13 VIDEO CREATION APPS

EVERY MARKETER SHOULD

BE USING IN 2018
TABLE OF CONTENTS...
Adobe Spark: Self-Service Video Editing 02

Slide.ly: Self-Service Video Editing 04

Vyond: Self-Service Video Editing 06

Animoto: Self-Service Video Editing and Animation 07

Videolicious: Self-Service Video Editing and Animation 08

Shakr: Self-Service Video Editing and Animation 09

Magisto: Self-Service Video Editing and Animation 10

Powtoon: Self-Service Video Editing and Animation 11

Lumen5: Self-Service Video Editing and Animation 12

Ripl: Self-Service Video Editing and Animation 13

Biteable: Self-Service Video Editing and Animation 14

Viddyoze: Self-Service Video Editing and Animation 15

Quik: Self-Service Video Editing and Animation 16

 Introduction
Thanks to video, consumers are keen to watch until the very end in order to
discover what lies beyond the video. In addition, video creates the perfect
platform for opinion-driven conversation and informational access. Once
algorithms get integrated into video feeds, viewers are given the access to
similarly styled content.

Importantly, video is utilized by many marketers as a differentiation strategy

to set themselves apart from the competition. They are more convincing
and likely to leave a lasting impact on the minds of clients.

About 80% of online visitors watch videos while only 20%

http://www.digitalsherpa.com/blog/25-amazing-video-marketing-statistics

In the digital marketing
sphere, video reigns
supreme. Videos tend to
draw more hits to social
media networks and to
websites. In doing so,
marketers are able to
register heightened
engagement levels,
increased lead
generation and a bevy of
organic traffic and views.
An almost dream-like
narrative.
read the full content. Since people actually prefer watch-
ing videos than plain static text or pictures, marketers can
ably monitor customers’ consumption trends and work
out effective ways to improve conversion results whilst
increasing the number of people interested in their prod-
ucts and/or services.
The most pertinent issue for most marketers is unlocking
fantastic ideas that can lead to increased return on
investments. Those who have utilized video marketing as
a core tenet of their digital strategy have been able to
realize numerous rewards due to improved synergies.
These assertions have some technical backing too, a 2013
study by EMarketer showed that video content registered
the best Return on Investment (ROI).

Statistical data collected by Video Brewery has shown that companies who
http://www.videobrewery.com/

use video help audiences comprehend their message by as much as 74%.

Through gaining an understanding of how a product or service works,
customers are more confident to seek out and make a purchase. In the end,
this means that there are more conversions and businesses can stumble
upon a bonanza through their efforts.

Given all the numerous benefits that video brings to the marketing mix,
more than ever, it’s important for companies to develop video strategies
that work to their advantage. Luckily, the technology available today has
made things much easier. There are numerous available content creation
apps that facilitate easier video creation for dissemination to the masses
without needing pre-requisite skills in design and animation.

In our analysis, we’ll be reviewing the best video creation apps that the
market has to offer. Our breakdown will include a couple of pointers about
the various platforms, plus some pros and cons. It’s a worthy read!
 02

1. Adobe Spark: Self-Service Video Editing

https://spark.adobe.com/
In the past, effective video marketing was considered a preserve of the uber-affluent big corporations flaunting mammoth
size marketing budgets and numerous technicians with diverse specializations. With Adobe Spark, the narrative is set to
change thanks to the app’s intuitive design which facilitates small business owners and entrepreneurs to get in on the action.

This demographic of businesspeople are already benefiting from the proliferation of software editing apps with fantastic video
features. However, what sets Adobe Spark apart from all the others is the fact that it has simplified the process by introducing
a set of free marketing tools for users to promote their brands and products/services in visually appealing ways.

The Adobe Spark Suite has four

components, Spark Page, Spark Web
App, Spark Post and Spark Video.

The components help in the creation of well-de-

signed web pages and great looking web stories,
the creation of text and graphics for social media
posts, and the making of animated videos.

