What Is An Explainer Video, and Why Do I Need One?

How much would you give in order to sit down with your target audience for a few minutes to explain what makes your business or organization unique? That opportunity is priceless, isn’t it? Explaining how your offering solves a customer’s problem can plant the seeds for a new relationship or deepen the relational roots you have with an existing customer. 

Today, customers are seeking answers to their questions online, and overwhelmingly, the expectation is that this information will be presented to them via a video, an explainer video.

WHAT IS AN EXPLAINER VIDEO?

An explainer video is an educational video that swoops in to offer valuable insight just after the awareness stage. Your prospect has heard of you but wants further clarification on what makes your offering unique and will make their life easier. For example, if you’ve developed an innovation or concept that you know is an improvement on your prospect’s status quo, an explainer video helps you explain ‘how?’. 

One of the most famous explainer videos examples is the 2012 video created by Dollar Shave Club. To showcase their unique value proposition to prospects (affordable, sharp blades delivered straight to your doorstep every month), the company created a short, funny video showcasing how people didn’t need to waste time and money at the store buying expensive razors. As of this month, Dollar Shave Club’s 1 minute 33-second explainer video has been watched over 27 million times !!!

In short, an explainer video should provide clarity on a client’s existing pain point and answer, ‘How will this [product, service, tool, etc.] help to alleviate that pain point?’ 

EXPLAINER VIDEOS CLARIFY COMPLEX IDEAS

In explainer videos, simplicity is key and clarity divine. These videos must be tight, easy to watch, and make comprehension a breeze (or it’s not a very good explanation, right?) Our rule of thumb is two to three minutes tops, but a minute and a half is ideal. Any longer than that, and you’re better off breaking the concept into a series of bite-sized explainer videos.

Explainer videos are especially helpful if you’re offering something that might seem abstract at first glance. For example, nowadays, many dental offices are owned by umbrella entities known as Dental Service Organizations (DSOs). One of the benefits dental practices often experience under DSOs is access to sales and marketing support. However, if a dental office hasn’t used strategic sales and marketing efforts, they might be unfamiliar with how these processes function and how they will benefit them. Take a look at this explainer video we created to show dental practices how inbound marketing will support their business growth and goals. 

Industries that offer abstract product offerings like financial services and insurance immediately recognize the power of explainer videos, but in our experience, companies and organizations in every industry have concepts that need to be broken down to customers. 

Pro Tip: Another helpful way to think of explainer videos is to consider what isn’t an explainer video. Explainer videos are not “How To” videos, which are giving a set of instructions or step-by-step actions for customers to follow.

AN EXPLAINER VIDEO: YOUR MOST TIRELESS EMPLOYEE

Do you have staff members, let’s say of your sales team, who are constantly receiving phone calls from prospects asking the same questions over and over? An explainer video can relieve the burden of these sorts of calls on your team, freeing their bandwidth for conversations with prospects deeper in the sales funnel. Or think of it this way -- if you have a Frequently Asked Questions section of your website or in your marketing materials, chances are that each question/answer would be a great contender for an explainer video.

Pro Tip: Written content remains crucial for driving traffic to your website and bolstering SEO; however, the internet has become an increasingly visual space and video’s role can’t be overstated. Not only do videos keep people engaged, but they also allow you to cater to individual’s best learning styles. Some people need visuals to comprehend concepts, not just written explanations. 

As we like to say, putting these answers into a helpful video on your website is like having an expert employee available 24/7, always ready to answer your target audience’s most pressing questions.