Step-by-Step Guide To Create A Promotional Video For App

A strong concept will lead to a strong promotional video for app sales. Once you’ve got a golden concept, the sky's the limit!
Are you creating a promotional video to boost your app sales? You’ve got to think big!
This is an insanely competitive market, and you simply can’t afford to have a mediocre video if you want to increase your sales growth.
If you’re craving a strategy to make a strong promotional video for your app, we’ve got you covered, and got some tips that will take your video from meh, to me me me!
There are three main steps in the process of creating a powerful app video. If you follow this process, I can promise you that at the end you will have something completely original that’s going to give you real leverage in the marketplace.
Three Steps To A Strong Promotional Video
Concept
The main ingredient to a strong promotional video for app sales is a powerful concept. This is the magic all good videos are made of.
A great concept is discovered by asking what story you need to tell.
Note: it’s not about what you want to tell. What you want to tell doesn’t matter.
Instead, what does your ideal client need to hear? What do they need to know about you? This is what your concept should focus on.
“Your concept could seem super innovative, but if it doesn’t bring actual value to your client, it’s useless.
Brainstorm ideas.
Keep ideas simple and don’t flesh out too much at this point. The goal is to be inventive and original and you don’t want to get stuck in the mud with your creative flow.
We take a deeper dive into concept when we discuss how to make an outstanding promotional video.
Story Development
This is where you take a golden concept and flesh it out into a narrative.
You can accomplish this by applying storytelling principles and story structure. We cover this in detail when we look at how one story made a video over half a million dollars in sales.
Your concept is the heartbeat of your video, while your narrative is the skin and bones in which the heart is contained. They must build off one another.
Also, if you want to have an impactful narrative, make sure there is a big progression or transformation that occurs through the journey of your story.
The bigger the transformation, the better the story.
Polish
At this stage, we’ve got a great concept, and built a narrative around it. Now is the time to get multiple sets of eyes on it, and make sure it’s working for many people, not just your writer.
At this stage we gather feedback on the story from your team, and make adjustments and fine tuning.
Note: make sure the feedback you’re getting is coming from someone who’s qualified. Talk to a marketing expert. Ideally you should talk to someone who’s got results with video. They will likely see something you aren’t seeing, and can help improve your story.
Once the feedback has been implemented and the story has been revised, you’ll arrive at something you’re confident and excited about!
Key Elements To A Strong Concept
How do you know you have a strong concept for your promotional video?
For many this is the hardest part, so let’s dive a little deeper. For starters, you don’t just want to be unique, you want to be relevant.
Visual Design
In the concept stage, spend some quality time deciding on what you can do to strengthen your visual design.
Look at references of other videos. See what you like. But don’t stray too far from your app’s UI. You’ll want to keep things on brand.
Consider animation. 2D or 3D animation can do things that regular people can’t. If your app is innovative, hiring an animation team can open to the door to fierce creativity.
Pay attention to colour. They create mood, and inspire emotion!
Strong Personality
The personality of the promotional video is going to dictate the success.
Does the personality of your video match that of your ideal client?
Whether you’re using live action with actors, or animation with voice over, the overall voice and tone of your ad needs to align with your client.
When we build a concept we consider all of it, right down to the accent of the voice over artist. We want to make sure the voice will resonate and anything that risks unfamiliarity is revised.
In this example, the ideal client was middle American farmers. The voice-over accent, the farmer’s clothes (of that demographic), the crops they grow, and the music was all developed with the American farmer in mind.
Social Media Resonance
Whether you post it, or somebody else does, it’s going to end up on social media sooner or later.
Which social media platform is it going to resonate with best? Consider your most ideal social media platform (the one your client is on often) and slant your concept toward the culture of that platform.
The social media platforms where apps tend to get the most attention are:
- Youtube
- FourSquare
The Expert Touch
Creating a strong promotional video for app sales all comes down to your concept.
It can feel pretty daunting for some, especially if you’re new to the process.
But it is a process, and if you follow the recipe, you get the reward.
Want to work with an expert?
We’ve worked on a variety of promotional app videos in different industries and styles, from live action to 3D (and a blend of both), and also worked with app marketing agencies like Liftoff.io
Good luck, and good storytelling!
Just getting started with video? Check out the S.A.V.E.


By Anthony Madani
Anthony is the Director at UpMedia Video, and an expert at Video Marketing, with a rapidly growing business. He’s spent over 18 years in media production, from award winning television shows (on Netflix and HBO), to producing ads for large corporations such as Toyota, Flight Center, and Canada Life.
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