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Justine Ross
Learning Experience Designer
FEATURING...
Storytelling
Makes the information more memorable and engaging
Under 3 Minutes
Short and to the point helps retain interest
Animation
Presents the information in a way that is easy to understand and digest
OVERVIEW
A new software development company enlisted my services to create an explainer video for their latest product. Essentially, the video aimed to generate awareness and interest in the software by addressing three pivotal questions for potential customers: (1) why they need it, (2) which pain points it resolves, and (3) what they can do to get it (the call to action).
Target Audience
Project managers, executives, team members, and consultants working for any sized company that tracks daily activities.
Responsibilities
Story Design
Storyboard
Video Development
Tools Used
Vyond
Microsoft Word
Miro
Google Docs
Year
2023
THE CHALLENGE
Introducing a new software can fall flat when the emphasis is solely on features and how they work. Overlooking the crucial "why" can render the technology irrelevant to those who fail to grasp its potential benefits. Unless they’re told why they should care about the software, they won’t.
Unless potential customers are told why they should care about a new software, they won't.
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MY SOLUTION
People are wired to pay attention to things that matter to them. Crafting a story that touches people in an emotional way will foster stronger engagement than bombarding them with dry, technical details. Stories create an emotional connection, making the information more relatable and memorable. By weaving in relatable characters, realistic scenarios, and genuine challenges, you can demonstrate the value of your software in a way that resonates with your audience. This approach not only captures their interest but also highlights the real-life benefits and positive outcomes of using your product, driving home its relevance and necessity.
Give them a reason to care by providing a story.
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To create a story that would resonate with our audience, I began conducting user interviews, finding participants through professional networks and social media. I prepared my interview questions to give me a clear picture of the target audience, their challenges, needs, and current solutions regarding the problem of tracking unscheduled billable tasks. Using this data, I organized their specific experiences and emotions into an empathy map, documenting what they said, thought, did, and felt.
Conducting interviews, I documented in an empathy map what participants said, thought, did, and felt.
MY PROCESS
Empathy Map
This helped me to gain a nuanced understanding of individual user experiences and ultimately identify some shared characteristics among my audience. Segmenting them into three diverse groups --- project managers, team members, and executives --- I created a detailed persona for each one. Including demographic information, goals, pain points, needs, and the user journey, my personas represented, in detail, typical users, helping to ensure that the story would be deeply informed by real user insights.
Identifying three types of users, I created three personas to represent their demographic information, goals, and pain points, and ensure realism.
Team Member Persona
Based on the insights gathered, my story’s core message needed to highlight the software’s ability to save businesses time and money while improving work-life balance for staff. So I crafted the following big idea to capture both the essence of what the new software does and the stakes of not adopting it: Our innovative software not only saves your business time and money by accurately capturing unscheduled billable tasks but also reduces employee burnout by improving efficiency and ultimately work-life balance.
The big idea determined not only the audience’s ultimate destination but also their inward and outward change that would need to occur to get them there. Initially, they may view unscheduled tasks as a minor nuisance or an inevitable part of business operations that can't be effectively managed. However, after being introduced to the new software and understanding its benefits, they begin to see these tasks as a significant source of lost revenue and inefficiency, which, once systematically tracked and billed, can have the ancillary effect of improving work-life balance. Once this inward change occurs, the audience is primed for taking action and adopting the software. Bridging the gap between the audience’s inward and outward change, the big idea provided an understanding of the audience’s journey, which would help in the next stage of ideating a compelling story.
Informed by my empathy map and user personas, I got to work building out the big idea, brainstorming different narrative approaches, characters, and scenarios. Choosing to pick up from where I left off with my Team Member’s persona, I created a narrative arc with a beginning, middle, and end, adding details to make it relatable and the story transformational.
I crafted the following big idea:
Our innovative software not only saves your business time and money by accurately capturing unscheduled billable tasks but also reduces employee burnout by improving efficiency and ultimately work-life balance.