Marketers are sure to love the apps due to the

power the app possesses in helping them get
their message out there and boost their business
projections. Adobe Spark can be creatively put to
use in the advertisement of special events and
product launches, and the sharing of corporate
news on social media platforms.
 03
Spark’s video editing capabilities are not too complex, they are simple enough for novices to acquire necessary skills to up
their game. One can comfortably incorporate text and photos into varied videos, themes, transition elements, and music.

Given that Spark is primarily a free marketing tool, millions of people can benefit from the app’s strengths. In the last year,
some https://spark.adobe.com/pricing
premium features were introduced in order to enhance the effectiveness of marketing strategies.

Branded Stories are set to help out those who prefer a

hands-on approach when it comes to their marketed
material. The latest addition will also serve those
who spend most of their time on social media and
video platforms.

Pros
A friendly user interface.
Video creation is a breeze thanks to the guided process and suggestions to help out
even those with zero design experience to create stunning content.
Fast preview option available by clicking on the preview button.
Simple process to drop images onto slides from desktop.
No need to download anything, the entire process is done online either on the app or
their website.

Cons
While the app is free, Spark appends their logo on the credits of all work unless one is a
member of the https:
Adobe //www.aCreative
dobe.com/creativeclSuite.
oud.html
Downloadable video comes in a standard H.262 720 HD. Those desiring other
dimensions need to do so in other software.
 04

2. Slide.ly: Self-Service Video Editing

http://slide.ly/
Slide.ly is a revolutionary visual content creation platform designed to cater for both business and personal use. The
cloud-based service is comprised of a suite of numerous applications which users can harness to producing stunning video
slideshows and share across several social media networks.

Slide.ly allows the instant creation of

video slideshows from users’ photo and
music libraries whether on the web or on
mobile. The photo and video content
can also be sourced from anywhere on
the web. In addition to the fantastic
slideshows option, Slide.ly users can
produce gorgeous collages and galleries
by selecting from a number of templates
provided and various art styles on
display.
 05

Marketers will surely find Slide.ly to be a fantastic resource, especially when

launching video marketing campaigns and product promotions. This is
because Slide.ly features a dedicated video production service called Promo.

The service is specifically for businesses, online

marketers and other creatives to create
Pros
compelling videos and content. Thanks to the Large database of premium videos to choose from.
Promo service, marketers can access a plethora Comprehensive audio selection.
of premium video clicks and hand-picked music. User-friendly interface makes video production to
become a piece of cake.
During the creation process, creatives can
harness the power of Promo by creating product
Cons
teasers on the go, driving more traffic to a Not much variety when it comes to the customization of
specific website, increasing brand awareness fonts in normal situations and when one wants them over
and lowering the cost per click. Even better is the ads.
the fact that the head honchos at Slide.ly have
provided an opportunity for customers to try out
their software for free, before making pricing
commitments.
 06

3. Vyond: Self-Service Video Editing

https://www.vyond.com/
In May 2018, GoAnimate rebranded to Vyond. The video creation tool is a fantastic
resource to create high-quality animated videos with a touch of professionalism.
There are quite a number of unbelievable features like the ability to assign dialogues
to characters automatically by making use of the lip-sync feature. There’s also a
great feature that facilitates changing background settings to be as easy as drag
and drop.

Pros Marketers looking to enhance their presentations by

incorporating voice dialog or narration can easily do so
Vyond supports lots of animation styles
by accessing the audio files from a nearby device or on
ranging from whiteboard animations,
the computer. Impressively, the platform also supports
explainers to video infographics.
direct recording of sound on the platform if one is
Fantastic catalog of background music.
skilled enough, if not, there’s always the option to
Supports folder creation and the sorting of
crowdsource professional actors whilst on the site.
videos as per one’s wishes.
Easy to learn, intuitive user interface.
The site is renown due to the ability to change between
Supports conversion to popular video formats
templates, background, and characters found in
like AVI, MP4, MKV, WMV, and AMV.
Vyond’s library. By using these design elements, one
One can preview the video before export.
can comfortably achieve a compelling look for videos
made.
Cons
The creative software is totally worth checking out,
The monthly rate may be a tad bit too high for
they have an impressive 14-day trial on offer plus a host
new bloggers and those starting out in the
of other pricing tiers.
industry without regular income.
The timeline is not very practical.

