People often ask whether they need a promotional video or an explainer video. They're related, but they do different jobs.

What a promotional video does

A promotional video is about getting attention and making people interested. It's short and gives a feel for the business. It's good for:

Introducing your business to new people
Launching something new
Social media and your website homepage

What an explainer video does

An explainer video is about understanding. It walks people through how something works, step by step. It's good for:

Products or services that need a bit of explaining
Answering the questions customers ask over and over
Training customers or staff on how to use something

Explainers often use graphics or animation to show what a camera can't. For complex equipment or processes, see our training and procedure videos.

Which one do you need?

Ask yourself what's stopping people from buying. If they don't know you exist, start with a promotional video. If they know you but don't understand what you offer, an explainer will help more.

Or both, from one shoot

Often the answer is both. With some planning, one shoot can give you a short promotional video for social media and a longer explainer for your website. The interviews and footage do double duty.

How long should they be?

Promotional videos usually work best at 60 to 90 seconds, with shorter clips for social media. Explainers can run longer, as long as they need to be, and no longer.

See small business examples, or tell us what you're trying to explain.