Explainer Videos

The best explanatory video companies really listen to the clients’ needs and goals. Like us at Lumeo. But we’re not just an explainer video company - we’re explainer video experts, who turnideas into clear (and engaging) messages that motivate action.

It could be for a business communication, a charity or NFP... or maybe you're just having trouble explaining what your business does.

Most of the pieces we create are animated explainer videos, but it may equally be a filmed video production. Or a combo.

At Lumeo our explainer video services create stand-out explainer videos for businesses, regardless of production style.

Some of our past animated explainer video work

13 Things to Consider Before Creating an Explainer Video

What is your ideal timeline?

If you haven't organised a video before, the first thing you should know is it’s probably going to take longer than you think. That said, a company with loads of experience creating explainer videos for businesses like Lumeo can usually pull a rabbit or two out of the hat if needed.

For most custom explainer videos we guarantee a 4-week delivery time from script approval. A shorter deadline than this usually means one of two things – we either have to shortcut our normal process or increase the budget (due to putting more people on the job). Better that you know upfront how much time to allow.

Do you have a budget in mind?

We’ve created packages and compiled some examples to give you an idea of what you can expect from your budget.

Sometimes it’s best to establish how much you can invest and get your production company to come up with suggestions as to what they can achieve with it. Explainer videos are usually relatively lower budget productions (versus, say, a TV commercial). But with every passing year, viewer expectations of quality are being raised. Be aware of your competitive environment – you don’t want to look cheap compared to your competition.

How is the video going to be used?

Is the video a stand-alone piece or part of a larger campaign? The more we know about the video’s intended usage, the better. Your video could be used on a landing page, a microsite, an eDM, or shared on Facebook or other social channels. It’s best we know the big picture in the beginning so we can plan the most economical way to produce the outputs you need.

And be aware that different platforms may require different outputs – each of which has a cost attached. Should these be included in the initial budget or costed separately?

Have you defined your purpose?

‘How’ and ‘purpose’ are different. ‘Purpose’ is more about why rather than where.

Is there a problem to be overcome? Is there an objective? Once we know what the exact purpose is, the script and the execution can be planned around it.

What’s the best ROI measurement?

Comments and shares can be used as judgement criteria for videos posted on social channels. Landing pages and microsites are best measured by click throughs.

Explainer videos don’t have to be dry and corporate. They can be quite humorous – witness the Air New Zealand’s safety videos (safety should be serious right? Maybe not).

If you know how your company will define success, we can do things like  making sure we build graphics and appropriate calls-to-action in the video.

What is the approval process?

This can seriously affect the overall production time of your video. If the project has to go through many signoff layers (including legal), we may have to structure a special timeline for the job. Usually however, the 4-week timeline we supply at the start lets everyone know when their input or approval will be required.

How to talk to you target audience?

Who you are talking to often defines how you should talk to them. Write down how the target audience thinks about products like yours.

Is your target audience really interested in the category or is your product more of a commodity? If you’re measuring effectiveness, your explainer video may need to address your target audience in a specific way.

What style of video do you want?

Commercial video production covers a vast array of video types - and Lumeo has most of your explainer video options covered. Live action, 2D and 3D animation, and motion graphics are all handled by our team.

That means we’re also able to handle combinations of these techniques, so you only have to deal with the one production company.

Have you considered your audio requirements?

A great audio track is worth investing in. George Lucas, of Star Wars fame, says audio is 50% of the entertainment in his films.

So take care not to cut corners in audio. The difference a good voice over or specially composed music track (versus an amateur voice over or library music track) can be quite dramatic.

Can you anticipate any future revisions?

If you anticipate there will be changes down the track, it is often cheaper to make provision for them in the initial production.

Do you have a reference guide?

If you’ve seen something you like, let us know. Any reference is a great starting point for our creative team. Keep in mind your budget may not allow you to do a full-on Pixar 3D motion capture Toy Story-style of thing, but at least we’ll know where you are coming from.

Will there be any “must haves”?   

Logos, legal copy and T&Cs. We need to know about these early on so we can fit them in seamlessly rather than trying to squeeze them in later.

Any other questions?

Lumeo’s production team don’t expect you to be an expert in explainer video production.

Have a chat with us about the explainer video production process and we’ll make it a breeze!

About Lumeo

Lumeo are explainer videos producer who work with clients nationwide and beyond. We have extensive experience both in understanding the marketing needs of an extraordinarily wide variety of businesses, and in providing them with effective corporate videos.

Tell us about your video

Leave your details below and one of our friendly producers will be in touch to answer any questions and get started on a brief.