9 Mistakes You Should Avoid When Making An Explainer Video
By: Aram Movsisyan
Tags: Video Marketing, Explainer Videos

Everybody loves to talk about success stories.

And why not?

They’re exciting, motivating, and just plain fun to read. But the truth is that beyond every success story are hundreds of failures.

Today we are going to investigate the most common mistakes people make with explainer videos.

Read on so that yours will end up in the success category instead!

1. Selecting the Wrong Concept

Before you write a word of the script, make sure your concept works.

Your explainer video concept should be unique, crafted for your business goals. Don’t just try to explain what you do and what kind of problems you solve.

Your competitors more or less solve the same problems. And they also explain the same solutions in their videos.

So you need to find a unique approach to target your audience with and find something that gives you the best chance to captivate them.

Strike fast, strike hard.

2. A Bad, or Nonexistent Hook

Did you know that if your video doesn’t capture someone’s attention in the first 10 seconds that you’ve lost them?

Yep, that’s right.

Studies have shown you’ve got 10 seconds to hook a viewer in and get them engaged. And you won’t get a second chance. So knowing that, we advise you to skip talking about all the problems in your industry. People already know about that. What they’re looking for are better solutions than what they’ve already got, or solutions that fit them.

For example, let’s say you sell a CRM product. People know what that is and you don’t need to waste time talking about what problems a CRM solves. Instead, talk about why your solution is different, and what you main unique proposition is.

3. Too Many Details

This is probably the most common mistake. An explainer video (or any marketing video, really) is too short of an amount of time to talk about all your features.

People will forget 90% of your video immediately after they watch it and you’re already going to be lucky if they even remember your main benefit. So instead, focus on just that — the main benefit — and build your concept around it.

Even big brands sell 1 or 2 main benefits. For example, Volvo sells security, BMW sells the driver experience, etc.

Get laser-focused on who you’re marketing to.

4. No Specific Target Audience

When you talk to everyone, you don’t talk to anyone. Don’t try to talk with the same tone and message to the entire world in one video. Even if you’ve got a product or service that truly anyone could benefit from, you need to make a connection, and you can’t do that if your message is too broad. Your message should be as specific as possible. Know your audience, their pain points, and give them what they’re looking for in the manner that they’ll be open to listening to.

Additionally, it’s important to predict their mood and habits.

Here’s what I mean:

Let’s say your product is about improving business. You’re going to then want to upload your video to LinkedIn, since when people are on LinkedIn they are already in a business mindset and trying to find new opportunities. They’ll already be primed to be open to new business tools that will improve their work situation.

If your message or product is selling a good time — entertainment, games, etc. — then you would gear it toward platforms where people are having fun, like Instagram or Snapchat. Facebook is aimed toward friends and family. If you’ve got an explainer video that’s marketing your business as something that makes a great gift, Facebook would be an excellent place to use it. You get the idea.

The bottom line — know who you’re talking to, what to suggest to them, and where it would work best.

Nobody likes things that look cheap.

5. Level of Quality

Let me ask you a question. Regardless of what it’s for, what’s more appealing to you: A website that looks nice and is well designed, or one that looks sloppy with bad alignment, ugly fonts, etc. Now, we never say that a high quality video is guaranteed to sell your message. There’s a lot that goes into success, and a good explainer video is just one tool in your funnel. However, for the first step — starting a conversation — this component is very important.

They did a test in Sweden with the same wine but presented in different bottles. The first was nicely packaged in a fancy looking bottle. The second was just in a regular, drab bottle. After giving out samples, the people were asked which was the better wine. You probably won’t be surprised to hear that 89% of them pointed to the wine from the nicer package. What’s more is that they were prepared to pay 70% more for that bottle! Isn’t that crazy?

And here’s the best part

The same is true for visual quality of an explainer video, and yours should have the best possible quality.

- the price for that is almost exactly the same as a lower quality video. You just need to do research and find a great video production house that does good quality for a good price.

Time is valuable, use it wisely.

6. Wrong Duration

I’m sure you’ve been told that the best duration for an explainer video is 60–90 seconds. Well that may be true if this is your first video or your main video. However, if you’re trying to introduce a new feature to your audience then you don’t necessarily need that much time. Your customers may even feel bored if you rehash all the stuff they already know about your company.

We often come across explainer videos that are too long from new companies that are trying to win over a market. This is a bad mistake that will end up costing you money. People are in a hurry and you need to hook them in ASAP. Deliver your message (and make sure it’s unique) in at most 60 seconds. People will not waste time on you. Make every second valuable to them. If you want to learn about when and how to plan the duration of your explainer video, read our research about that here ⬇⬇⬇

Action ItemHow Long Should My Explainer Video Be?

You’ve got your video, now what?

7. Wrong Placement — Hosting or On Website

Video is the most powerful tool in your arsenal!

Put it on your homepage

Share it on social media and boost your post

Optimize the SEO on YouTube

Use a business-oriented hosting site and collect leads

This is maybe the most irritating thing to see happen to a great, well-made explainer video. People will take their video and bury it in their website somewhere. Or at the most, just upload it onto YouTube and “hope” they get views.

There’s so much you can do with your video that you may not even know yet. Read this article to get some extensive ideas to get the most out of your explainer video. Just like a hammer is a great tool but only if you pick it up and use it correctly, so is an explainer video.

Strategize and execute.

8. Wrong Use of Video in Your Sales Funnel

Very often, production companies will promise things that videos can’t actually do. Please remember that an explainer video isn’t for selling your product. You should use the video for grabbing attention and creating interest or consideration — not for closing deals.

The goal of an explainer video is to start a conversation and build interest. Then, depending on your sales cycle, you should prompt them to go to the next step or stage.

Don’t try to share every detail and then suggest to buy right after watching the video. 60 or 90 seconds isn’t enough to close a deal, even if it’s an inexpensive $5 monthly subscription. Suggest a free trial or demo, or invite them to learn more about the product on the product’s page. Then you can tell them about the features and benefits in depth and prompt for a sale (or again, a free trial).

Action ItemHow to Use Explainer Video in Your Sales Funnel

9. Wrong Call to Action

The CTA, or Call to Action, is the final point in your video. Your video has been created for this moment, and if the CTA is wrong, you’ll lose your potential customer even if the rest of the video is crafted perfectly. I often see great explainer videos that end with the company’s mantra or the product’s slogan. This is ridiculous. Your customer is primed now and needs to be taken to the next stage, but all you give them is a group of words created by an inexperienced marketer? Let your viewer know what to do next! Where to learn more, where to get a demo, anything. Even the bad point mentioned above about pushing for a purchase is better than not doing anything at all.

Also, the next step for your customer should be planned. Think of it like the next room where there’s a nice sales manager waiting to meet your customer with a warm smile. Plan what your viewer should do after watching your video and how you’re going to work with them once they get there.

Final words

If you get 1 thing out of this article, it should be that your explainer video is like any other tool in your marketing plan. If it just sits there, you’re wasting a huge opportunity. There are many ways to maximise the potential of your explainer video, so don’t just throw it somewhere on your website or upload it to YouTube and let it sit. We’re always available to provide a free consultation, so don’t hesitate to schedule a meeting with one of our marketing experts.

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