How You Can Write a Quality Script for an Animated Explainer Video

Juan Jose Mendez reports:

"Every famous Hollywood movie script follows the same basic structure, so why can’t your video follow it too? Following this structure assures that your video script will be as engaging as a Hollywood flick for your audience...The very first thing your script should explain is 'what' the problem of your target audience is that your product or service solves. This will immediately engage your audience...Once you’ve settled the problem, you have to explain 'how' your product or service solves that problem...You need to tell your audience 'why' they should choose yours instead of the competition. This is the most 'salesy' part of the video because here’s when you describe your product’s features, benefits, and so on. Sometimes, the 'how' and 'why' acts are quite similar and they overlap a little or they are actually the same thing, but that’s ok[ay]. Whether they’re similar or [mixed up], our advice is to not [be] too salesy all the way through: [S]ave the salesy part for the end. Apart from this, always try to follow the classic structure as precisely as possible...The longer a video is, the less likely people will be to watch it all the way through...[T]ry to be brief! The script is what defines the length of your marketing video, but how do you know how long your script will be on video? Easy-peasy: [One hundred sixty] scripted words in English is equal to around one minute on video. At Yum Yum Videos, we believe that the magic number is 240 words: that’s 90 video seconds[,] enough time for you to explain your product or service without anyone losing interest in the story...[K]eep it simple! Don’t try to explain absolutely everything about your company in a single 2-minute-long script. Get straight to the point, and take the time to think about what’s important to include in your video and what’s not. And, don’t you worry: [L]ater, once your audience gets really interested in your product or service, you’ll have the time to explain the details that couldn’t make it into the video (with sales calls, blog articles, etc.)...The most important thing to keep in mind with your animated marketing video must always be your audience and how you can help them solve their problems. Don’t try to sell your audience anything, but rather, make them understand that you can actually help them instead; only then will they truly trust in your brand and decide to purchase your product or service. And, be careful: [I]f your video talks about your brand’s features the entire time, and overlooks your audience’s problems, you may lose a lot of conversion opportunities...Finally, don’t forget to make it clear -in your script- what you want your audience to do after watching your video: [F]rom downloading an eBook or a free demo, to sharing on social media, your call-to-action must be really clear and direct. Don’t make multiple calls-to-action in the same video! Make only one, and make sure it’s straightforward and clear. But, if your marketing strategy requires different calls-to-action, you can always make different versions of the same marketing video with a different call-to-action in each; then, you could use them in different campaigns or conduct A/B testing to see which would be more successful...We always advise that any animated explainer video script be done by professionals (such as explainer video production companies that offer that service), who can really understand the script process and its cinematic value. But, you can always try to write it on your own at first, if your budget isn’t big enough."