4. Animoto: Self-Service Video Editing and
Animation
Pros
Simple, easy to use interface makes video
making a breeze.
The “1 Click Remix” button is great because if
you’re unhappy with your first video, it allows
you to remix into a new one. You’ll never see
the same result twice.
Auto-syncing of music to video clips.
Cons
One cannot make subtle variations to a single
frame.
07
https://animoto.com/
Animoto has a powerful video storyboard editor
capable of unleashing the power of video in social
media networks, without making a fuss about it. The
Marketing Video Builder has a What You See Is What
You Get (WYSIWYG) feature, this means that one’s
drag and drop capabilities need to be up to par.
While this may be construed as criticism of the
platform, it’s actually one of its shining lights. The
capability to build custom templates in order is a
luxury most other video-based platforms fail to
provide.
On the photos font, Animoto provides collages
support to enable users to group photos into small
subsets. In the Marketing Video Builder projects,
there is the provision for one to record voice-over
atop the photos and videos. During video creation,
one can also time the pace at which individual
photos and videos can play over.
Excitingly, the Slideshow Video Builder add-on
makes possible the creation of incredible slideshow
videos. One can opt to try out the software during a
14-daywindow period before proceeding to check
out the pricing.
 08
5. Videolicious: Self-Service Video Editing
and Animation

https://videolicious.com/
Matt Singer, Co-founder, and CEO of Videolicious, recently said that the primary reason that they went out to create the
platform was because they identified a gap in how businesspeople and consumers related. Suitably, they chose to employ
the power of video to bridge the disconnect, and hence, Videolicious was born.
The video creation platform is designed to cater for both the experienced and inexperienced in the world of design. Those
who have an abundance of skill are bound to quickly adopt Videolicious as their preferred video creation software of choice
because it rapidly speeds up the creative process.

News reporters and real estate agents took to the software like
fish to water because of all the amazing graphics they could
Pros
User-friendly interface.
create using the content creation platform. Numerous TV
Exporting is free and easy to perform.
stations, magazines, and newspapers actively use Videolicious to
The ability to create a really good professional
challenge in the ever-competitive media landscape.
video in five minutes tops is quite appealing.

Videolicious operates on a freemium design. Newbies get to

enjoy all the perks of the creative platform while video profes- Cons
sionals can pay for a number of subscription tiers offering extra Does not have many editing options.
benefits like access to a royalty-free catalog of music, longer Low number of filters available.
videos, and recorded shots.
 09
6. Shakr: Self-Service Video Editing and
Animation

https://www.shakr.com/
As a marketing tool, Shakr is a fantastic resource to have. Its
intuitive interface means that the video making software can be
used by all, irrespective of company size. Through its many
features, Shakr allows creators to come up with interesting
videos without needing professional training. The platform
supports social media uploads, plus exports to websites and
blogs.

The Korean-based company also supports various other

features like motion graphics and advertising. Video
templates are found aplenty on the creative platform, thus,
creating a masterpiece can be as easy as adding some
custom photos to the editor.
About 150 different video styles have been curated by some of
the top designers and video makers around the world. The
team at Shakr seem to have given their all to enable the fast
and easy creation of video advertisements.
There’s a number of things one can get done by using the
software, whether it’s social media videos, digital signage
videos, online ads or product videos. Marketers can conse-
quently greatly benefit by incorporating the software in their
strategies.
Pros
Presents a fantastically easy way for
marketers to create videos.
Fantastic customer service.
Has a range of three enterprise pricing plans,
therefore, there is some freedom for one to
wiggle around and discover what really works
for them.
Access to stock images and photos.
Cons
The video output quality is limited to 720p.
No option to create videos from a blank slide.
 10
7. Magisto: Self-Service Video Editing and
Animation

https://www.magisto.com/
In the digital marketing world, Magisto is renowned for its exemplary video editing suite that makes video creating an
easy-peasy process. Magisto’s AI-powered Emotional Sense Technology helps marketers come up with captivating product
and/or services videos with unparalleled scale and effectiveness.

