Short, compelling, cartoon-style, character-driven animated explainer videos enable companies to deliver even the dullest idea in a fun and enlightening way. Animated explainer videos are a valuable part of any brand’s marketing strategy, as brands can convey key information, or explain a product or service without putting the viewers to sleep. It uses creative storytelling techniques to captivate audience members, spark their interest, and make them feel connected to the story.
The Top 10 Animated Explainer Video Examples
Creating a high-quality animated explainer video can be quite challenging, especially if you don’t have an idea about how it will look in the end. That is why, in this article, we are going to be taking a look at some notable animated explainer videos that you can take inspiration from. Here are some of our favorites.
1. How Deep the Ocean Really Is
Animated explainer videos are best known for breaking down complicated concepts and making it easier to grasp for the audience. And “How Deep The Ocean Really Is” by Insider Tech is the perfect animated explainer video for that. This explainer video has more than 66 million viewers. This animation illustrates the huge distance between the waves we observe and the enigmatic point we refer to as Challenger Deep, putting the true distance into perspective. It begins at the surface and descends increasingly deeper, describing the varied marine creatures that can be found there as well as what survives (and what couldn’t) at ever-more-bone-crushing depths. The visuals and characters they used in this video are outstanding.
2. Visme- All-in-One Design and Content Creation Tool
Not just difficult concepts, animated explainer videos can explain your service or product to the audience within a few minutes in the most engaging and simple manner. Visme is a cloud-based software company that explained its service in an animated explainer video using visuals along with a simple voice-over. From engaging presentations, and professional infographics, to data visualizations this explainer video is the perfect example that shows how easy it is to explain the benefits and offerings of your services through an animated explainer video.
3. McDonald’s Wants to Know Your Order Before You Do
This video is a wonderful illustration of an animated explainer video that raises user familiarity and brand recognition of McDonald’s. Bloomberg created this animated explainer video to accompany a written piece about the fast food giant’s technological revolution. From assembly lines to touchscreen kiosks, this explainer video beautifully illustrates how McDonald’s managed to stay at the top of the fast food industry. The video explained how diners can customize their burgers into thousands of different variants using touchscreen kiosks inside the store. The animation is outstanding and it shows how McDonald’s is adopting the approach of Facebook, Google and Amazon by using technology to improve and personalize the consumer experience. The video is packed with vibrant visuals, fluid transitions, and great sound effects to educate the viewer about McDonald’s history, how the business is navigating the digital era with new services, and where it’s going next.
4. Slack
The ‘Work, simplified’ explainer video by Slack can be a great reminder of how powerful animation is. This explainer video is proof that animation has the power to explain a service in the most eye-catching manner and convey a message effectively, that too without any voiceover. You can clearly observe that the character was struggling to communicate and juggle several things at once due to an overload of work, even without any narration. At the end, Slack offers a straightforward remedy which is their app. The video demonstrates how the app simplifies communication and reduces workplace stress. Moreover, its intriguing color combinations, intense bright images, overlapping objects, and hues make it more appealing to watch.
5. Cyclops
The best thing about this animated explainer video from Cyclops is how quickly it gets to the point and covers a lot of ground about their service in the first 15 seconds. The video starts with a list of particular inquiries that retail establishments may pose to themselves, such as who’s visiting, how much time a shopper is spending inside, and which product attracts them. The illustration of these opening queries are allowing viewers to realize that the video they’re seeing is relevant to their difficulties. They also explained what their product accomplishes in detail with clear visuals so that viewers won’t be left in the dark. The video showed Cyclops using a camera to get visitor data, like age, and gender, analyze facial expressions, and compare KPIs before and after promotions, etc., to calculate effectiveness and improve sales like never before. Lastly, the video ended with a compelling call to action (CTA) that expressly instructs viewers to ask for a demo or a free trial. Your explainer film must also end with a CTA as it will provide viewers with clear instructions for what to do next.
6. HonestGorilla Explainer Video
Next, we have an excellent example of 2D animation video that perfectly marketed a brand image within 30 seconds. This animated explainer video was made for HonestGorilla, an energy company that encourages customers to compare energy providers rather than simply choosing the first one they see. It urges buyers to look for reliable energy providers, and this video shows exactly why and how to do it. And the color palette they used for the video of mustard yellow, vivid pink, and some purple, represents their brand’s unique identity. It’s funny, educational, engaging, and snappy, everything a good video animated explainer video should be.
7. Google – Get back to what you love
Another great thing about animated explainer video is it gives you the freedom to convey your message through a compelling story that would intrigue your audience’s emotion. And this animated explainer video by Google – “Get back to what you love”, is the perfect example of that. Google created this heartwarming animation to spread happiness and hope with a simple search bar. Google released this explainer video to entice users to use Google to get answers to any questions they may have about the coronavirus vaccine. The video’s simplicity and thoughtful storytelling makes the use of animation ideal for the message it is trying to express.
8. Apple – Every product carbon neutral by 2030
An animated explainer video is an excellent means to convey your brand’s identity, vision and unique essence to people, and clearly, Apple did a great job with its ‘Every product carbon neutral by 2030’ explainer video. When it comes to producing the best-animated explainer video, Apple has consistently outperformed the competition, by using animation to promote the debut of its most current products. In this case, the video shows Apple’s commitment to making every device carbon neutral by 2030 by fusing live-action videos with animated text and imagery as well as some creative musical interjections.
9. Microsoft Office 365 – Collaboration using Microsoft Whiteboard
This is another example of how an animated explainer video can be both minimal yet impactful. The video clearly illustrates how Microsoft Whiteboard enables you and your co-workers to collaborate and share visual ideas in real time while working remotely. With the help of amazing characters and visuals, this 30-second animation showcases Microsoft Whiteboard’s advantages and its usage.
10. Kurzgesagt – The Coronavirus Explained & What You Should Do
Kurzgesagt explained what the coronavirus is through video animation that happens to have over 87 million views. Kurzgesagt is well-known for consistently providing the most aesthetically appealing videos on its channel as well as on YouTube. This video is informative but still, it manages to make a difficult topic much more digestible than text ever could. This explainer video possesses a unique perspective on design, color, and storytelling. Its colorful yet minimalistic animation provides a nice counterbalance.
Ready To Make an Animated Explainer Video For Your New Project?
Whether you’re trying to raise brand awareness, introduce a new product, outline important training procedures, or connect users with key elements of your company culture, an animated explainer video is a fantastic way to grab the audience’s attention and ensure that your message stays with them. We hope these top 10 animated explainer video examples will help you become inspired for your next project.