I created a narrative arc, with a beginning, middle, and end, adding details to make it relatable and the story transformational.
A Narrative Arc
After receiving sign-off on the narrative structure, I began developing the script, aiming to keep the video within the marketing industry's guideline of under three minutes. This was challenging, but using voiceover instead of dialogue allowed for a snappier pace. I repeatedly timed myself narrating the script to ensure it stayed concise.
To hook the audience, I equated time with money, emphasizing the finite nature of time. Establishing shared values at the outset was crucial for building trust and making the story immediately relatable.
I developed the script, keeping the video within the marketing industry's guideline of under three minutes.
Script
The decision to use animation to tell our story was influenced by its cost-effectiveness compared to other mediums; however, there were additional advantages. Supported by Mayer’s Multimedia Principles, animation would help to reduce cognitive load by simplifying abstract ideas and visually illustrating concepts important to our message, like scheduled versus unscheduled billable hours, and profit gains. Its ability to incorporate eye-catching and creative elements would help to retain our audience’s attention longer and leave a more lasting impression.
With the advantages of animation clearly established, the next step in my design process was to create a text-based storyboard. As my script relied on voiceover rather than dialogue, the visual content needed to illustrate and enhance the story being told. These b-roll visuals would serve as my sole visual content, and so it was important to map out each scene to show the story's structure and flow. With no established brand guidelines to follow, I looked to the video animation tool for guidance, ultimately borrowing colours from key elements that aligned with the message and feelings I wanted to evoke in my audience. With the addition of blue to convey trust and professionalism, the colour scheme would help to create a cohesive look and feel. Gathering feedback and allowing for iterative improvements on the storyboard helped me to not only identify potential issues but also make necessary changes without investing significant resources in actual production.
Aside from cost-effectiveness, animation offered to reduce cognitive load by simplifying abstract ideas and visually illustrating important concepts.
Storyboarding each scene and gathering feedback allowed me to make necessary changes without investing significant resources in actual production.
Storyboard Sample
Finally, bringing these ideas to life, I began producing the video, testing and iterating individual segments. I found it easier to make adjustments early on and to a single scene rather than the entire video. Whereas an entire video can overwhelm reviewers, focused testing can help them to provide detailed feedback on specific elements, such as custom characters, animations, and scene transitions, ensuring a higher-quality final product. ​
Focused testing of single scenes allowed for detailed feedback and easier adjustments.
RESULTS
The final video vividly portrayed how the new software transformed an IT consultant's life, helping him reclaim his work-life balance by meticulously tracking unscheduled billable hours and converting lost time into tangible income. The video’s rich, sensory storytelling resonated deeply with viewers, immersing them in the consultant's journey from stress and frustration to relief and success. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with praise focused on the story's ability to tap into the emotional needs of the audience, creating a strong connection to the video’s core message. The client was thrilled and anticipated an immediate surge in customer inquiries, driven by the video’s compelling narrative and visual appeal.
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TAKEAWAYS
When I received this project, I had limited experience with Vyond but was confident I could meet the client’s need for a fast turnaround thanks to the platform’s intuitive interface. Vyond’s customization features allowed for diverse and inclusive character representation, making it easier to connect with the audience on a personal level. Its visual storytelling capabilities made it the perfect tool for this project, ensuring the message resonated emotionally while remaining aligned with the business goals.
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Rather than choosing one design process over the other, I found value in leveraging both Design Thinking and ADDIE throughout the project. The Design Thinking approach allowed me to empathize with the users and create a story that addressed their real-world pain points, while ADDIE’s structured framework provided a methodical way to develop, implement, and evaluate the video. It’s about harnessing the most useful parts of both processes to accelerate the design and ensure continuous improvement.
Moving forward, I aim to continue this blend, assessing the video’s impact during its testing phase and using feedback to inform future iterations. This approach ensures the solution remains effective, while fostering innovation and engagement in every user experience I design.