Granola AI is an app that uses AI to capture, search and query meeting notes.
Granola was making a shift from individuals to teams and had created a new set of team features which they wanted to promote via social media when they launched in just 1 week.
The project objective was to educate their audience on the update, explain how it works and get people thinking about how they could use it in their own team - Eventually leading to users inviting their team members.
With little time until launch, a snappy, sub 1 min explainer was perfect for grabbing attention on social media, delivering the message and generating some hype.
I wanted to create an animation that flowed through each feature, almost as if following a user on their journey. Starting with sharing a meeting note, then using AI to query other team member’s notes, before keeping up to date with new notes across the company. I would then end with security as it’s important but not as exciting - and on social we need to be exciting!
The animation would not have a voiceover as lots of social media videos are watched on silent - This also helps to keep it snappy as well as reduce the time taken to produce.
The distribution plan was for the animation to be posted organically on social via the Granola channels as well as sit on the website on a “New feature” page. This distribution combined with the tight deadline meant I went for a traditional but widely accepted 16:9 aspect ratio allowing the animation to be used across platforms.
I used language and tone that was easy to read and digest, this was both to reflect how granola makes notes easy to digest as well as not overloading the viewer.
It was important to keep everything on brand to help with growing the brand awareness. I kept to visual styles used across the static graphics they already had but made the UI fairly abstract as it’s early in development and things might change slightly in the near future - It also helps viewers focus on what’s important.
I aimed to bring it all to life in a way that reflects the calm and simplicity the app offers - Everything flows smoothly just like the process of using Granola for teams.
Sound still completes an animation, even on social when it’s mostly played without audio, the few times it is (and anywhere else in the future the animation is used) makes it a complete experience. I chose a track that fit the vibe and layered in sound effects to bring impact to key moments.
We went from ideation to complete animation in just 5 days - Ready for launch!
Even with limited time, I wanted to offer feedback sessions and so throughout the process there was reviews and editing at every stage. This lead to a better end result and one that aligned closely with their brand, positioning and goals.
The team at Granola were very happy with the results and the video was shared on social and will soon be up on the website.
Ultimately, the animation helped in shifting user perception of Granola from a personal tool to a collaborative hub for teams.