Ever wonder why your explainer videos aren’t converting? We’ve created explainer videos for hundreds of businesses, big and small. And in the process, we’ve painstakingly learned what works and what doesn’t. Here, we’ll share our formula for creating explainer videos for home pages, sales pages, ads, products—you name it—plus other pro tips most businesses overlook.

New to creating explainer videos?

Steps to Creating Explainer Videos That Convert

1.) Know your customers.

Not to mention their needs! Here are two ways you can get to know them better:

Quantitative Research

This involves using analytics or heatmap tools to collect hard data and metrics on client behavior in real-time.

Analytic tools like Google Analytics will give you real-time data on conversion rates and sometimes even the why behind them. Heatmap tools like Crazy Egg and Lucky Orange will show you how people behave on your page. All of the above can help you redesign landing pages, know where to place videos, and ensure a page is achieving its goal.

When you know your audience and how they’re interacting with your content, you can better tailor an explainer video to suit them.

Qualitative Research

This approach focuses on subjective data from customers or live visitors. Using tools like Survey Monkey, you can ask them questions that can help you better meet their needs while also achieving your goals.

  

With the data you’ve garnered, you can create a video that addresses people’s pain points or reflects what you know clients like about you while connecting directly with potential customers.

2.) Have a measurable goal.

Before you think about creating explainer videos, it’s important to know what you want them to achieve. Make sure your goals are specific, realistic, attainable, and measurable. After all, you want to be able to measure each video’s impact with tangible metrics.

3.) Write your script.

A good script writer knows how to strike a factual and emotional balance. But we find that putting feelings before facts works best since, well, people are people and not robots. They often act based on their emotions (unless dealing with a particularly high-investment product). But even the best script writer needs to know their audience to reach them. Hence #2 above.

4.) Consider your visual approach.

Do you want animation or live action? Animation is illustrated and animated. Live action is filmed in real life. Animation can be less expensive to produce. Live action can feel more human and relatable. Animation can offer more creative freedom. Live action can be faster to finish. Both directions have a lot to offer, so consider them from every angle before deciding your approach.

5.) Start production.

Once you have your script and your visual approach, your video production team can begin.

Storyboarding

A designer will create a visual outline of your script by sketching out scenes alongside the words from your script. This gives you a snapshot of the big picture and lets you make any changes necessary before you get into filming or illustrating and animating.

Pre-production

If you’ve chosen an animated approach, your visual artist will create graphic elements like characters, colors and environments. You may also start searching for music or voiceover talent. If you’ve chosen live action, you’ll be focused on casting actors and finding locations for filming.

Production

Here your team will be focused on animating your graphics or filming your talent. This is when you’d record any voiceover needed, choose or record music and create or select sound effects.

6.) Promote your video.

Once you’ve created an amazing video, how do you encourage people to play it?

Choose your thumbnails carefully.

Your thumbnail is the freeze-frame from your video that visitors see on the page before they play it. It should:

• Accurately portray the content of the video
• Get your audience’s attention
• Encourage the audience to watch

It helps if your thumbnail:

• Is visually interesting
• Expresses emotion (for example, with a close-up of a face making eye contact)
• Integrates bright colors
• Uses short on-screen text to add context

Don’t skimp on your landing page.

Make sure your explainer video is front and center on any page where you want people to play it. Give it a prominent, intriguing headline and strong call-to-action to draw viewers’ attention. Then see what happens and update things accordingly. Remember, we’re here to help.