Marketers are hence able to create copious videos that are optimized for specific audiences on any platform out there. In
doing so, companies can realize improved ROI performance. The AI technology ensures that the editing styles are easy to
use by those in the business world. Magisto supports custom branding to clone videos and the production of multiple A/B
tests.

Magisto is available on iOS, Android, and the Web, thus
businesses are able to utilize the platform with unequaled
ease and precision. The content creation platform is able
to automatically analyze and edit raw video film and snaps
into well-made movies and professional looking marketing
videos.
The Magisto video editing apps for smartphones are free
to download and offer the convenience of video creation
while one is on the go, without compromising on quality.
The company also has a number of other pricing options
available for interested parties.

Pros
Supports standard video formats.
Features dozens of built-in songs. One can
also opt to play their own tunes.
Creates polished videos from footage without
the need for top-notch editing skills.
Cons
The free version only supports videos to be
about a minute in length.
Selecting clips can be tedious because of the
poorly designed video picker tool.
 11
8. Powtoon: Self-Service Video Editing and
Animation

https://www.powtoon.com
Instead of depending on slideshows, marketers can now up their game by incorporating videos in their presentations.
Powtoon is an online app that enables virtually anyone to create videos on the go.

The video creation software relies heavily on templates in order to create the perfect videos to be used for marketing
purposes. Powtoon offers a handy DIY solution to making all sorts of videos, whether it’s company demos, explainers or
professionally made marketing videos.

As the name implies, Powtoon has an overabundance

of cartoon characters (toons) in its content collection
catalog. The toons were curated by the company’s
team of voice actors, animators, and sound artists.

Non-professional designers can use the freemium

service and easily drag-and-drop a number of objects
to the slides. Creation is as easy as adding an anima-
tion track, setting the duration, adding lines of text
and ensuring that a soundtrack is there to sync every-
thing. The premium version of the content creation
platform comes with added features like increased
storage, higher resolution definition and access to pro
content.

Pros Cons
Easy to use. One has to pay in order to access a larger database
Professional look to the videos. of video and music.
Supports rich text editing. Impossible to save a copy of the presentation
Comes with tons of ready-made templates. offline.
 12
9. Lumen5: Self-Service Video Editing and
Animation

https://lumen5.com/
Lumen5 is the perfect tool for marketers and business owners who love blogging. This is because it facilitates blog posts to
be easily converted into shareable videos on social media networks. Signing up on the site is quick and easy and they
support free content creation. The pro plan allows users to create higher resolution videos (720p) while also removing the
Lumen5 icon from the credits.

Lumen5 is built on an AI algorithm to match the content on an article with relevant images and video clips. The algorithm is
then able to create professional videos that incorporate a number of text overlays.

Marketers need to simply enter their article link or copy, and paste their content. Once the content is provided, a storyboard
prompt opens up that allows for fast customization of how one would like the content to get sorted out.

Pros Cons
Lumen5 has smart capabilities, which means that No way to add custom transitions or
images can be automatically added to fit specific shorten scenes.
lines of text. Lacks vertical video support for Instagram
Fast and easy process to create a blockbuster video. and Snapchat stories.
Square videos for Facebook and Instagram.
Multiple font support.
 13
10. Ripl: Self-Service Video Editing and
Animation

https://www.ripl.com/
Ripl is a pretty clever visual marketing tool. It allows the creation of customized post designs and a number of animated
slideshows and collages. This amazing content creation app is available in both the App Store and Google Play.

