voice actor to inject appropriate emotion, emphasis, and pacing into their delivery, aligning with the narrative’s tone and mood. Although your storyboard should be enough for a proper audio reference, you can still inject cues into the script, as in the example below.?

You can also try AI voices, as they are getting better with each passing day. But as of now, I prefer human voices, as the AI still can’t produce the nuances of emotions, but maybe soon it will get there.?

6. Design:

Moving into the design phase, you’re now equipped with the essentials needed to bring your vision to life. This stage, often the second-most time-consuming, is where you’ll craft the elements in their final form. It’s crucial to note that revisions at this stage can be time-intensive. To keep them to a minimum, use the wealth of information gathered thus far to make precise decisions.?

Here are key considerations to streamline the design process:?

• Brand Follow brand guidelines. Refer to the client’s brand guide for essential elements like colors, fonts, and shapes. Request Figma or XD files for asset downloads and to align design choices with the brand’s identity.?

• Complex Animations: Before investing time in complex rigging or design, ensure client approval. Rig only what’s been greenlit. For instance, multiple iterations of the main character may be necessary before committing to rigging.?

• UI elements: When explaining a tech product, integrate UI elements to enhance the user experience and coherence.?

• Beyond Brand Guidelines: If the video incorporates elements not typically used by the brand, maintain consistency in choices like stroke width, noise, frame rate, shadows, and embossing.?

• Non-Essential Elements: While not mandatory, consider backgrounds and filler assets to enhance aesthetics and grab viewers’ attention.?
• Thorough Approval: Design entire frames and obtain approval for aesthetics to leave nothing to chance in the final product.

7. Animation:

This phase often demands intense focus and commitment. By this point, you’ve already determined what needs to be animated; now, it’s a matter of bringing it to life through your skills and the time you can invest.?

Revisions at this stage can indeed be time-consuming, so consider these strategies to minimize them:?

• Share the progress.

• Late integrations: It is natural to see mistakes and enhancements while animating. There is nothing wrong with incorporating them at this stage, but make sure to discuss them with your client before putting your heart into it. Any mistake that you knew of and didn't tell your client because everything is locked, is going to come back to haunt you.
• Work with placeholders: There are times when final assets aren’t ready from your client’s end, it happens more than often. Play smart and use placeholders wherever you can, just don’t pause the work unnecessarily

8. Editing:

The editing stage is where you assemble your animation clips and incorporate sound effects and music if necessary. While this step is generally straightforward, if your client requires complex sound design, it’s advisable to engage a professional sound designer for a separate fee.?

For sound effects, consider using resources:

Facebook or YouTube libraries, and for royalty-free music.

Pro Tip: Never share the video without a watermark until the final payment is received. This preserves a sense of urgency on the client’s part and protects your work.?

9. Concluding remarks: Handling criticism and delays:?

While you’ve invested considerable effort, there’s always the possibility that the client might not be completely satisfied with the final video, which can be disheartening. However, the process I’ve outlined here offers you a measure of control in such situations. Once a stage is approved, any criticism from the client is focused on the latest stage, reducing the likelihood of extensive revisions.?

Trust your skills. You secured the project because the client admired your portfolio. It’s essential to continually strive for excellence, but remember not to be too hard on yourself. If you’ve given your best effort and the client expresses concerns about the animation, stand by your work and reassure them that it aligns with what was approved.?

Handle criticism by focusing on approved stages, and manage delays with clear communication and proposed milestones.

I have written this blog in more details with video references on my website. Feel free to check that out: https://gauravpant.in/2023/09/13/start-your-video-journey-step-by-step-guide-of-explainer-video/