Great motion graphics can change the way a company speaks to its target market, employees, or to a general audience. If you asked what the “key” is to making great motion graphics, the answer you might get from a graphic artist is—there is more than just one key! Creating great motion graphics involves a process like most creative endeavors. Here are three often-overlooked “keys” to creating great motion graphics.

1. Writing the Script

When concepting an idea for a motion graphics project, the brain begins a complicated process of trying to figure out how to tell the story you need to tell. Motion graphics range from animated typography to graphical animation and focus on representative visual aids. Viewers retain at least 58% more information from motion graphics than from images and text alone. This is very important for online businesses because it helps potential customers to understand your company’s products and services. Ultimately, it’s what keeps you in business. With this in mind, the first thing you need to do when starting your motion-graphics project is to write a script. This is imperative to making a motion-graphic because it is the foundation for the entire project. Without a script, there is no guide for a graphic artist to follow when they are ready to begin developing the motion graphic. For a more detailed how-to when it comes to script writing, check out our scriptwriting blog. A clear and concise script should be tailored to your target audience and fully thought out before moving further along in the process. Consider how your target audience feels about certain words and imagery. Does soft or aggressive wording speak more to them? Do you need anecdotes or direct facts and statistics? Your script isn’t only a representation of the information you are delivering, but also your audience.

2. Storyboard

Motion graphics are meant to convey information in a way that is easy to understand, combining images, text, sound effects, music, and sometimes voiceover narration. The “animations” refer to the movement of images and text being shown. It’s also about the interactions between the items on screen. Motion graphics need to be kinetic and incorporate some element of “flow.” Cartoons and animation have a starkly different animation-process than the animation of motion graphics. That kind of animation originates and still follows the basic workflow of the hand-drawn cell-by-cell type of animation. Motion graphics is simpler, more like graphic design but with animated movement. The storyboard is the foundation of the visuals you wish to convey in your motion-graphic. It’s the bridge between the script and the motion graphic. For more about how to storyboard, read our blog. Storyboarding for a motion-graphic allows you to plan out your motion-graphic and assess different options before committing them to a digital format. Simple storyboards don’t need to be especially well drawn or beautifully rendered, but rather are a tool for the artist to outline and determine where the motion-graphic should go and how it should flow.

3. Keep It Simple

Keep it simple. Keeping it simple will guarantee that the motion graphic reaches as many people as possible and ensure the message is received. Look at most of the motion designer reels, projects, and/or portfolios. The ones that are the most impressive are the ones that are the most simple. The simplicity of a motion graphics video allows for statistics and other kinds of analytical information to be given to consumers in an easily understandable format. Getting your brain to work in simple terms is actually harder than you might think; however, it is central for the success of the project. Once a motion graphics project becomes overly complicated, it is something more akin to an animation. It’s important to note that although motion graphics are a type of animation, they are a far cry from the shows kids watch on TV. The length, application, and complexity differ, giving motion-graphics a distinct look and style. Can you see your idea turning into motion? Hopefully, these three keys will help you to concept and create effective motion-graphics for your company. For more about animation, graphic design, scriptwriting, and all things creative, be sure to visit out blog page!

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