20th February 2012

What is an Explainer Video?

We’ve all seen them. But if you’re not a video insider, you probably didn’t realize that explainer videos are a “thing.” Explainer videos exist to explain how stuff works, but how do you explain an explainer video in the first place?

Let’s first look at what goes into web video creation known in other circles as video demos, explanation videos, or online videos. The basic purpose of web video production is to tell the story of a company’s product or service. The videos usually live on the company’s website, lying in wait for the unwary Internet browser. Sometimes they play right away, sometimes they give you two seconds to get your bearings, and sometimes they bombard you with images until you’ll click randomly at anything just to stop the madness!

The thing is, these little videos have got a mission, and come hell or high water, they’re going to explain something to you. They are the lion stalking the prey, and you are the innocent gazelle delicately drinking at the lagoon. Beware gazelle, beware.

Companies use online video production to grab your attention and hopefully hold it long enough for them to get their message across. However, Nielsen’s research shows that the average time a user stays on a website is less than a minute. One minute! Good grief, we all have attention problems. Therefore, the creators of these videos are tasked with holding your attention with the time it takes to tie a shoe, mend a button, or fall out of your chair, like I just did. No, really.

If you do this right, and a lot of you won’t, video production agencies can produce a clear, concise message telling the story of your business, company or product. You’re probably wondering why we use these? Well soon-to-be loyal reader, you will have to wait until next time to hear that story.

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About the Author

Anish hails from London and holds a degree in software engineering from the University of Manchester. Following his education, he worked for several years in the financial industry as a platform administrator before founding Revolution Productions in 2008. In addition to over seven years of video production, Anish is seen as an industry professional, adding his insight in publications such as VentureBeat, ReelSEO and Wistia.

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