Among all the different forms of content, videos encourage the most number of users to engage. That’s why video marketing has grown to become such a massive trend amongst brands. One of the most effective methods is using an explainer video to provide an overview of the services and products you offer, and how they work, in a crisp yet comprehensible form.
While explainer videos do come with their own perks, one can easily miss the mark and not attain the desired results for a long time. The problem could be with your way of execution, or with the video itself. The following are the reasons why you aren’t reaping the fruits of your efforts:

The video is not time efficient

There may be an overflow of information which you want to pour into the video. You might even want to cram a story or two into it. It seems reasonable to determine the length of the video according to the data going into it, but one must also keep their audience in mind when deciding the video length.
Millennials tend to prefer shorter videos, whereas the older crowd is more comfortable with 30-second videos. In today’s digital world, as the attention span of our brains keeps getting shorter and shorter, keeping it short and sweet has become essential.

Source

According to the YouTube Audience retention tool, a visible difference can be seen in every frame after the 2-minute mark. If it’s kept under that mark, the length of the explainer video wouldn’t matter, be it 30 seconds or even 90 seconds.
Takeaway: One doesn’t need a long video to create an impact – in fact, the shorter, the better. So, put a lot of thought into the writing and storyboarding process of the video, and construct a concise, effective script and make sure it stays under 2 minutes!

The script is of poor quality

Your explainer video can be as short as you want to make it, but it won’t work if your script doesn’t work. This problem isn’t the easiest to detect but can affect the quality of your video greatly. The below mentioned are the reasons why a certain script might be considered subpar:
It is all about the brand/company – Your main aim is to cater to a need. Focusing more on your products and not on solving your customer’s problems, could have a negative impact on your engagement.
It is not structured correctly – In order to make sure the message that you are trying to communicate is delivered clearly to the viewers, you need to lay out what you want to say and how you want to say it, beforehand.
It is not interesting – Repetitive storytelling or fluctuating pacing might make the video a bit dull. For the optimal level of engagement, your video should stand out and be able to hold the viewers’ attention.
Takeaway: Read and re-read your script and make sure it is comprehensible. Don’t focus on your own story and instead, talk about their needs. And above all, ensure that it is enjoyable to watch.

The video itself is not well-made

There are some videos that are so bad, that they start seeming good. Your video is probably not one of them. That is, unfortunately, the harsh truth, and most likely the reason why people press the ‘pause’ button seconds into the video. Not only can lack of quality make people not take you seriously, but you could end up losing some potential customers.
A lot can be said about your brand from the video content you put out. If the quality of your explainer video is not great, the same quality can be expected from the products as well.
To check if your video is really suffering from this, once again we turn to the Audience retention report of YouTube. You can compare the average view duration of your video, with the performances of other videos in the same category. If the retention data of different timeframes shows that people stop watching after a few seconds, it would be enough to tell that the quality of your video is bad.

Takeaway: To have an explainer video with a great appearance, two things should be perfected – the animation techniques and the overall design. If the animation of the video runs smoothly, and the design is detailed and well-executed, it’s bound to show better results.

There is a lack of visibility

For customers to engage with it, the video must be visible and accessible to them. If one needs to hunt your video down, it would not perform very well, regardless of how well-made it is. Sharing it once or twice in your chosen social media platform would not do the trick. You have to go bigger.
The second someone enters the website of your company, they should be able to see the video – the landing page or above the fold on your website. A research shows that a website’s visit time gets increased from 8 seconds to 2 minutes, with the addition of an animated video on its landing page.

You should also put the explainer video out there in the world of social media – use smaller segments of it in your blog posts and all of your social media platforms, create ads, plug it in wherever it seems relevant.
Takeaway: It is important for your video to be visible and easy to find. Having your video up where it’s easiest to spot, like social media platforms and websites, can help with the overall reach of the video.

Conclusion

The building blocks of the most effective explainer video are:
A duration that holds the attention of the customers throughout the video
A well-structured, crisp and relatable script, which speaks to and about your customers, while simultaneously enabling them to understand your brand and products better.
Well-crafted animations and design to give the video an immaculate appearance
Once you have the explainer video that fits all the above criteria, it’s time to make it visible to the whole world. So put it up on your landing page and spread it across all social media platforms.
Follow the above-mentioned steps and you would attain the desired results in no time. Good luck!

By: Deepasha Kakkar