A man sits at a desk and creates a simpleshow video.

Trading Real Shoots for Drawings: Why Explainer Videos from simpleshow are simply better

Explainer videos: a drawing is worth a thousand pictures

Good communication is the key to success for any company. And good communication is fueled by good explanations. But what exactly is it that makes for a good explanation? A good explanation…

* reduces complexity
* gets to the heart of a topic
* caters to the media consumption and learning habits of your target group
* stays in mind

That is how you turn complex matters into efficient explanations. simpleshow has been following these basic rules since 2008, effectively translating topics into various explainer video formats. Our signature features are the simplicity and classic illustration style of our simpleshow videos. Why? Because it works! Our illustrated explainer videos get your message across more effectively than any clip shot in a real-life location. To show you why that is, we’ll take you on a dive into semiotics, the science of signs and meaning.


Semiotics as the groundwork for explainer videos

de Saussure Semiotik

In the beginning was the sign: Everything we draw or design – from illustrations to graphics – eventually goes back to signs. According to legendary linguist Ferdinand de Saussure, a sign establishes a connection between an object and the image in your head. (1) Saussure described language as a system of signs used to express mental ideas.

What do Saussure’s Semiotics really mean?

They basically mean that if we hear, say or only so much as think the word “tree”, our brain automatically evokes the image of a tree. That is because our minds originally work with images, not with words. Our thoughts are like puzzles comprised of thousands of visual impressions. “Images are like quick shots into our brain” says marketing researcher Werner Kroeber-Riel (2), who has investigated the cognitive impact of images. Images and symbols are processed in the right hemisphere of our brain. Just like emotions. Which is why our simpleshow explainer videos are so particularly appealing to peoples’ feelings.

 

Emotions carry memories

These emotions will then trigger the release of neuroplastic transmitters, neuroscientist Rudolf Hüther says (3), favoring the formation of new neuronal networks, links and connections. Which means that viewing makes it easier to store new information. simpleshow heeds this basic principle to make its explainer videos as effective as possible: The best way to make facts and contexts “stick” with viewers is to stir their sentiments.

 


Drawings – one of mankind’s mosts successful inventions

When did humans start creating images?

Drawings were the earliest and most pristine form of manmade imagery. The first drawings were made by early humans around 20,000 BC. The oldest carvings date even further back in time, but it was then that our ancestors started to carve distinguishable figures into the rock face of their caves. Mammoths, bisons, hunters – the meaning of these simple illustrations has always been easy to grasp. Until today, signs like these remain a common cultural heritage and a universal code of communication shared by all humans.

The collective human subconscious

Does that mean that all humans think alike? Well, it does at least mean that we all share the same or similar images in our heads. The famous psychologist Carl Gustav Jung (5) once said that, throughout cultural history, mankind developed a collective subconscious comprised of archetypical images and signs. He described them as “identical psychic structures common to all”. A tree, a lightning bolt, a person… signs like these are universally comprehensible, independent of our social status, gender, education or age. People around the globe share a collective image database. And simpleshow draws on it to create effective explainer videos.


Storytelling as an intuitive recipe for success

What is storytelling?

Of course you can’t just throw a bunch of signs together and wait for the magic to happen. You have to use them to explain the world, just like we’ve been doing throughout our entire lives.

Kinderzeichnung mit zwei Strichmännchen

A small circle on top of a few thin lines is enough to depict and recognize a person. Draw a couple of matchstick figures next to it and you get a family. Or the beginning of a story.

So the most simple stories start with simple drawings. They are quickly told and easily understood. In modern marketing, storytelling has become an indispensable tool to convey messages and make them stick with the audience. At simpleshow we do the exact same thing.


In our simpleshow explainer videos, your topic is right at the center of the story

The world is more complex than ever. Every day, our brains are flooded with visual stimuli competing for our attention. So to really reach someone, conveying clear and comprehensible content is key.

Our illustration-style simpleshow explainer videos create fascinating stories that immediately put your topic in the center of attention. Image by image, the story unfolds in real time, right in front of the viewers’ eyes. Once they see the beginning, your employees, colleagues or training participants will of course be eager to know how it ends. The suspense is palpable throughout the entire video, while the graphics and illustrations explain even the most inexplicable things.

Use simpleshow explainer videos to effectively explain the most difficult topics

How does stock trading work? Why should I register my new battery-powered screwdriver online? How do you get to the simple heart of a complex matter? With our signature illustration-style simpleshow explainer videos, we turn your topic into a captivating story. Our comprehensive image database provides us with the perfect visuals to break your topic down to snack-sized content that we can customize for your audience.

Our illustration-style simpleshow explainer videos are most effective if you

* need to tackle complex tasks
* want to explain difficult topics in a simple and digestible way
* have to explain almost inexplicable information

The most important quality of a good explainer video, apart from a storytelling narrative, is shortness.

Attention spans and explainer videos

The short human attention span – its average length is only about 8 seconds – is the biggest challenge for everyone trying to learn or explain something. Here again, explainer videos do a better job at reducing complexity with their drawing-style illustrations than any real-life footage. The minimalistic signs are reduced to the essential and the high contrasts make it even easier for viewers to immediately grasp the information. (4)

In a nutshell: Illustrated simpleshow explainer videos have many advantages

* They are simple and easy to understand
* They perfectly condense all essential information
* They help you build sympathy and trust
* They are unique and easily customized to suit your topic
* They can be used with any audience across the globe

Use simpleshow explainer videos and optimize your communication!

Our experts will be happy to help you with further questions!

Quellen
1 https://www.mediensprache.net/de/basix/semiotik/zeichen/de_saussure.aspx
2 Werner Kroeber Riel: Bild-Kommunikation (1993)
3 https://www.newsaktuell.de/academy/was-geschichten-im-gehirn-bewirken/
4 http://www.piktogramm.de/de/ – c6
5 https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archetyp_(Psychologie)