For anyone unfamiliar with Quora (www.quora.com), it’s a great site with incredible information and discussions. It’s the thinking man’s version of Yahoo Answers and the intellectual talent and participation on Quora is amazing.
This blog post is based on a recent question posted there: Is it worth it to create an explainer video for your start-up?
At Gisteo, we make these things for a living…we’re coming up on 500 productions now so we’re obviously biased when we see a question like this…BUT my answer may surprise you: it simply depends.Explainer videos are merely a tool. They can indeed be very effective but “garbage in, garbage out” applies to video as it does to other aspects of your overall marketing.
Great brands (for start ups or otherwise) start with establishing an powerful identify and voice. Do you have a solid name and compelling tagline? Can you succinctly summarize your elevator pitch in a paragraph or so? What kind of personality do you want for your brand? Is is irreverent and quirky or high-brow and brainy?
If you’ve addressed the branding fundamentals first, you may be a good candidate for an explainer video by Gisteo or even a competitor, which can indeed help elevate your start-up’s pitch to the next level. If not, keep working on the fundamentals first.
Also, it depends on the quality of your script and explainer video of course. If you’re going to use a DIY tool like Powtoons or Animoto and you’re not overly creative or a particularly strong writer, slapping a hastily made, overly canned video on your website will not be serve as some sort of magic bullet- in fact, it could cheapen your image and lower perceptions about your company right out of the gate.
Bottom line: if you’re going to do one of these and you’ve first established a strong foundation, do it right. Spend at least $2,000-4,000 and use a company like Gisteo who “gets it” and can help you shine!
