Why You Should Be Using 2D Animated Videos

By now, everyone knows the benefits of video content when it comes to marketing (and if not, have a look at our other posts where we talk about how you can maximize 2D animated videos for your marketing plans). They’re catchy and entertaining and they are truly effective when it comes to increasing engagement with your website.

According to a Wyzowl 2021 study, 84% of video marketers say that video has helped them generate leads. Sentiment towards video marketing has been consistently positive for these past years and there’s no sign of that stopping anytime soon.

One form of video content that’s gained popularity over the years is 2D animated videos. They’re all over the different social media platforms so chances are, you’ve seen one or two examples of them. Today, we’ll be talking about why you should go for 2D animated videos.

Why 2D Animated Videos?

When creating marketing content, one of your main goals is to be able to come up with one that resonates with your audience. One that not only talks about your product or services but tells a story about them. In marketing, this is important because stories catch people’s attention. A story that they connect with helps convince, persuade, and compel.

However, even the best stories fall flat when told badly.

Think about a great story you have but have never known how to deliver properly at a party in a way that makes other people appreciate how truly awesome it is.

It’s the same thing with your marketing content. 2D animated videos help you tell your story in a way that’s interesting. It helps you keep the content informative but fun. Lastly, it lets you create a visually compelling tool for reaching your audience for much less than what you might expect.

If that sounds good to you, read on for some benefits of using 2D animated videos:

Anything’s possible

When you go for 2D animated videos, it doesn’t matter how crazy or outrageous your idea is: it’s possible!

The sky is the limit when it comes to animated videos so let your imagination run free. If you’re short of ideas, you can also tap our experts here at Brightbulb Animations to come up with a unique spin for telling your story. Check out the video we made for Microsoft below. It blends compelling storytelling with unique visuals that serve to underline the message.

Abstract Ideas can be concretized

Conveying complex abstract ideas becomes a lot easier when you go for an animated video. With live-action videos, it becomes a question of what you can put in front of a camera, which might limit you in explaining abstract ideas unless you have a big budget.

With animated videos, you’re able to concretize these types of ideas without constraint. You’re able to zoom in as close or zoom as far back out as you want. You’re able to take complicated concepts like NFTs or blockchains and break them down into digestible bits for your audience to consume.

The video below we made for Voci shows how 2D animated videos are very effective in conveying ideas in a way that captures attention.

Easy video management production

Live-action videos require a lot of things and a lot of planning: actors, location and the nightmare that can be arranging all of this into one smooth logistics plan. The sad part is, a little bit of rain can ruin all of that!

With 2D animated videos, you won’t have to worry about any of these things.

You’re able to take full control of the final product and are able to switch out backgrounds or have characters dance around on the screen with just a simple click of the mouse. This cuts out a lot of the stress that comes with producing videos.

So now that you know the benefits of 2D animated videos, check out below for reasons why you should be choosing them over other types of content:

• They’re visually engaging – This might not bode well for me as a writer, but we all have to face facts…including me. Animated videos are just more visually engaging. They easily catch people’s attention, they make people want to stop and watch the video. With text, it’s the opposite. Plenty of text could make people run in the other direction when it comes to marketing your product. Particularly in the context of online marketing where people’s attention spans are notoriously short, video just wins over text when it comes to catching the eye.

• People connect emotionally with 2D animated videos – Saturday cartoons are a big part of most people’s childhoods’ and many of us hold fond memories of waking up early to wait for them. Because of these memories, we are able to connect emotionally with animated videos as they harken back to those days when you’d plant yourself in front of the TV to absorb the information (or shenanigans) provided by your favorite character. As Nicola Davies wrote in her article if you want people to emotionally connect with your content, an animated video is an investment worth making.

• They’re concise – There’s a reason why Twitter is so popular. It lets you transmit information quickly and easily in as few words as possible. However, you might not be able to be so concise with what your product or service does. Animated videos are a great way for you to be able to quickly present a lot of information in a short period of time. This in turn ensures that you are not only able to capture attention, you’re also able to relay the important features of what you offer.

This video we created for explains a complex topic in less than two minutes in a visually arresting way:

• They’re not as costly as you think – 2D animated video expenses are very different from live-action ones. Animated videos don’t require locations, actors, or expensive lighting and sound equipment. Though of course there’s a variety of factors that could affect the cost of creating your own 2D animated videos such as length and complexity, you’d be surprised by how reasonable the rates could be, especially taking into consideration the impact they have on your business. If you’re curious about how much it would cost to produce a high-quality video with the excellent customer service that we promise goes with it, drop us a line.

• They can easily change with your brand – You know how when you change your logo, you have to throw out your old calling cards and order new ones? For some forms of content, it’s a bit more complicated to do that. But surprisingly, with 2D animated videos, it’s easy to have an entire video evolve with your brand.  You can easily edit them and ensure that all your content branding is well within the guidelines, even if your business decides to change it every other year.

• They’re like a guided tour – Other forms of content such as infographics require a lot of reading, which we’ve established isn’t really great when you’re trying to quickly convey information all while holding their attention. The worst part is, when an infographic is badly made or too cluttered for example, it can even confuse your audience. Videos are like having someone tell you what you need to focus on first. This lets your audience focus on the information and not on how to absorb the information. It takes away a layer of confusion and lets your message shine through.

In conclusion

2D animated videos are a great way of taking your content to the next level. They tap into our emotional connections due to their familiarity and catch our attention due to their vibrancy.

However, they’re more than just visually attractive, they’re also very effective tools that inform and educate all while keeping true to your brand and its goals. When taken advantage of properly, they’re able to generate strong ROI.

There are many applicable use cases for animated videos and it’s one of the most popular forms of online content for a reason so if you’ve ever wanted to create one, there’s no better time than now.

Visit our blog if you want to know more about how to get the most out of your marketing videos or let us know if you’d like to get started on creating a video of your own.