How to make a promotional video for your product

Video ads can turn viewers into customers and ideas into actions to drive sales. But where do you start?

It requires more than just a good camera. It demands an understanding of your audience, conveying a clear message, and the ability to translate this expertise into video content.

When should you use a promo video?

A video marketing strategy can be your secret weapon. But when exactly is the right time to deploy it? Consider using an advertising video when launching a new product or service. It's the perfect way to visually communicate its benefits and advanced features, engaging potential customers.

A well-designed marketing video can elevate your brand's story, creating a lasting impression on viewers. It's more than communicating your product offering. It's about bringing your brand’s values across and making your message resonate personally.

If you're attending a trade show or corporate event, an enticing promo video can be an engaging backdrop that draws people in and sparks conversations.

A promo video can be your most effective method whenever you want to connect, convince, or convert.

Ready to learn how to create dynamic promotional videos yourself? Let’s begin our step-by-step guide.

Jumpstart your creative ideas with Linearity Curve and Linearity Move

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Create a new file in Linearity Move

Launching your product promo animation begins with setting up your Project in Linearity Move.

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Open Linearity Move on your device. Head straight to the Action bar at the top. Here, you'll find the File menu tab. Select New from the dropdown menu to open a new window.

Choose a Square resolution—a versatile format that works well across various platforms, particularly on social media.

For the frame rate, stick with the standard 30fps. This sweet spot ensures your animation is smooth without being too demanding on processing resources.

Once you've made these selections, hit Confirm to open your blank canvas. 

Before moving on to the next steps of your animation, download the Promo Video Template. 

Get this template

Import your file and organize your Artboard

Select the New Scene icon in the screen's bottom left corner and then click on the Import button that appears. 

You'll notice a selection of Artboards within the Import Panel. These Artboards are the components of your project and represent specific Scenes or animated segments of your promotional video.

You’ll see as many Artboards as there are on your .curve file, which in this case is many. We're going to create two Scenes using the Import Panel.

Select all the Artboards with white backgrounds. You can select multiple Artboards by holding Shift while you do so. Now select and drag them onto the Scene Builder line. This way, you’ve created your first scene, Scene 1.

Now select all the Artboards with the blue background. Drag and drop them next to the first scene. This creates Scene 2.

Click Import after placing your Artboard on the Scene Builder line to add your video to your project's workspace. Click the Preview button in the center of your workspace to watch the animation.

Understanding Auto Animate in Linearity Move

What you just experienced in your Preview results from Linearity Move’s Auto Animate feature. This powerful feature automatically recognizes state changes between Artboards and creates smooth transitions from one state to another.

The .curve file contains every Artboard, each with the same elements bearing identical names.

For instance, Card 1 is named "Card 1" in the first and second Artboards. The key difference lies in their Positions. Similarly, the text element transforms as it shifts to the left, with other cards following, aligning themselves to the center of the Artboard.

As long as all your elements exist on every Artboard and share the same names, Linearity Move effortlessly identifies these elements. This recognition enables Linearity Move to create smooth transitions between Artboards automatically.

Video support in Linearity Move

Linearity Move has just introduced video footage support. This update lets you import video clips directly into projects, making combining your vector animations with live-action footage easier. Whether you’re promoting a product, telling your brand’s story, or designing for social media, the ability to mix video and animation is bound to help your content stand out.

Blending video with animation can improve your projects with real-life context, delivering a richer, more engaging experience to your target audience.

This speeds up your workflow and makes it easier to keep things consistent.

Enhance your scene transitions 

Now, it's time to refine your animation’s Transitions from one scene to the next for a more polished result.

Firstly, let's address the transition between Scene 1 and Scene 2. To do this, locate the Bolt icon in the middle of your workspace and click on it. Then, navigate to the Animation Panel on the right side of your workspace.

The animation type is set to Instant by default. But we want to create a smoother transition. Click on the dropdown menu and select Push.

You can choose the direction of the Push. But for now, we'll select Bottom to Top.

Now, let's refine the transition’s timing. Currently, it's set as Linear, but we want to aim for a more gradual effect. Click the dropdown menu next to Timing and select Natural.

To adjust the duration of the transition, which is initially set to half a second, we'll make it slightly longer. Opt for a duration of 1 second.

Add background animations

Let’s enhance the transition between scenes further by introducing background animations. 

Double-click on Scene 1 to edit it. You'll find all your elements in the Layer panel on the left.

Switch your workspace to Design Mode. In the Toolbar, select the Shape Tool and create an Oval. Hold Shift while clicking and dragging to ensure it's a perfect circle.

By default, the circle may be filled with white and not be visible. To rectify this, go to the Style Tab and select blue from the text as the Fill color.

We want the circle to start from the bottom and gradually expand to cover the entire canvas. Position the circle in the center of the canvas using the Alignment buttons in the Style Tab. If you select the circle and then click the Align to the center icon, the object will align with the center of your Artboard. 

Switch to Animate Mode. It’s important to note here that any changes made from now on will create a transition on the timeline. Drag the Playhead to the end of your Transition.

Reposition the circle to the center of the canvas, using Alignment tools again to center it. Then, adjust the circle size by enlarging it while holding Shift + Option so that it covers the Artboard.

At this point, the circle covers the entire canvas, but the animation may be too slow. To address this, shorten the animation's duration by adjusting the Animation Bar's handles.

In the Layer panel, click and drag the circle layer to the bottom of the list to ensure it appears at the end of your animation.

by dragging the playhead again to align the animation with the end of your overall animation. Click the Scene and then select the Style Tab's Animation section on the right-hand side. Drag the Animation Bar to add an extra second.

Now, position the Animation Bar over the end of the Timeline Point.

Tweak your Transitions 

Let's focus on refining the animation transition in Scene 2, which currently feels a bit slow.

Double-click to enter Scene 2 for editing. Once you're inside the scene, you can start making adjustments.

You'll want to work with the Animation Bars to shorten the Transition Duration. Like we did previously, interact with the handles on the Animation Bars.

If you need to change the duration of the entire Scene, you can adjust the position of the handles directly on the Scene's Animation Bar.

While you move these handles, you'll notice that any aligned handles will automatically adjust in tandem.

Final preview and export

Play back the entire animation from beginning to end. Pay close attention to the synchronization and Transitions. Observe how the Transitions occur and how they interact with the background elements.

If necessary, make adjustments and rearrange elements to ensure everything runs smoothly. 

Once you’re happy with the final review, it's time to move on to the exporting phase. Navigate to the File menu, select the Export option, and choose the appropriate file format for your project.

The final cut

As we wrap up our "creating a promotional video" guide, remember that this is just the beginning. Every story you tell, every brand message you craft, and every audience you engage with is an opportunity to grow and innovate.

Creating a promotional video is both a creative effort and a strategic move. It's about telling a story that resonates with your audience, showcases your brand, and achieves your marketing campaign goals.

Every step in scripting, designing, recording, and editing will allow you to improve your message.

Let Linearity Move transform your ideas into visual eye candy. Ready to try it?

Bring motion in-house

Animate marketing assets in seconds with Linearity Move.

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Frequently asked questions