How to make a promotional video for your product

Promotional videos made a huge entrance into the digital world—cutting through the noise to showcase your story, product, or service.

For a start, it requires more than just a good camera. It demands an understanding of your audience, conveying a clear message, and the ability to convert both 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 across your brand’s values 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 to draw people in and spark conversations.

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

Ready to learn how to do it yourself? Let’s start our step-by-step guide to creating dynamic promotional videos.

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Create a new file in Linearity Move

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

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.

In this new window, you're presented with options to tailor your animation canvas. 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

Look for Linearity Move's Import option to import the .curve file you downloaded earlier. Create a New Scene to begin the import process. 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. Hold shift to select multiple Artboards. Drag and drop them next to the first scene. And this way, we've created the second scene called 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 Animation in Linearity Move

What you just experienced in your Preview results from Linearity Move’s Auto Animation tool, a powerful feature in Linearity Move. Auto Animation automatically recognizes state changes between Artboards and creates smooth transitions from one state to another, making your video creation process seamless.

Let's focus on the project's .curve file to understand better how Auto Animation operates. 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.

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.

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

You have the flexibility to choose the direction of the Push. But for this moment, we'll select Bottom to Top.

Now, let's refine the timing of the transition. 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.

With these tweaks in place, preview the transition to ensure it aligns with your vision for the animation. 

Add background animations

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

We’ll focus on Scene 1 before it transitions to Scene 2. 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. Ensure it's a perfect circle by holding Shift while clicking and dragging.

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 to 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.

The circle covers the entire canvas at this point, 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.

Extend the Scene Duration 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.

Preview your Transition from the main Scene Panel and experience how seamlessly your video flows now. 

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, it's as simple as adjusting 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 their interactions 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 and select the Export option.

Here, you can choose the appropriate file format and settings that align with your project's requirements and the platforms where you plan to share your animation. 

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 provide you with an opportunity 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.

Get started

Frequently asked questions