Sure, there are freelancer that claim they can make a high quality explainer video for rock bottom prices, but… are you really getting the best value for your money?
Let’s take a look at a few scenarios of how things can go wrong when hiring a animation freelancer based on offering a good price VS animation company with guaranteed results…
You’ve decided to get an explainer video for your home page. So, you go to one of those freelancing sites. You post a job explaining your ideas and then wait anxiously for you video to arrive.
Finally, you get a message that your video is ready!…
Scenario One: The Case of the Clip Art
You open it up and think… “Well. It’s okay. But I’d really like the character to be holding a sample of my product.”
So, you write the freelancer back asking for changes.
A week later, you get a reply back saying that they aren’t able to do that because they don’t use custom-drawn artwork. The best they can do is paste in a picture of the product and find some clip art from the web that doesn’t flow nice visually with the rest of the other stuff in it.
Even worse, the clip art images they’ve used in your video are copyrighted graphic material from another company that is putting YOUR business into some serious legal risks dealing with copyrighting issues.
Oh, and they’re going to charge you to find and add the new artwork. It’s not a perfect solution, but what can you do?
You need to have your product in the video.
Video Production TIP #1: Don’t hire a freelancer who’ll use clip art or stock photos. Choose someone that creates unique and custom artwork specifically-designed for your video.
At the end of the day, you want your business to stand out from your competition, right? Your video that represents your brand doesn’t deserve to have graphics used in 10,000 other videos.
Scenario Two: The Case of the Confusing Pronunciation
…You are about 30 seconds into the video when you think you hear the name of your company pronounced wrong.
So, you play it back again. You hear it again!
You play it for your friends, and they hear it too.
You can’t have a video with your company name mispronounced! So you write the company asking them to re-do the voiceover.
A week later you get a reply that there are charges for redone voice-overs, and you’ll have to pay again. But they are the one who made the mistake! You don’t really have much of a choice, so you fork over more money for a new voiceover.
Video Production TIP #2: A professional video production company will re-record the voiceover at no charge if the mistake is theirs.
Scenario Three: The Case of the Mismatched Graphics
…You’re watching the video, and about 45 seconds in, the audio track doesn’t seem to match the timing of the graphics on the screen.
When the voice says one thing, the visuals are showing another. The timing is off!
You write the freelancer telling him/her that there’s a problem, and then wait for a reply. No answer.
A few days later, you write again. Still no answer. You want to have the video ready for a big meeting or project deadline as soon as possible, and there is no way you can show this video!
After a week (or two) and no response, you start to panic and begin looking for another freelancer or company to fix your video. It’s going to cost more money than if you had just gone with a reputable company in the first place!
Video Production TIP #3: Always work with a video production company who guarantees their work, and is responsive to messages within hours… not days, not weeks.
Scenario Three: The Case of Having A Video VS. Having The RIGHT Video That Gets Prospects To Say “YES!”
Getting an explainer video it’s an investment for your business, not an expense.
Think about it like this…
You hire someone to create a video for you for $50 but after putting it online, you don’t see any results. What did it cost you? You wasted $50!
Now on the other hand, you hire a reputable animation company to create a video for you that costed you $700 and after putting it online you notice 500% increase in conversion rates …month after month. What did it cost you? Well, on this case it actually increased (and increasing) your business revenue because people find it engaging and they’re learning more about what you have to offer.
We’ve heard many horror stories from our clients who had some really bad experiences with some video animation companies that seem cheap in the short run, but charge you for every single thing, won’t make revisions, don’t offer custom art, and aren’t responsive to your messages.
Now go over to wizMotions.com, and take a look at your options.
You can see clearly exactly what the video is going to cost, and what’s included.
You’re thinking about what type of video to get when there’s a pop-up window with a chat agent. Or, if you want, you can speak to someone live on the phone. Whether you order straight from the website, or on the phone, there is complete transparency.
You know what you’re getting, and how much it will cost.
Within a few hours of ordering your video, you’re assigned a personal project manager. He or she walks you through every step of the process, and with the simple online project management system we’re using, you can check on the status of your video through every step of production.
You’ll be able to approve the script, the artwork, and choose your voice talent from a huge library of artists.
Between two to three weeks later, you get a message that your video is done!
You are so excited. Watching it, you think, “This is exactly what I had in mind!” …and you know that if there were any edits, your project manager would make sure that the changes were made quickly and professionally.
Video Production TIP #4: A world-class explainer video that is based on neuroscience can double, triple (even quadruple) your business.
A great living example of the above statement is Dropbox. They grew from 0 to 100 million users in just a few months and on their homepage they only had a logo and a great animated video.
When price is the leading factor in choosing a video production company, you can often end up paying more in the long run for a lower quality product.
Here are three tips to help you choose the best company to produce your explainer video.
Change Your Mindset: Expenses VS. Investments
It’s a good idea to set aside between $500-$1000 for a good quality explainer video. Yes, there are companies that can produce them for less, but you’ll be getting clip art or stock photos and lower quality voiceovers and video quality. And the customer service is often lacking. When you consider that quality homepage videos are shown to increase conversion rates by 20% or more, the increased business should offset the initial cost of the video.
Check out few of more of the many case studies we received from our clients:
Check Out & Verify Authenticity of the Company’s Portfolio
Before you place your order, take some time to review the company’s portfolio. Doing so will give you a good idea of the quality of the videos they produce, as well as the style of the graphics and art. Specifically, look at the script, the artwork, the music, the editing, and the overall “tone, look, and feel” of the video.
Read the Testimonials and Verify They’re 100% Real
In addition to looking at the portfolio, also read the testimonials. Obviously, a company is going to put its best foot forward and include only positive reviews. But, if you see dozens and dozens of happy customers, you can feel confident you’re working with a professional company. Also, look at the other clients. Are they high profile, big-name companies? That lends tremendous credibility. (add link to testimonials here).
In all, choosing a company for your explainer video production is so much more than “Who has the lowest price.” Your video will be a reflection of your business, and you need to make sure that its quality reflects your brand image.