Think explainer videos are just nice-to-have marketing content? Think again.
According to research, the most commonly-created types of video are explainer videos (73%), social media videos (67%), and presentation videos (51%).
Additionally, an overwhelming 96% of people have watched an explainer video to learn more about a product or service. Finally, 81% of companies are actively showcasing videos on their website as per HubSpot.
The writing is on the wall: Explainer videos are an essential marketing content and find many takers if done well.
So, if you are wondering about how to write a script for a video for your health and wellness brand, these tips can help you get started.
How to Make Explainer Videos: Top-5 Tips
Here are the fundamentals to explainer video scripts that you need to keep in mind and get the creative juices flowing:
#1. Nail Your Creative Brief and Storytelling Narrative
The first step to drafting a killer explainer video script is to create a creative brief that answers the following questions:
- How will you tell your brand’s health and wellness journey in a specific, clear, and concise way?
- How will your video script transform complex health and wellness ideas into an easy-to-consume story?
- What will your narrative look like? Will your explainer videos offer a solution to your user’s health problem, or will it be more like a process walkthrough about a particular product/service?
When choosing a particular story-telling narrative, here are some tips to consider:
Problem-Solution
- Use this style when you want to showcase your health and wellness product or service as the main ‘Secret Sauce’ to solve the problem at hand.
- Think about demonstrating how the video will make your viewer’s life easier–will it bridge the informational gap or expand your user’s knowledge about your area of expertise?
- Ensure that the problem is clearly stated and relatable, and the story arc talks about the solution.
Process Walkthrough
- Use this style for demonstrating a health service overview or when you want to highlight a product how-to. However, make sure that the script does not end up sounding like a novelty (and boring) tour guide.
- The idea is to talk about your brand as clearly and efficiently as possible.
#2. Answer the Following Questions When Creating the Script
Answering these questions below can help you ensure that you’re creating a killer video script that can bring you the conversions you deserve:
- Does your explainer video instill confidence and trust in the viewer?
- Does it anticipate the onlooker’s questions and clearly answer them?
- Think about why you want to create an explainer video and why will people be interested in it?
- How will the explainer video add real value to the viewer’s life? As a thumb rule, stay away from making it annoyingly sales or promotional.
#3. Write as if You’re Talking to a Five-Year-Old
Easier said than done, but it helps to simplify your script and make it as simple, interesting, and easy to digest as possible.
Here are some ideas that can help you simplify your script:
- Edit your script till you can describe your story in just about five sentences.
- The sentences should be crisp, conversational, and friendly.
- Think about how you can directly speak to the target audience by putting yourself in your viewer’s shoes. You can do this by talking to them in their language and using the second-person voice.
#4. Use Emotions or Humor to Catch Hold of Your Viewer’s Attention
The end goal of your explainer video script should be to elicit an emotional response from the viewer and get them hooked to your product/service.
Factor in elements such as the right tone, brand voice, and personality, language, memories/anecdotes, data, use cases, testimonials, etc., to convey the right emotion.
You can also use humor to stand apart from the competition.
#5. Laser-Focus on the Video Length
Longer videos are a buzz-kill. Ideally, your explainer videos should ideally be anywhere between 30 seconds to 3 minutes at the most.
Research claims that 58% of viewers will watch a business-related video all the way through if it’s less than 60 seconds.
Pro tip: Facebook recommends that you keep videos to around 15 seconds and remember that 47% of value in a video is delivered within the first 3 seconds.
Also, it helps to stick to the benchmark of 130-150 words per minute. You can read your script out loud and practice to understand how long it should be.
Bonus: Other Useful Hacks for Writing an Explainer Video Script
Other than those five tips mentioned above, there are also some additional best practices in writing high-converting video scripts.
Here you go:
- Avoid clunky and overly complicated words, and use words that can easily be translated into visual action. You can use the free grammar checker app to cross-check your grammar and see how easy to read your script truly is.
- Keep rewriting long and awkward phrases that mirror the way we naturally speak.
- Think about the kind of motion graphics, animation, infographics, data visualization, kinetic text, and other visual elements you will include in your explainer video. In other words, your scriptwriter should work with the graphic designer to create a video that is entertaining, engaging, and educational.
- Think about the flow and make sure that the script is cohesive and seamless from the beginning to the end.
- Engage in A/B testing before you roll it out to understand its efficacy in real life.
Bonus material: Here’s a slightly lengthy but extremely useful infographic on how to writing script (yes, you’re welcome):
Wrapping Up: Explainer Videos can be Instrumental in Ensuring Your Brand’s Success
Creating an explainer video script that actually engages readers and brings in leads is not an easy task.
With human attention spans stooping to a mere 8-seconds and falling below that of a goldfish, marketers need to think of innovative ways to recapture the human interest in their product/service in a sea of sameness.
To that end, your video should deliver value at every touchpoint and should demonstrate your brand as credible as well as trustworthy. Make sure to distribute your explainer video on the best placement.
It is not just about creating educational videos; it is also about creating an engaging one. If you’re still unsure about where to begin, try these hacks and strategies outlined above, and leverage the 360- degree benefits of video marketing.
Author: Lexi is the business development manager at Contentago, a niche on-demand content platform for health and wellness eCommerce brands.
