Voice Acting

5 Stages for Creating a Killer Explainer Video

David Ciccarelli | October 1, 2018

Killer Explainer Video

Have you ever wondered what actually goes into the making of explainer videos?

Animated explainer videos require the hands-on skills of a number of different disciplines from script writing to voice-over to animators and marketers there are a number of things that bring together a great video for your business.

In this article

  1. 5 Stages for Creating a Killer Explainer Video
  2. What are the stages for creating a killer explainer video?
  3. Stage 1: Scripting
  4. Stage 2: Storyboarding
  5. Stage 3: Creating the Visuals
  6. Stage 4: Voiceover
  7. Stage 5: Animation
  8. Stage 6: Sound Fx & Music
  9. About Karina Sacco

Today VOX Daily welcomes guest blogger Karina Sacco, co-founder of Yum Yum Videos to speak about the process of making an animated explainer video.

5 Stages for Creating a Killer Explainer Video

The popularity of explainer videos in digital marketing strategy is growing without precedence, not only because they create a unique identity for companies in a convincing way and engage audiences like no other digital tool, but they also offer a cost-effective solution compared to traditional marketing and advertising tactics.

Explainer videos communicate the benefits of products or services in an explicit and direct way through a broad range of animation techniques. They usually last from 1 to 3 minutes, grab the users attention rapidly, increase conversion rates and help position companies high in search engines. They also promote a concrete action from the viewer (call-to-action) and can be shared via many platforms, such as emails, blogs, newsletters and websites.

What are the stages for creating a killer explainer video?

A 90 second explainer video generally takes 7 weeks to be finished. Below you will find the 5 stages of its production:

Stage 1: Scripting

The script is the heart of the project and is usually one of the hardest parts. A good script is the foundation for a successful explainer video and must start with and adequate preparation, considering the audience, message and call-to-action.

Stage 2: Storyboarding

Having a storyboard is crucial because it will determine how your explainer video will be visualized before it is animated. It is very important that the storyboard is engaging enough to make your potential customers understand your brand, and thus persuade them to buy.

Stage 3: Creating the Visuals

Plenty of characters and visual assets for explainer videos are generated with hand-drawn or digital illustrations. Throughout the style stage, the illustrator will vary the characters and assets to fit the brands identity.

Stage 4: Voiceover

The tone and voice determine the feel of the explainer video. Some brands require a friendly voice, while others may need a charming style. The length of the voice over audio will determine the final length of the videos so this is why it needs to be recorded before we start the animation.

Stage 5: Animation

Animation is the most demanding and work-intensive stage of the process for just one reason: it brings characters to life. This entry point deals with all the finished assets: script, storyboard, illustrations, voice over and imports them into specialized programs of animation (such us after effects). There are many types of animators that specialize in different aspects of the animation such as character animation, motion graphics animation, etc, so it´s important to find the right team that can address the needs of the video.

Stage 6: Sound Fx & Music

Adding sound effects and music is the very final part of the process and it can really make your video pop up as sound denotes a key element in influencing people’s attention.
So there you have it. As you can see, making a video is not a piece of cake. Besides all stages above, it includes lots of other necessary things like phone calls, emails, uploads, and revisions.

The following video is a good example of what bringing all the stages together looks like.

About Karina Sacco

Karina is the co-founder of Yum Yum Videos, a Buenos Aires based company that specializes in creating engaging animated marketing videos for businesses.

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Comments

  • Avatar for jeff thomson
    jeff thomson
    May 22, 2017, 5:41 am

    Great and informative article if following these 6 points anyone can make the best animated explainer videos

    Reply
  • Avatar for videobhaia
    videobhaia
    March 17, 2018, 7:24 am

    Worthful content, i will definatlly keep all this in mind.Thanks for sharing such useful information

    Reply
    • Avatar for Tanya
      Tanya
      April 16, 2018, 7:46 am

      You’re so welcome!
      And thank you so much for taking the time to read!

      Reply
  • Avatar for Video Production Company Austin
    Video Production Company Austin
    May 3, 2018, 6:39 am

    Informative blog you have written it has taught me so many things which I don’t know and increased my skills.

    Reply
    • Avatar for Tanya
      Tanya
      May 18, 2018, 7:11 am

      Glad you found it to be useful! 🙂
      Thank you for reading!

      Reply
  • Avatar for gisteo
    gisteo
    January 30, 2019, 2:33 am

    Very Informative post! You have summed up nearly everything an explainer video needs.

    Reply
  • Avatar for Oshane Brown
    Oshane Brown
    June 25, 2021, 4:04 pm

    This is my first time on this website I’m from Jamaica I speak perfect English and I speak my native language which is kind of like broken English I’m very interested in this advice of a job because honestly not really working right now so I would love to get this up and running see what I can come over with I do a lot of things I’m up with the editor the answer I produce the music videos myself so I would love to see what I can accomplish here thank you

    Reply