Top 10 tips on writing explainer animations
Tip #1: Don’t repeat yourself
In a written document, you have plenty of time to tell people what you are going to tell them, then tell them, and then tell them what you just told them.
When you only have 135 words per minute to work with, you don’t have that time.
Good writing for explainer animations means using words and pictures together to build memories and spark new ideas.
Remember that each script is a straight-line journey from ‘I don’t know’ to ‘Ah, I get it now’.
You shouldn’t have to visit ‘Haven't we heard all this before?' several times along the way!
Tip #2: Always write ‘out loud’
The written word is based on a history of ledger-keeping and stocktaking. The spoken word is based on a history of storytelling and poetry – two things that live on opposite sides of the brain.
When writing a creative animation, we always read our scripts out loud and have the computer read them back to us. As a result, problems are always picked up and fixed.
We also always send our clients a recording of the script being read aloud and ask them to listen before they read. This saves a lot of time.
Tip #3: Don't ask ‘What don't you like about this?’
Early engagement is always better than late-stage feedback. But if you have to show people something that's almost finished, the best way to avoid starting again from scratch is to gather some people from your target audience and ask them questions about the key topics of the film.
Then, show them the film and ask them the same questions again.
If their answers have changed in the way that you want them to, you have successfully changed their minds – the film works.
Aside from accessibility issues and any unintended offence, the rest is down to personal preference.
Tip #4: WFT?
In this context, WTF stands for ‘What’s This For?’ If you are paying to have a creative explainer film made, it’s usually because you want to change someone’s mind about something.
Having an answer to the WTF question means we have something to go back to whenever any other decision needs to be made.
If a client wants to include some additional information, we can use WTF to check that it is relevant; that it is part of the story; that it will influence the viewer, leaving them feeling and thinking how we want them to and ready to do what’s asked of them in the call to action (CTA).
Tip #5: Be accessible
‘They’re not hard to reach – you are.’
There is no such thing as hard-to-reach audiences, only organisations that have made themselves inaccessible to marginalised groups.
Simply translating something into different languages or adding subtitles is a good start, but it isn’t enough. A good animation will make you more accessible. It will use familiar language, settings and images that ring true to the target audience.
The only way to get this right is to involve people from marginalised groups as early as possible in the process: be humble, accept their help, listen to what they have to say, and then do it.
Tip 6#: Get rid of the jargon
‘Hey everyone, why is the emperor naked?’
English contains hundreds of different languages and dialects. There is British English, American English, written English, spoken English, texting English, London English, Bristol English… even NHS or Big Pharma English.
Part of a good writer’s job is to translate that which makes perfect sense to everyone within the organisation into something that will make sense to everyone everywhere.
This means being okay with being naïve and asking lots of questions like ‘What do you mean by Accelerating Next?’ or ‘If you had to take a picture of it, what would it look like?’ or ‘What things will tell you if it’s been successful?’
Tip 7#: Structure your information
‘You can’t build a house from the roof down.’
An explainer animation is basically a teaching tool. It might be teaching the viewer how to access services, telling them about a new product, or showing them some complex research that’s taken place.
If you are teaching something complex like maths, starting with quadratic equations is no good. First, people need to understand how numbers work and what the symbols mean.
The correct order of information takes your viewer from the most basic information to the most complex and finally to your conclusion.
It’s best not to go on any weird detours along the way…
Tip #8: Keep it real
Animation is uniquely suited to telling real-life stories in a way that preserves anonymity without losing emotional impact. It has the power to take a number of different real-life experiences and make them into a single narrative.
Case studies are a great way to make organisations more accessible to marginalised groups.
A bad case study, however, can do more harm than good.
Bad case studies feel phoney, like someone selling a product. Often, they seem to have a little too much insider knowledge, or worse, they will break into jargon.
Tip #9: Watch your speed: The 135-word minute
‘What if they just talk faster?’
In normal speech, people talk at about three words per second. That’s 180 words per minute. They will slow that down to 150 words per minute if they're giving a speech on stage.
If we need to leave space for images to resolve, like in a PowerPoint presentation or an animation, it slows down again.
Having made over 400 animations, we’ve found that the sweet spot is between 135 and 140 words per minute.
This is why we don’t have time to waste on stuff that isn’t relevant and why you probably need the help of an experienced professional if you want to fit everything into your 2-minute film.
Tip #10: Save the best ‘til last
‘Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn!’
One of the weird quirks of spoken English, as opposed to written English, is that it’s totally upside-down. People start their essays with an abstract outlining the main conclusions of the study. People start after-dinner speeches with a joke or a shocking fact.
In written English, a list starts with the most important thing. In spoken English, the last thing they hear is what will stick in their mind.
For example, can anyone tell me the first line of Gone With The Wind?
We hope you’ve enjoyed reading our Top 10 Tips! But if you’re still not quite sure about how to narrate your animation, our experienced copywriters are trained to make even the most complex ideas a doddle to understand and will help you to clarify and articulate your message. You can also find more help with scriptwriting and download our FREE pre-scripting worksheet here:
