Animation isn’t just for kids anymore. Although “animated videos” may conjure memories of munching on cereal while watching Saturday morning cartoons, these types of videos help people understand more “grown up” topics such as vascular surgery and incision cleaning.
You know how essential video marketing is for your organization, since users retain 95% of video messaging compared to just 10% when it’s written.
But not all videos are equal. Video animation, not live-action, is the perfect fit for healthcare. These snack-sized bites are easy to understand, budget-friendly and a must-have for your website.
What Is Video Animation?
With video animation, a series of moving high-definition digital images helps convey important concepts. Animations are typically 2 minutes or less, making them easy to consume. And when it comes to health content, they remove the “ick factor” when explaining what’s going on inside the body.
Use animations to show:
- What happens during surgical procedures
- How drugs or complex imaging studies work
- Biologic processes that contribute to disease
- Complex self-care activities, such as incision care after surgery
4 Reasons You Should Use Video Animation
Video animation holds users’ interest and helps build trust, both of which convert users to loyal patients.
Add video animation to your marketing strategy today, because it:
1. Cuts to the chase
Users coming to your site are eager to learn more about the next steps in their care. Animations speed the flow of information because our brains process pictures significantly faster than words. And when you opt for video animation over live-action, people consume your content even faster.
With a live-action video, users have to sit through up to 10 seconds of introductory fluff: music, physicians introducing themselves, a splash of the hospital’s logo, etc. Sure, it’s brief. But users have been known to leave sites in less time.
Read: I Have 8 Seconds to Capture Your Attention.
With animations, there is no fluff. Users get the details the moment the video starts rolling.
2. Is easily understood by people of all literacy levels
Let’s say you’re developing content for moyamoya disease, a type of vascular malformation in the brain. Treatment may include a surgical procedure to restore normal blood flow: encephaloduroarteriosyangiosis (EDAS).
Both the condition and its treatment are complex, making it difficult to develop consumer-friendly content. Your audience may struggle with it for different reasons:
- Low health literacy users will not slog through text-dense pages — the kind you’ll end up with trying to explain vascular malformations and EDAS. Live-action video may also miss the mark because users might find doctors intimidating.
- High health literacy users might understand it but not have the time or patience for written content that requires a lot of attention. You may lose them halfway through the word encephaloduroarteriosyangiosis.
But when you use video animation to explain moyamoya disease and how EDAS can help, they don’t have to navigate lengthy descriptions. Users will appreciate the simplicity of the animation. And when their brains don’t have to work so hard to understand health content, that’s a big win for your brand.
3. Treads lightly on your budget
Animations cost less to produce than live-action videos. You won’t have to scout out locations, find props or pull doctors away from seeing patients. Instead, enlist the services of a reputable video marketing agency. They’ll guide you through the production process, and you may have the finished product in just a few weeks.
And you get more bang for your video animation buck by repurposing it. Animations may start as web content, but you can also include them in blog posts, social media or news releases. Users may be more likely to click on your social media posts when there’s video content.
4. Has a longer shelf life than live-action video
Personal style, logos and hospital interiors all change with time. And if you’re using live-action video, your content will look dated in a few years. With video animation, your content will be more enduring because the focus is likely on anatomy, which doesn’t really change.
And if you need to make updates, you don’t have to start from scratch. Let’s say a new surgical instrument comes out for EDAS. Your video content agency can digitally add the device to the existing animation.
More Innovative Ways to Expand Your Content Cache
Animations are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to adding variety to your content.
Learn more by reading these blog posts:
