Deciding the best medium for your video is an important step and should be something you decide on first since it’s going to drive how you write the script.

For me the choice is usually to go animation, I’m going to push for that most of the time when I take on a new project. That’s what I’m most familiar with and comfortable doing. But I don’t want to say I never do live action explainer videos. They do have their place and do add something to a video that animation cannot.

Doing a live action video adds a lot of personality to the video and the real human element might be something your service could benefit from. However, live action adds a whole set of other issues like casting, finding location and the ability to make last minute changes. That ability to make last minute changes is what makes animation so perfect for small business videos, especially startups. When you have a service that is always changing and evolving, sometimes being able to swap out a screenshot or voiceover line is necessary. With live action a change like that could mean a lot of extra money that you probably can’t afford. Booking talent and crew for a day or more of reshoots, because there’s been an update to your product or service, can be costly. If you’re smart, when you’re making your animation you won’t include realistic screenshots for that very reason. You don’t need to be spending the money to make changes when you know it’s going to change again in a few weeks or month.

By going the animated explainer video route, you’re able to control a lot more of the style and tone of the video. Plus, you’re not limited to just human characters in your video either. You’re able to accomplish things that are much more difficult to achieve with live action. The tools to get started are less expensive then all the cameras, lights and microphones you would need for live action. All you need is a decent computer and software. By going with an animated video, you’ll likely save money because you won’t be paying actors; only the voiceover actors. You are only limited by your creativity and technical knowledge. You control everything that is shown on the screen and at the same time you have freedom to create worlds that help to highlight the business or product you want to promote.