Digital Advertising is constantly evolving, finding new and innovative ways to engage potential customers. This not only involves new digital marketing strategies, but a variety of different designs that can aid with personalisation and maximisation of performance. One of the most popular trends involves animations, as they have an uncanny ability to be utilised across a range of different digital advertising platforms.
Animated Videos
According to Smart Insights, in 2020 92% of marketers state that video is an important part of their marketing strategy. However, videos can be an expensive undertaking for businesses especially when looking to create professional and engaging content. Therefore a cost-effective alternative is through the implementation of animated videos, which are easily adapted to satisfy a host of different audiences and scenarios.
Videos are an effective medium for entertainment and education. One of the most common examples of animated videos are what is known as explainer videos. As the name suggests, these are utilised as short marketing videos to explain a particular product or service. The benefits of animations in this aspect is not only about cost, but many businesses who utilise services or work with more intangible objects find that live-action isn’t always viable. Animated videos can also be easily modified down the track if there are changes to the business or products/services themselves.
There have also been a wide range of case studies around the effectiveness of animated videos as highlighted by Business2Commmunity:
- Crazy Egg utilised an explainer video that earned them $21k of additional revenue per month.
- Work.com conversion rate increased by 20% thanks to an explainer video.
- Dropbox created a video that led to several thousand extra sign-ups for their service per-day.
Stationary and GIF Animations
One of the most common uses of animations is stationary imagery. Similar to videos, these can be used to help with the education of users or can be utilised for easier engagement. The human brain is able to process imagery X60,000 faster than text, making it a highly efficient method of delivering information to the final end user. The animations are also easily adaptable and can be utilised across a range of different advertising mediums making them the perfect tool for any businesses comms.
Take that one step further with the implementation of GIF animation or Graphics Interchange Format. A GIF is essentially an animated image which showcases a short 5 second clip on repeat. The moving image makes this form of animation highly engaging for users (similar to videos). While the short duration allows for the attention of the viewer to be maintained, which is especially helpful in a current climate of 8-second customer attention spans. This format is also smaller in file size than a video alternative (making for faster load times) and a highly popular alternative when brands are looking to convey quick messages to customers.
Where to Use Animations
1. Animated Logos
This trend has already been utilised by many worldwide brands such as Nike, IKEA, Spotify and of course Google. These animated logos are an interesting way to highlight a brand and increase memorability of specific logos.
2. Email Marketing
Effective email marketing campaigns can be highly beneficial for advertising & retention of customers. Long gone are the days of pure text emails. Animations have now been implemented to help increase open rates and create engagement with the reader. These animations can also be easily adapted to allow for high personalisation and greater emotional connection with the reader. For instance, an animation of a birthday cake and presents with a discount or offer sent to a loyal customer can help to further cement their connection with the company and shows a great level of care for their special day.
3. Website Animations
As hinted at previously, there are a wide range of animation options available for web pages. From explainer videos to static imagery to animated logos, the possibility for UI design on websites is almost limitless. However, when looking to implement animations it is always smart to test performance and slowly integrate a few in the website design so as not to overwhelm a potential customer or damage the website usability.
4. Social Media
The most common use of animation would be across social media. This marketing channel thrives off companies’ ability to connect with potential customers through mediums such as videos, imagery and animations. Making it the optimal place to test and utilise new animations in the digital marketplace. Top performing animations can also be further adapted into strong social media advertising opportunities, so keep this in mind when designing new company animations.
When implementing animations make sure to question the message the organisation is looking to present and whether the animation will in fact provide higher engagement. To find out more about how animations can benefit your organisation contact the team at Redline Digital today.