Most organizations look at motion graphics and think they’re just aesthetically pleasing animated content. While there’s merit to that evaluation, there’s so much more to the underlying value of motion graphics. They’re not just easy on the eyes or part of the latest communication trends. They’re an answer to a communicative problem, and when implemented properly, they transform how audiences perceive and retain information about what a company does.
The trick is determining where they’re a worthwhile investment and when they’re visual fluff. Let’s be honest, for every company that could benefit from animated explainer videos and creative logo reveals, there’s an equal amount that doesn’t need the bells and whistles. Yet in some cases, motion graphics manage areas that other video forms can’t compete with.
How Motion Graphics Transform Retention of Information
Here’s something that surprises most people. The human brain processes visual information 60,000 times faster than written text. That’s no small discrepancy. When someone listens to a voiceover along with watching motion graphics, or any kind of video, the messages come through multiple channels at once and align for improved retention.
On the other hand, traditional talking head videos can suffice for some messaging. However, for theoretical explanations or more complicated information, watching someone talk doesn’t give the audience as much to grapple with. Motion graphics allow companies to showcase concepts that don’t come from tangible products. The features of software, data migration, business processes, financial plans, all of these elements are difficult to capture on film because they’re not physical entities. Instead, animated alternatives render visuals that transform the intangible into tangible ideas.
Companies who work with Motion Graphics Production companies often see this play out in real time. What takes three paragraphs of text on a page to convey someone’s message can become a 15-second animated segment that people understand and remember without the time suck. It’s not just condensing for time’s sake but instead aligning with how people best absorb information.
And beyond just initial absorption comes retention. People remember stories better than lists of bullet points or walls of text. Well designed motion graphics craft a narrative visual that an audience member can recall later, if not for all of its particulars, then at least for the general flow.
De-complicating Complex Concepts Without Oversimplifying
There’s a fine line between oversimplifying something and making it so simple that it loses value. Motion graphics can achieve the former without crossing into the latter. They take something inherently complicated and make it accessible through visuals without losing the impact of nuanced information.
Take financial services. It’s difficult to truly convey how compound interest works through an engaging means without simplifying the message too much. A motion graphic can show interest compounding over time, using visual metaphors and progressive disclosures to explain how one need to think about their finances over time instead of just a one-time payment decision. They get to see things play out instead of just hearing the outcome.
This holds true for technical products, too, SaaS companies face this regularly. They may have incredible platforms with capabilities unlike anything else, but explaining them to customers unfamiliar with the space is equally as challenging, motion graphics can facilitate user experience journeys, show how one feature leads to another, expand upon use cases for singular elements without requiring someone to assume how it all connects.
And what’s the power behind this? Control. With motion graphics, creators control what the audience sees when they see it; there are no camera angles to worry about, no mislaid lighting, no inadvertent distracting backgrounds. Everything on screen is there for a reason which means higher information density without overwhelming visual audiences.
Branding Consistency With Motion Graphics
Motion graphics allow for brand consistency rarely achieved in other video types, colors, typography, animation style and transitions all become part of a visual lexicon to promote brand equity with each viewing.
And this matters more than most companies realize. Branding isn’t about having a great logo, and while logo placement is another facet easily accomplished on video, branding is all about visual patterns established through consumer exposure to an organization. When motion graphics maintain consistent styling throughout other videos, viewers recognize this as part of one company before even getting to the logo.
The flexibility also helps; a company can create a system of motion graphic templates to provide sameness while varying visual cues, in product update videos versus social content versus presentation materials, they can all have the same DNA without looking exactly alike. Familiarity builds over time.
Good luck doing this with live action video where perfect consistency is unlikely. Lighting changes, locations differ, people age out of jobs and leave companies behind. Motion graphics avoid all this through vied control in a confined and easily replicated visual space.
When Motion Graphics Make Sense
Not every video needs to be animated; live-action video holds value when human faces can connect people in real spaces. Testimonials, behind-the-scenes content or company culture videos usually work better with real people and real environments.
Motion graphics make sense when abstract content is at play or when data-heavy programming exists; process-oriented communication benefits significantly from motion graphics in B2B spaces where clientele need to understand what’s going on instead of appreciating tangible products or services, they can’t appreciate a data center full of server racks; they can appreciate an animated flow chart about data integrity and privacy protocols.
They’re also beneficial when consistency trumps authenticity; training videos, onboarding messages and internal communication often require frequent updates. Reshooting live-action footage each time something changes gets expensive fast; updating a motion graphic is typically simpler and more cost-effective.
Budget plays its part (though it shouldn’t always, and rarely does, from expectations). High-quality motion graphics aren’t inexpensive by any means; however, in certain situations high-quality live-action is impractical without location scouting costs, equipment rentals, talent fees and weather/slash scheduling conflicts. Production timing is far easier to control.
Potential Downsides Worth Considering
But there are limitations of motion graphics as well. They’re not great at emotional connection like genuinely human stories can create, we empathize differently when seeing real people talk about real experiences instead of watching their illustrated versions explore journeys. For brand storytelling predicated upon emotional resonance, live action usually wins.
They also take longer upfront; production changes are less likely than shooting live-action with some flexibility along the way to adjusting in real-time. The script and storyboard need relative lock-in early along with the style, which means companies need to be certain about their communicative intention before they start.
Finally there’s the oversaturation piece; because they’ve become so popular in certain industries, standing out requires exceptional creativity or accepting that videos might blend in with dozens using similar approaches. The value comes from solving actual communication problems rather than just following trends.
