Animated Video vs. Real Shot Video: What’s Right for Your Business?

Videos are great for explaining a product, service, or a business idea, but sometimes, it can be hard to make a choice between live-action and animation video. Can’t decide which option is right for your business? In this article, we compare animated video vs. real shot video to help you better understand what to expect from each format.

Real Shot Video

Live videos feature real people. They are authentic and great if you want to make your business appear more human. But live videos are constrained by the boundaries of reality, and the costs of video shooting can be pretty large. Complex, high-quality live videos are very expensive and require a very long time to be made.

You will have to cast actors, look for suitable locations, arrange for props, pay for proper equipment, such as camera and sound gear, schedule time for video shooting and post-production, and so on. Coordinating the shooting process is a very time-consuming, labor-intensive task.

Besides, live video is not easy to edit after the footage was recorded. And if you miss something important or just want to include some extra words (as your product or service changes), it can be tricky and will lead to additional expenses.

You’ll need to get the crew, location, and setup back together and hire the same actors. Reshooting can be difficult, time-consuming, and sometimes, it can be even impossible. That’s why live video is not the best option for startups where everything is in a constant state of flux. The process of making additional edits will be easier with animated videos.

Animated Video

The animation is great for explaining things and educational content, and it’s the best choice for abstract products or services. Here are some reasons why animation can be great for creating an explainer video for your brand.

Express Abstract Ideas

An animated explainer video can bring complex concepts to life in a way that texts or live videos can’t. With animation, anything is possible. Your video can look and sound any way you want it. That’s why a lot of online and technological businesses use animations to explain the value they offer to customers.

Animation can help you explain how your complicated e-service works step-by-step. It’s also a powerful way to present data such as numbers and statistics in a fast and clear manner using icons and graphs.

Cost-Effective

Animated videos are cheaper to produce than live videos because they don’t require professional actors and expensive set locations. You don’t have to hire an entire production team, such as one or more cameramen, a director, a production assistant, etc. Animation videos save you money, time, and energy. Animation offers more structure and flexibility in terms of a work-back schedule for you and the creative team.

Thanks to technology, you can stay updated and see your animated video created from the comfort and convenience of your own computer screen. All tasks, including project briefing, feedback, and approval, can be easily performed remotely, so you don’t have to travel anywhere.

Future Editing

Animation allows you to easily make changes to your video content at any time, which is practically impossible with live-action videos without spending additional time and money. You will have complete creative control over your animated explainer video and will be able to manage the smallest details until the last minute, testing different ways to communicate your message. For example, you can change the script, storyline, settings, or character details, and that won’t affect the budget or the project scope. You can also optimize an animated video over time for split testing or make changes in it in the future when your product or service evolves. You can easily adapt the script, remove or add a certain scene, and it won’t cost you a lot of money.

Besides, an animated explainer video consists of hundreds or even thousands of illustrations and layers, and you can easily repurpose them in your future video projects and include them in different presentations, websites, promo materials or, let’s say, eBooks.

The Bottom Line

There are many different reasons to choose animated videos over live video, but the best way to choose between the two approaches is to keep your audience and goals in mind. Live video is good if you want to connect with your audience on a human level and communicate emotions, and animated videos work best when you need to express abstract ideas and complex concepts in an engaging and digestive form. In fact, nothing is better than animation when it comes to explanation. The animation is a better option than live video because it is cost-effective, more visually captivating, and it fits any marketing need, including product explainer videos, release announcements, and ads. Besides, animated video can be easily edited, and you have the potential to update your animation over time if your product or service changes in the future.