We at Alconost make videos, including some about applications. In this case, we can share what usually remains behind the scenes. Using the example of a trailer and pre-rolls about the application "To Friends", we will tell you what the goals of the videos were, what influenced the timing and budget, and also what the client thinks about the process and the result.
About the app
" Acquaintances " is a service that allows you to search for trusted specialists from a wide variety of fields on the recommendations of friends and their acquaintances, as well as offer your services. The app is available for Android and iOS devices .
About the developer
The developer of the application is the SoftLab company from St. Petersburg, the official partner of 1C. The main specialization of the company is the development and maintenance of business solutions based on the 1C: Enterprise platform. The company is also engaged in mobile and desktop development.
To Acquaintances is a new project of the company, inspired by the theory of six handshakes and the principle of word of mouth.
- We have previously worked with Alconost on a promotional video in Russian and English for our QMB development (utility for servicing MS SQL). They also did localization. Everything suited us, so we also decided to contact Alconost for videos for PoZnakom , - said the head of SoftLab Sergey Gorshkov.
In the photo: Sergey Gorshkov, head of the SoftLab company.
Photo provided by the hero of the material
About rollers
To explain the principle of operation of the service "To Friends" and to show its main functions, we made a trailer.
“ When ordering a trailer, we proceeded from the assumption that its task was to quickly and visually convey to users the concept of the mobile application“ To Familiar ” ,” explained Sergey Gorshkov. - We have embedded the video into the application itself so that users who do not like to read the description in stores can watch it directly from the application and immediately figure out what's what.
The trailer was supposed to be released simultaneously with the new version of the application. Since the UI of the update was being finalized in parallel with the creation of the video, it was decided to demonstrate the application interface in the video conditionally, schematically. Thanks to this approach, there was no need to reshoot screenshots from the final version of the UI at the last moment, which means that work on the video on the Alconost side could go on independently of the work on the application on the SoftLab side.
- I consider myself a demanding customer , - Sergey commented. - I have worked with many contractors, I have something to compare with. Everything is professional at Alconost, there is a streamlined production process.
About the production process
Creating videos in Alconost is a step-by-step process (we talked about it in more detail in the spring ). The client fills out the brief, and we write the script, prepare the storyboard, record the voiceover, select the music, assemble the animation. At the final stage, we edit the music and add sound effects. The results are verified with the client at every stage.
While working on the script for the Familiar trailer, we paid particular attention to seamless and logical transitions between functions. To make the video easily perceived, we tried to show the user's path within the application sequentially: from the main screen to the search, from the search results to the profile of a specific specialist, from the profile to reviews, and from a specific review to the ability to track the dating chain, which is clearly demonstrates exactly which people associate it with the person who left the review.
- I liked that Alconost employees took the initiative. They did not blindly fulfill their wishes, but tried to do what would be best for the video, even if they had to redo it to their detriment. The guys guided me in the right direction when it was necessary , - said Sergey.
The storyboard for the trailer took a little longer than usual. After all, it was necessary to draw the conditional UI already at this stage.
Fragment of the storyboard of the "By Familiar" application trailer.
When rendering the conditional interface, we relied on the layouts of the future UI, sketches of which were provided by the client. And although the real interface and UI in the video differ from each other, this difference does not prevent users from getting an objective idea of the application's functionality and its specific capabilities.
- I liked the video , - Sergey shared at the end of the work on the trailer. - From our side, everyone was satisfied with the result.
About Instagram promotional videos
In addition to an overview trailer introducing users to the app's capabilities, the client also needed two short promotional videos to promote the app on Instagram.
We have solved this problem by producing pre-roll videos aimed at different audiences.
- At the moment we have few statistics on advertising videos. The process is at the testing stage, but after the first trials it is clear that the price of installing the application from video advertising is much lower than from static images , - Sergey shared the first results of the advertising campaign.
Although these videos had different tasks than the trailer video, and more narrowly segmented target audiences, for the promotional videos we were able to use some of the materials from the trailer: the same characters, the same visual style. This has significantly reduced the time it takes to create videos for Instagram.
What determines the budget for creating a video
The cost of videos in Alconost depends on two factors: the number of scenes and their complexity. A scene is a series of events logically related to each other, taking place in a single environment. The "Acquaintances" trailer is 78 seconds long and consists of 9 scenes. On average, this is about 8.6 seconds. to the stage, but in practice the duration of the scenes varies. Let's look at an example of a trailer:
- the first scene - a description of the problem the user is facing - takes 7 seconds;
- the second scene is a springboard leading to the solution of the problem - 4 seconds;
- third scene - presenting the product as a solution to a problem - 10 seconds.
The complexity of scenes is influenced by the presence of character animation and the need to create custom art - in our case, these are not only characters, but also the conditional UI of the application.
- You can't call the video a cheap one, but from experience I prefer to overpay, but save my nerves and remain satisfied :) - commented Sergey.
As we noted above, we used footage from the trailer in our Instagram videos. Thanks to this, we were able to reduce not only the time frame, but also the budget for the production of advertising videos. And although for each Instagram video one had to complete one completely original scene, adapt the existing art for a different aspect ratio and record new voice acting, the cost of two videos for Instagram turned out to be half the cost of a trailer video.
Additional scenes for pre-rolls of the PoZnakomnym app. Alconost would
like to thank Sergey Gorshkov for the time allotted for the interview and for the positive response about cooperation.
about the author
The article was written in Alconost . We've been creating videos for apps and games for 8 years , including trailers, teasers, pre-rolls and tutorials. We will be happy to make a cool video about your product: write to video@alconost.com. We are also engaged in the localization of applications , games and services in 70+ languages.
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