The 7 Best Types of Explainer Video Software

When it comes to learning a new tool for your marketing stack, what do you prefer?

Reading a long, technical blog post or watching a video?

Most of us prefer the latter. And we’ve got numbers to back this up.

59% of executives agree that if both text and video are available on the same topic, they are more likely to choose video.

And that’s not all. A whopping sixty-four percent of consumers end up buying after watching brand videos!

With online audiences' attention spans getting shorter and shorter, brands need to communicate and explain what their products are all about as efficiently as possible.

This is where explainer videos come riding in on a shiny white horse.

What are explainer videos?

If you’re new to the world of video, you’re probably wondering what the heck is an explainer video.

In a nutshell, explainer videos demonstrate how a brand’s product or service works. They’re usually short, fun to watch, and make complex topics easy to understand for the everyday consumer.

So whether you’re trying to explain how your product works, increase brand awareness, or simply trying to welcome new potential consumers to your website, an explainer video does it all in a fun and hugely-effective way. If you want to have a deeper look at a particular feature of your product, you should also consider shooting how-to videos.

Why should you invest in explainer videos?

We’ve entered a video-first world, so replacing text-based content with video content is imperative for brands. Afterall, video marketing generates 66% more qualified leads per year than any other type of digital marketing.

However, there are 3 important reasons why brands need to start investing in explainer videos pronto.

• Explainer videos are a great way to easily convey ideas and deliver messages to your audience. They’re short, they’re (usually) entertaining, and they convey important, complicated things in an easy-to-understand way.

• They can be easier and cheaper to produce than a whitepaper or an eBook.
• Explainer videos are not only great for search engine optimization (especially YouTube’s search engine), but also an excellent way to boost social sharing for your brand. After all, social sharing is a key to growing your online presence and boosting sales. So a short and fun explainer video comes in handy here.

The 7 Best Software To Make Explainer Videos

For bootstrapped businesses or people who don’t have massive marketing budgets, there is a variety of online software that can help users to create amazing explainer videos. They're easy to use, inexpensive, and allow you to create professional looking videos in no time.

Depending on the type of explainer videos you’d like to create, there are 2 main categories of explainer video software.

2D animation based

If you’d like to create simple explainer videos with 2D animations, tools like Video Scribe and Vyond work best. While super easy to create, these types of videos work great when you’re trying to create a simple product education video or an onboarding video.

Motion graphics and stock media based

If you’re looking to create motion design videos that are better for explaining what your company does, your initiatives and projects, and incorporate actual interview footage, tools like PlayPlay (more on that below) are your best bet. Don't be afraid! To create top-quality videos you don't necessarily need to be a video creation expert - keep reading and the canva for videos will be revealed!

Without further ado, here is the list of the best explainer video software.

1) PlayPlay

2) Video Scribe

3) Raw Shorts

4) Doodly

5) Vyond

6) Toonly

7) Explee

So let’s dive in.

1) PlayPlay

Time for some humble bragging.

PlayPlay is an intuitive but powerful video creation platform that enables in-house communication, marketing, and social media teams to produce high-quality videos in minutes, without the need for editing skills.

Here’s why it’s the perfect explainer video maker for you:

• It has a ton of templates for explainer videos. So all you need to do is choose a template, add brand graphics and text, and voila! You have a fun, professional looking explainer video ready in less than an hour.
• It has many premium features, but it’s super simple to use. There’s honestly no learning curve required. Even your 10 year old intern (i.e child) can create videos with it.
• It has access to Getty Images stock media library for enterprise plans.

With a super simple, easy to use interface and a whole host of animation and design options to choose from, you really can’t go wrong with PlayPlay.

Check out this slick explainer video that Veeva Systems made with PlayPlay:

2) Video Scribe

Video Scribe helps businesses to create whiteboard animation videos. Choose animations from their overflowing library, type text, add music or voiceover and you’ve got an awesome explainer video ready in mere minutes.

If you’re short on time and have zero video creation and editing skills, this tool is perfect for you. It’s monthly plan starts at $17.50, so it works great if you’re on a tight budget.

3) Raw Shorts

Raw shorts is a cloud based animation platform that makes it super easy to create animation videos. It has a plethora of video templates that you can just drag and drop to create professional looking videos easily.

If you’re looking to create internal communications videos, social media videos, or short and simple product/service explainer videos, this AI-driven animation software is for you. And the best part is that it’s starter plan is absolutely free!

4) Doodly

Whiteboard videos are all the rage in the online world right now. And why wouldn't they be? They’re an amazing way to explain complex topics in a simpler, layman-friendly way. And they’re fun to look at, too.

If you’ve been thinking of creating whiteboard animation videos for your product/service, Doodly is the right platform for you. It’s an intuitive, drag and drop doodle video creator. With a whole host of online tutorials, even someone with zero design skills can create a super fun whiteboard explainer video within no time!

It’s standard monthly charges are $39, so a great option if you’re on a budget!

5) Vyond

With a wide selection of character animations and templates, Vyond helps to create amazing animation videos easily. It allows you to make customizations to characters, backgrounds, and other assets. You can make your character do (almost) anything through this tool and the end result is so professional, it looks as though you’ve spent days working on it.

If you’re looking to create amazing animation explainer videos for your brand, Vyond is definitely worth a try. Standard yearly plans start from $299!

6) Toonly

Primarily designed to create fun animations, Toonly is an excellent desktop application for busy business owners looking to create awesome videos. It especially works great for educational video when you’re trying to demystify a complex product or service for your audience.

The best part about Toonly is ease of use. It’s user-friendly interface is great for beginners. And similar to Doodly, the standard plan is only $39\month.

7) Explee

If you’re looking for an all-in-one video tool, your search ends here.

With over 6000 images in their library, a plethora of animated effects, whiteboard animation transitions, animated audio editor, and their text to speech system (can’t afford to spend on professional voice over artists, no problem!), Explee helps you to create all kinds of videos with ease. Its standard monthly charges are only $7, so an amazing deal if you’re running a bootstrapped business.

The best part about it is that it’s a cloud based software which works great if you’re working on multiple devices throughout the day.

In a cab with time on your hands to create a quick video? Do it via Explee and share it instantly on your social channels.

Video is here to stay

Marketers who use video grow revenue 49% faster than non-video users. So if you still haven’t hopped on the video marketing bandwagon, you’re losing out on some serious revenue. Don't forget that you can make basically out of everything video content: Whether it is a tutorial video, an event video or a testimonial video, this kind of content is more snackable and makes information easier to retain.

Choose the right software to help you create stellar explainer videos and you could start seeing solid ROI in brand awareness, leads, and customers!