The digital landscape is always changing and as such, so is the type of content that businesses are using to ensure that they are seen online. Marketers are constantly looking for new and exciting ways to engage with their audiences, especially given that social media platforms rely on showing user-generated content to their millions of daily users.
So, how can you make sure that your videos shine against all the other content that is posted? And how do you make sure that they keep your viewers’ attention and compel them to act, be that by signing up to your mailing list or making a purchase?
The answer might lie in animated videos which use 2D or 3D graphic images to deliver information. In this article, we discuss some of the benefits of using animated video over live-action content, with a focus on how it can make you stand out from competitors and offer a great ROI.
1. They are eye-catching
Research has suggested that the typical internet user has an attention span of around 8 seconds. That isn’t much time to catch someone’s eye, especially when competing with a plethora of music videos, how-to tutorials, adverts, influencer videos and viral content.
Animated videos are eye-catching when pitted against real-life content. Their imagery and use of colour stand out and have a high visual appeal. Plus, when combined with a voiceover, they allow an audience to take in information, even without realising they have done so.
2. They are affordable
There’s a perception that animated videos are expensive. However, they can be produced to a range of budgets, especially if you use an experienced video animation agency.
Producing real-life videos can require a lot of resources including actors, locations or sets, film crew and equipment. Animated videos, however, can be created with far fewer requirements. They also take less time to produce meaning fewer billable hours are needed to create a finished video.
3. They are versatile
Animation allows you to bring any number of ideas to life as they aren’t restricted by the same things as real-life content. Do you want a character doing a backflip over the moon? No problem. Or an explorer trekking through the Amazon? An animated video can make that happen.
Plus, animated videos can be made for many different purposes from explaining a new product to showcasing a special offer. They can even be used internally within a business for the likes of staff training.
Even once a video has been produced, animated content can be repurposed and reused across platforms for different reasons. For example, if you have an animated video produced for your website, there’s no reason sections can’t be used on social media.
4. They are emotive
How we feel influences our decisions and this includes choices we make over what we buy and the brands we purchase from. And animated videos can actually be incredibly powerful. As there is so much creative freedom, animated videos can be used to tell a story that conveys and elicits strong emotion.
5. They can make complicated subjects digestible
Getting someone to engage with your business can be tough if they don’t understand what you offer or the value it brings. More conventional ways of sharing information, such as emails or guidebooks, are often reliant on written words. But these don’t always hook an audience, especially if they find them too overwhelming to read.
Animated videos, however, can deliver information in bitesize chunks which are easier for your audience to absorb. They can make learning about something engaging and exciting, enabling the understanding of even the most complex subjects.
6. They can increase traffic and conversions
Using animated videos on your website can generate a cycle of bringing new people to your site. This improves its search engine ranking, increasing your site’s visibility, making it more likely that other people will visit, and so on.
This is because video content can encourage individuals to spend more time on your website. In turn, this tells search engines such as Google that your site has valuable content that people are engaging with. This then improves your site’s position within search rankings, extending your reach to a wider audience.
But there’s an additional advantage to having video content on your website too; it can increase your conversion rate by as much as 80%.
7. They are easy to share
A good animated video will provide the information you want to prospective customers. A great animated video, however, will compel people to share that information because they believe it has value for others.
Most of us can probably think of a time we’ve sent a video link to a friend or colleague because they were looking for something specific or an occasion where we’ve been on the receiving end because the sender thought we’d find a video amusing.
People sharing your video content has many business benefits including increasing brand awareness, building trust, and establishing a rapport with your customer base.