Most freelance architects understand the value of architectural animation during a new project. Show an animation of a future construction to a client, and they may be swept into a breathtaking view of a completed building with perfect clarity as to how the building will look. Animation makes it easy for the client to determine whether the building is heading in the direction they want. If they see a problem in the building’s size or appearance, the changes can be made early in the project when it’s easiest to do so.
Above all, animation clears the way for communication. When the client knows what they’re getting out of their project and can communicate clearly when something is wrong, overall satisfaction rises. They’re more likely to select the same architect to work with in the future because they know they can rely on that architect to deliver what they’re looking for. Although there can be no doubt about the usefulness of 3D architectural animation services during the creation process, it’s also useful after completing the project. Architectural animation can be used to market a new development project in many ways. Here are five ways to use animations.
Provides more options for web users
When a new client is looking for someone to breathe life into their projects, they often turn to a website to decide who they want to work with. While a wealth of articles and photos are a good starting point for a website, animations can give it a whole new perspective. With an animation featured on some or all the pages on your website, the monotony of endless text is broken up. Clients can read about your accomplishments and then view them in a three-dimensional way through the animation.
Animations of past projects can also help highlight the architect’s portfolio since it brings out the project in a whole new way. It’s one thing to look at finished buildings and decide whether it fits the needs of a new project; it’s quite another to get a full tour of the premises at the same time. One final way an animation could be useful on the website itself is through case studies. Case studies have become a popular tool in marketing since they highlight the problems experienced by individual people and give potential clients a close-up look at how the problem was solved.
While it was initially used in education to help teachers learn how to handle students’ problems, it has recently been applied to nearly every field. Architects often show specific buildings as case studies, for example, explaining how an office was optimized for the team using it or a building was made more resistant to wildfires.
By seeing how unique problems were solved, potential clients can more readily see if the 3D visualizer service or team responsible for solving the case study can help with their issues. The result is more interesting queries and more satisfied clients who are confident in your ability to solve their problems.
Helps with social media marketing
A big part of successfully finding enough clients to fill an apartment or rent out office space in a skyscraper is Social Media Marketing or SMM. It is also a useful tool for the architectural office itself since attracting many people who find your work beautiful is also a great way to attract more clients. While a following can be built without 3D animation services, displaying breathtaking animations of your work is a great way to capture your audience’s imagination.
Attractive photos, gifs, and videos are critical to social media marketing because it’s easy for a post to get lost without them. Run an advertisement using plain text, followed by an ad using animation, and you will quickly see a difference.
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Even if your firm is full right now, showing off your work on social media can be useful for the future. It can help draw people to your website, where they can bookmark it for a future reference, share with others, or link to it in their blogs or other feeds. Social media marketing is also essential because it builds community, which is vital to keeping a consistent base.
Although you may be full of projects now, that community can be important as projects end, and new ones are needed. You never know who a member of your community may be, so valuing your base is a great way to make sure there is always a future client waiting for you.
Helpful in creating a video blog
Video blogs are popular with architectural planning and design services because they allow the architect to show off their work fully. Video is an excellent method to tour buildings inside and out, show the process, or talk about work freely. YouTube is the most common service for this and is a popular place to share videos of every description.
Animations of a building are a flashy and beautiful way to fill out a video blog. They can show a building still in progress with sparkling clarity and give people an inside look at what is going on with that building. Over one billion people watch videos on YouTube, and when used correctly, it can be a powerful tool to gain a new share of the market. If you have various animations to showcase, all with different topics, they’ll show up as “related videos” for those who are watching similar videos.
A vivid display that catches the eye is more likely to catch the attention of a viewer searching for ideas for their next project and may be enough to get them to look at your video. Follow this up with a strong call to action that helps them figure out what they need to do, and you may well end up with another client from this source.
Makes a press release pop
It’s common for businesses to announce significant changes in the form of press releases. Media outlets are often interested in 3D architectural visualization services if it coincides with other news trends, such as green architecture or developments in a local area. Whether or not they will follow through with a piece often depends on how the press release is presented. If a press kit has information about the project and perhaps a photo or two, it may or may not gain a photographer’s interest.
On the other hand, if the press kit includes a visually stunning display in the form of an animated tour, it’s much more likely they’ll showcase the work. Media outlets love flashy visuals, and when given an option between two projects to write about, they’ll usually write up the one with better visuals. News coverage is a valuable resource for any business, and the architectural world is no different. It’s free advertising and can reach a demographic you might not usually have access to. It’s well worth keeping a press kit on hand with your projects and including a few flashy visuals to help draw media attention.
Helps beef up video ads
Most architectural sketch design services use a variety of different types of advertising to attract attention. These include a blog with “evergreen content” to continuously bring in new visitors and advertising in the form of banners, billboards, and commercials. Video ads are just one tool in an architect’s arsenal, but they can be just as crucial as other ads. Video ads attract attention through their movement and visual beauty, and an animated sequence can help make these advertisements come to life.
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Although video ads are usually a short-term method of attracting attention, they do an excellent job of getting people to pay attention to your advertisement and help with branding. A powerful visual can say more than any number of photos, and renders can often showcase work better than real video due to the careful control of lighting and endless camera angles made possible by 3D representations.
Animations are an essential part of an architect’s lineup. They offer the ability to provide eye-catching visuals for clients and the community alike and can be used in a fantastic variety of different situations. Not only can they provide clarity and aid in communication with your clients, but they can also help with advertising and promoting your work long after the project is over.
Every architectural firm should keep animations in mind when putting together new projects or looking for new avenues to attract clients. Through animations, it’s possible to give a more polished appearance to both the website and advertising and get people to see your architectural firm as an advanced company that could be exciting to work with. If you’ve never experimented with animations for your work before, adding them to your arsenal can be a valuable tool.
Cad Crowd’s architecture professionals can help create stunning animations
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