The script is one of the most important parts of an animated video. It’s the core message that people are going to hear and that you as a business will stand behind. It’s also why everyone wants their say. And so it quickly leads to a scattered, muddy, and longwinded script.
But people mean well, I often get hit with “we want to keep it short, you know our attention spans suck these days” to which I actually agree to keep it short, but not for that reason. I keep it short because it brings a focus the message.
You’ve got so much you want to say, from technical features and benefits to education and positioning. Which often leads to scripts that are way to long, full of jargon and ultimately miss the mark.
So how the hell do you distill a complex tech solution into a swift 200 word script? In 3 steps; gather, distill and write.
So let’s get cracking, with:
Before we distill, we have to gather.
I like to split this into 3 parts: Your tech solution, your business and your audience.
This can be done in a document, canvas or any other planning tool you enjoy but collaboration is important here so make sure the rest of team can access, comment and edit as required.
But we need some focus otherwise we will just have a whole load of unorganised stuff. This is why I start with the objective. This is the focus that everything will be honed in on.
A typical objective statement follows the structure of:
[Deliverable] that [function/purpose] aimed at [audience], resulting in [strategic result].
An example of this could be: A 90-second explainer video that gives an overview of the product with a focus on how it differs from the many competitors, aimed at new website visitors who have only just learnt about us, resulting in increased trial conversions.
The more detailed the objective statement the better as it will heavily shape the information gathered and ultimately the final script.
If you’re unsure weather a piece of information is closely aligned enough to the objective, add it anyway. The more information the better, as it will all help shape the final script.
Right, time to gather that info.
Starting with:
This section is all about your product or service and helps form the core of the script. It will be the largest section and the one most team members will want to get involved in. So honestly, let them - We are just collecting info at this stage, it doesn't mean it’s made the final cut.
Here are a few things to think about:
A common problem here is having lots of technical knowledge but not fully understanding your position in the market. The reality is, you do have competitors, and so you need to differentiate.
This section is about your audience and there mindset. It helps bring more focus to the final script and brings in an element of emotional connection.
Here are a few things to think about:
Many teams forget to see it from the audiences point of view and instead focus on what they want to say, not what the potential customers want to hear. I like to keep both in mind.
This section is about your business and how the video fits into your marketing strategy. This helps with setting the tone of the script.
Here are a few things to think about:
A common pitfall here is asking too much of your video. Try to stick to one thing you want it to achieve so it can sit in a more specific place in the customer journey and be more effective.
So now we have all the info we need, we can start distilling it down to the key points, focused, as always, on the objective.
But I actually like to distill the info through two lenses: Objective and Audience. I think of it as finding a balance between what the audience want to hear and what you want to say, because they don’t always match up. A piece of information might help the objective but the audience just aren’t at the right stage in their journey to be able to understand it.
So, starting with the objective lens, as anything that doesn’t align with the objective should be cut first, look at each piece of information and give it an impact score based on how much it will push towards our objective. Rate each piece high, medium or low.
I like to focus on either end of the spectrum first, anything high impact and low impact are the easiest to decide. If in doubt, go medium - It helps keeps them separate from the clearly high impact and clearly low impact pieces.
And now I like to do our first distill. Anything rated low gets cut as it will just add more clutter to the script which will reduce the overall clarity.
Now through the lens of the audience we can ask how much will it connected with the audience and is this piece of information something the audience want to know at this stage in their journey?
Again, anything rated low gets cut as it isn’t important to your audience and will only create confusion at this stage in their journey. Unless, it is rated high on the objective impact. In this case, it’s worth keeping as your objective is our main focus but it still might not make the final cut when it comes to writing the script.
A common challenge at this stage is the fight between, what you want to say and what the actual objective is. It’s okay to be ruthless, and if you think of a great way to explain something or something that’s key to your product but doesn’t align with the objective. Keep it safe and use it for other marketing material where it will actually have the desired impact.
Right, so now we have removed any information that wasn’t pushing us towards the objective or anything the audience don’t need to know at this stage in their journey. Leaving us with an organised set of information which we can draw from when writing the script.
I like to start with a structure or story outline to help guide the flow of the script.
The structure is different from every script and unfortunately there are so many nuances that make this part really hard to systemise. And don’t worry about starting with a perfect structure, it will evolve as you add more information.
But here are some structure or story section ideas that you can mix and match to create something that works for your objective:
Whilst we don’t need a typical hook as they have actively clicked play. It’s a good idea to start with something that confirms they are in the right place. If the premise was the video will explain how it works but then starts with pricing there is a disconnect and attention is lost.
The classic - Starting with showing you understand their problem and then how your product solves it before ending with the benefits and outcomes of having solved the problem.
Follow the user of your product or solution through their journey from onboarding to final outcome. This is a nice way to bring the viewer on a journey but doesn’t work as well for more complex or bespoke solutions.
Explaining why your solution is unique. Nearly every solution has competition and the best way to stand out is by differentiating yourself in the market and how you differentiate yourself needs to be communicated with your audience.
Answering any common questions and doubts before they arise. This is often best done towards the end of the script and helps push those who may be on the edge as well as showing your depth of knowledge and understanding in the topic.
Hitting all the key things someone looks for when searching for a solution like yours. I like this for solutions that are more self-serve as it allows the viewer to tick off all the features they are looking for quickly putting your solution into their decision stage.
Stepping away from the details and creating an emotional feeling that makes the viewer energised to explore and learn more about your solution. A little goes a long way here and too much hype leads to little substance.
Ending with a clear call to action is often the best way to go. You can either give instructions or if your video player supports buttons then adding one at the end will dramatically increase action taken. Just remember to keep the customer journey and your distribution plan in mind when writing your call to action.
Once we have our rough structure we can start bringing in our information. And with our information nicely labeled, we can quickly see the high impact pieces and prioritise those.
But just before we start, we need to set our word limit. The word count is based on how long the video is planned to be, for example: A 90-second video sit around 200 words.
Now, what many see as a restriction actually helps us bring focus to the messaging. We can’t just put everything in the script, which is a good thing, instead we have to be selective.
So, here are a few things to think about when bringing our information to the script:
How much space does this piece of information need to take up, can it be a passing comment or does it need it’s own section? You’d be surprised by how few words you can use to get a point across.
How much detail do you really need to include? Sometimes going very specific builds trust - numbers, measurements, or technical terms can show precision and authority. Other times, a more general description is all that’s needed to make your point clear without overwhelming people.
Think about the kind of tone your audience will connect with. Do they respond best to something warm and friendly, professional and polished, or more like insider knowledge? The right vibe is the one that helps them feel understood.
Using a mix of short and longer sentences helps keep attention while slowing down allows pockets of space for the viewer to process the information.
If the viewer only takes away one thing from the video, what do want that thing to be?
Great scripts aren’t about saying everything, they’re about saying the right thing clearly. Gather your info, distill it down, and write with focus. Do that, and you’ll have a sharp, confident script that makes your complex tech easy to understand and hard to forget.