Vyond Tutorial: How to Create Animated Interactive Videos
How do you create animated interactive videos?
In this video, I’ll show you how to use Vyond, one of the best animation tools on the market today.
Vyond, which was previously known as GoAnimate, is often used to create explainer videos for video marketing and digital storytelling. But when you combine Vyond with other eLearning authoring tools like Articulate Storyline or Camtasia, you can create powerful interactive training videos.
Be sure to watch through to the end to find out how you can get a 10% discount on Vyond software!
Watch Video Here:
This post is NOT sponsored. Some links are affiliate links, which means if you buy something, I’ll receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.
Whiteboard Animation Software
You may have wondered about the software that’s used to create those animated videos you see on social media. Sometimes they show up as whiteboard animations, like the kind created with Doodly or Videoscribe. Whiteboard animations can be useful for tutorials, microlearning, and to convey complex ideas for education. Vyond is one of the best whiteboard animation software programs because it offers many other features.
What is Vyond?
I compared a number of tools and discovered that Vyond is one of the best animation tools on the market today. It has a whiteboard animation feature, but it also includes two additional color animation styles: Business Friendly and Contemporary. Vyond allows you to quickly create videos, add props, music, expressions and character actions. To get a discount on Vyond software, use the promo code described later in this post.
Vyond Animation Styles
Vyond includes a business friendly style, which has many different characters and props, all drawn with this fun and often humorous style. I used this style when I create corporate training, company culture videos, and explainer videos.
Vyond also has a Contemporary style, which features more minimalistic characters. I recommend this style for video marketing, animated infographics, promotional videos, and demos.
Is Vyond Worth It?
I’ve found Vyond to be worth the price because it has so many features. With both Business Friendly and Contemporary styles, it’s possible to customize characters’ hair, clothing, and features. You can also change colors to match brand guidelines.
As an eLearning developer and interactive video designer, I find it useful to have these scenes and characters right at my fingertips. It lets me quickly create digital stories, scenarios, and training simulations that have a real business impact.
Vyond vs Live Action Video
Animation is a powerful digital storytelling too. And I’ve found that using Vyond has a lot of advantages over filming in live video.
1) Convenience - You can do everything right from your computer, and you don’t have to hassle with setting up video cameras, lights, or sound systems.
2) Save a lot of money on video production. If you’ve ever created a professional live action video, you know how expensive it can be to hire actors and a camera crew.
3) Save time both on video production and editing. It’s easy to mock up an animated demo in minutes by using the pre-built characters, props, and backgrounds.
Vyond - Best Templates
The pre-built Vyond templates are one of my favorite features because it lets you compose a scene quickly. Vyond templates cover a pretty wide range of topics including:
Business
Charts
Industrial
Technology
Medical
Education
Training
Travel
Marketing
And if you don’t find a background that suits your needs, you can easily build your own background from scratch or imported graphics.
Vyond - Sound Effects, Music, and Lip Synch
I also recommend Vyond because it has a wide selection of royalty free music choices and sound effects. If you can’t find what you’re looking for, it’s also possible to import your own graphics and audio files. Vyond allows you to choose different expressions, actions, and poses for your characters, as well as automatically sync their lips to audio narration files.
Using Vyond to Create Animated Interactive Videos
Vyond doesn’t have interactive elements like buttons or branching. So you’ll need to combine it with other eLearning authoring tools like Camtasia, Adobe Captivate, or Articulate Storyline to add interactivity.
If you’re in the instructional design field, you may already have access to these eLearning tools. They’re relatively inexpensive compared with enterprise tools like Wirewax or HapYak, and if you know how to use them, you can create some pretty incredible interactive videos.
How Much Does Vyond Cost?
I’ll share more information about Vyond free trial and subscription plans below. These prices are for Vyond studio 2021 annual plans, but Vyond has monthly plans as well, which allow you to cancel at any time. I’ll include a special promo code to save 10% on Vyond at the end of this section.
14 Day Free Trial (Free)
Essential - $299 USD per year
Premium - $649 USD per year
Professional - $999 USD per year
Enterprise - Contact Vyond for price
How Do I Use Vyond for Free?
First let’s talk about the free trial. Vyond has a free 14 day trial that gives you access to all the features of the premium plan so you can see if it fits your needs. Any videos, custom characters or uploaded assets will remain in your account for up to 18 months. But in order to export your videos, you’ll need to get one of the paid plans.
What is Vyond’s Cheapest Plan?
The most inexpensive Vyond plan is called Essential. This one is just $299 US dollars per year on the annual plan. If you’d like to see monthly plan prices, click this toggle button here.
The Essential plan gives you access to whiteboard and business friendly characters, the ability to download videos at 720p resolution, and color customization for props. Just be aware that with the Essential plan, there will be a Vyond watermark in the lower left corner of your exported videos.
How Do I Remove the Vyond Watermark?
If you don’t want the Vyond watermark, check out the Premium plan. This plan is $649 US dollars per year when paid annually, and gets you access to the whiteboard and business friendly characters. It also allows you to export videos at 1080p resolution and export animated GIFs.
Why is Vyond So Expensive?
The Vyond Professional Plan is the most expensive at $999 USD per year. You can access Contemporary Characters, advanced features, team collaboration, and priority customer service. You also can import fonts, share asset libraries, and globally replace characters and props throughout your video with just a few clicks. If your budget won’t allow you to buy this, check out the less expensive plans.
What are Vyond Transfer Rights?
The great thing about Vyond videos is that you maintain full creative rights to your material. Even if you cancel your subscription, you can continue using any videos that you published previously.
One important note for Freelancers: The Vyond subscription gives you the right to create videos for your own organization. If you’re creating videos for a third party, you’ll need to transfer these rights to your client’s organization when your project is complete. You do this by contacting Vyond support and requesting an Ad Hoc rights transfer ($99).
Best Vyond Promo Code
You can save 10% on any of the Vyond plans by using the special promo code INTERACTIVE10. This is one of the best discount codes because it will not expire. To use the code, do the following steps:
1) Click this link to purchase Vyond
2) Choose the plan you want to purchase
3) Enter the promo code INTERACTIVE10 at checkout and click Apply
Additional eLearning Resources
To see which books, tools, and online courses I recommend for eLearning developers and instructional designers, check out this list HERE.