Boredom Kills. Storytelling is the Cure.

Picking a good explainer video producer is tough. Here’s something to keep in mind: Storytelling.

So much media these days, including many blockbuster action movies, leave us feeling numb and bored. Why?

The simple answer is that they lack story. They don’t invite us to empathize with anyone or care about anything. They don’t ask us to engage our minds and our emotions.

Instead, they think they can do all that for us. They ask us to sit back and receive an endless litany of frenetic action, a visual bombardment of eye candy that asks us to surrender instead of understand. And that’s a recipe for boredom.

It’s not just Michael Bay movies that have this problem. Many explainer videos suffer from same thing; lots of pretty things to look at, but not much that makes viewers care.

But the problem runs deeper than an over-reliance on visuals. The problem really starts with the writing.

At Planet Nutshell, we believe that scriptwriting is at the heart of a good Nutshell. Good writing tells stories about people. Good writing has fun, shows a bit of whimsy, and makes people feel better while they become more informed.

If you’re shopping for an explainer video, ask yourself this: Can this producer tell a good story? Or are they just reading through a bland tutorial while pretty things fly through the frame?

Our Nutshells don’t just explain, they tell stories. In so doing, they help our clients build an authentic connection with viewers. Nutshells help our clients say to their audiences, “Hello, we have a soul.”

"Mobile Location Privacy Explained in a Nutshell" Released

Hot off the presses, here’s our latest for the Utah Education Network and and the NetSafe Utah program.

This video helps teens and tweens understand the importance of keeping their mobile photos private and out of the hands of potential bad guys, or as we like to say, “sketchballs.”

Be sure to check out our entire 18-episode NetSafe series.

New Nutshell for Microsoft SkyDrive and Office Released

The folks on the SkyDrive team asked us explain how their cloud storage service integrates with Microsoft Office and lets people collaborate easily.

That’s pretty cool, we said, but in our minds, the real story is always about people, so we created three characters who work together to create a paper using SkyDrive and Office.

Meet Alissa, Jamal, and Max:

The rest is simple. We put these three in their own world and let them do their thing. Here’s the result:

Microsoft deployed the video on a landing page targeted at students.

It’s being used elsewhere, too, as in this great Windows Live Blog entry from SkyDrive Product Manager Anand Babu.

We owe a big thank you to the SkyDrive team and Microsoft for a fantastic collaboration!

Wayin Nutshell Case Study

Our latest video was produced for the hot new Startup, Wayin, which is the brainchild of Sun Microsystems co-founder Scott McNealy.

Wayin approached us with three main needs:

1. Engage a young, fairly hip audience
2. Explain Wayin’s key concepts in a fun way that doesn’t feel like teaching
3. Do it all in about a minute

Thanks to a strong collaboration with the folks at Wayin we got to the finish line quickly and without a lot of fuss. One thing that’s great about this project is how well Wayin integrated it with their Web site. Below is a screen shot. Note the prominent placement of the video at the top with a big honkin’ play button. Nicely done.

Wayin didn’t stop there. They also integrated artwork from the video into their app landing page. This is the first screen that new users see when they fire up the Wayin app.

It’s just another example of how Nutshells, thanks to their high production values and exquisite artwork, can be integrated into a complete experience.

PlayLater in a Nutshell Released

The folks at PlayOn asked us to produce a Nutshell for their new software called PlayLater. Our task was to produce a complete explanation of PlayLater in about a minute. Mission accomplished! Check it out:

How Much Should an Explainer Video Cost?

I’ve seen chatter on the InterWebs about the cost of explainer videos. Why are prices all over the place? Why are quality standards all over the place?

The explainer industry is very fragmented right now, and it can be confusing for marketing folks who have never managed the production of web video.

I can only speak for Planet Nutshell on this issue, but I think it’s important to help people understand what goes into making a Nutshell. Nutshells are produced by a complete team that consists of an illustrator, animator, script writer, storyboard artist, sound engineer, voiceover professional, and project manager who corrals all of this talent and communicates with clients.

Based on response from clients and the number of inquiries we receive to create more Nutshells, we think this group of people are delivering products that are competitive with the best content on the Web. Some people tell me our work “looks like TV.” So how much does it cost to do this?

The answer is that it depends on each client’s needs. Just as there isn’t one Nutshell style that fits every client, there’s no single price, either. In general, we present pricing once we know something about a client’s needs.

I’ve also seen people wondering why many explainer video producers don’t publish their prices publicly. My answer to this is simple: Agencies that take themselves seriously don’t do that. Consider Buck or Three Legged Legs, creative houses who produce TV commercials. All you’ll find on their sites is a way to get in touch and discuss your needs.

So why isn’t pricing more transparent, even from the agencies above who charge hundreds of thousands of dollars, if not millions, to produce content?

Because creativity is not a commodity, like a DVD player or a toothbrush. Of course, there are some in this industry who have commodified the explainer video. And the videos they produce are generic as a result. That’s too bad, but that’s not what we do and it’s not who we are.

Here’s what I will say about Nutshells. Get in touch with us to discuss your needs. We’ll discuss price after we discuss many other things that are important to making a great video. Then compare that price to the cost of a 30-second TV commercial. You could buy a trainload of DVD players with the difference.

Google Wallet Explained in a Nutshell Released

NFC? Mobile Payments? What does all this stuff mean? We thought, enough is enough, got out our scalpels, and cut through all the silly acronyms and jargon to make this little ditty about Google Wallet. Still in its infancy, Google Wallet promises to profoundly change the way we pay for stuff. We think it’s a big deal, so we made a Nutshell that explains the basics. We hope you enjoy.

Tumblr Explained in a Nutshell Released

We think more people should know about Tumblr, so we set out to answer the question “What is Tumblr?” Here’s the result. We think it turned out great!

Distracted Driving in a Nutshell Released

Like to gab on the phone or (gasp!) text while you drive? Here’s a new Nutshell that’s designed to drive home the dangers of distracted driving. Please, don’t do it!

Virgin America Meets Method Hand Sanitizer

And what a beautiful meeting it is. This is from the very talented people at Three Legged Legs.

Older posts

Contact Us »

Questions, comments? We're all ears.

Hire Us »

Planet Nutshell makes custom animated videos, called Nutshells, that inspire and enlighten. Learn more.