The basic version of the app is absolutely free to use and comes packaged with 8 designs for users to pick from. To access
the whole library, one needs access to the premium plan, at the cost of $9.99 per month, where a number of other extra
features are found. The pro version gives marketers the ability to schedule posts, add their own logos and graphics to
videos, plus access to an impressive catalog of music, design and font libraries.

The app is specifically designed to help social media influencers locate original content that can resonate with various
audiences. Remarkably, the app supports #hashtags and destination URLs in posts.

Pros Cons
The templates are easily customizable. Preset can’t be edited.
Companies that run a slew of businesses can
ably operate them thanks to the scheduled and
automated posts feature.
The social media sharing functionalities work
flawlessly.
Support to change the background and font
used.
 14
11. Biteable: Self-Service Video Editing and
Animation

https://biteable.com
The market is full of video creation platforms that can be used by
marketers to promote their products and services to consumers. Nota-
bly, most of them offer the content creation platforms on monthly
subscription services.

Biteable is an exception to the rule because they have cleverly based

the app on the creation and purchase of individual videos, plus the
added incentive of conventional monthly subscriptions. This means
that one is able to play around with the interface and create as many
compelling videos as possible, for free. However, in order to unlock the
non-watermarked and high definition version, one has to part with
some funds.

Pros
Video creation is simplified and a quality video
can be made in 20 minutes tops.
Features numerous templates suited for
almost any business niche.
The graphics are excellent, the quality one
would expect from professional video
designers.

Cons
Limited editing functionality.
 15
12. Viddyoze: Self-Service Video Editing and
Animation

https://viddyoze.com
Viddyoze is used to make simplistic marketing videos pop!

The video creation software comes packed with a number of templates that allow an easy upload of logos and text. Their
intuitive interface quickly accelerates the video creation process to allow marketers to focus more of their attention on the
audience’s needs. This results in higher conversions and engagement.

Viddyoze has been growing in leaps and bounds since its conception in 2015 as a 3D video animation platform. Currently,
more than 80,000 customers have rendered a million plus videos. The popular video making app includes some useful
features like an exclusive library and more than 800 animated templates.

Pros
Allows the creation of compelling CTAs and outros to boost revenues and shares.
Large template library provides marketers with the opportunity to create great videos that flow seamlessly from
start to finish.
Comes packed with a handy number of incredible lower thirds.
Amazing ALPHA transparency technology takes animations produced to the next level.
Cloud-based.

Cons
Lack of tutorials to guide newbies.
 16
13. Quik: Self-Service Video Editing and
Animation

AUTOMATED EDITS MADE AWESOME
For the longest time, GoPro has been synony-
mous with the production of incredible
footage. However, they never really did have a
solution to handle the sorting of long hours of
reel.
Then, along came Quik, the video editing app
that makes everything so much easier. The
user-friendliness of the app ensures that even
amateur editors can produce professional
videos with minimal effort.
https://quik.gopro.com
Pros
The app is free to download and has no in-app purchases.
Effects like slow-motion can be added with ease.
Easy navigation.
Videos and images can be easily shared.
Watermarks and text can be easily added to videos and images.
Cons
Limited editing capabilities.

In addition to the quick editing capabilities,

one can automatically sync the videos to an
audio track, search for amazing film
moments, add filters and implement fantastic
looking transitions.

Strikingly, Quik is able to auto-produce reels

of videos taken at almost the same timeframe
or location.
 CONCLUSION
Having highlighted 13 of the best video creation apps available to marketers, it is important to note
that each app has specific pros and cons compared to other platforms. Since most of them have a
free trial period window, we recommend you start with a free trial before purchasing the products.

While the listed video creation apps are not what great cinematographers like Stephen Spielberg
use, they will serve their purpose by ensuring that marketers are able to connect with audiences
from all around the world. It’s all about making a mark.