With another April Fools Day behind us, we wanted to take some time and talk about one of our favorite uses for online video. One that often goes overlooked in our industry.
Not explainer videos. Not customer stories. Not even gassy baby videos.
We’re talking about fake business videos and we love them for a few reasons in particular. First, it’s important to know what video tropes are being made fun of, so you can avoid them in your own projects. Second, some of the production quality on them is pretty slick, and it’s good to see what’s popping up…even if the product isn’t real. Last, but not least, they are just plain funny.
Featuring an animated explainer video for a “new startup”, a product launch video from a tech giant, and a bunch of laughs throughout- here are six of our favorite fake corporate video productions ever.
WellDeserved Pitch Video
As part of Comedy Hack Day 2015, which is an event that pairs makers and comedians, this explainer video shines a bright, satirical light on the tech culture of San Francisco. The execution and on-the-nose concept behind the platform would even make Mike Judge proud. Speaking of…
Pied Piper Explainer Video
This animated video by Wezank was uploaded right after the second season of Silicon Valley aired, soon after the made up company, Pied Piper, seemed to be getting their footing (despite Richard being pushed out), so even the timing of this video is inline with the narrative arc of the series.
If you have never seen the show, it’s understandable to think this animation was for an actual, complicated startup because it follows the explainer video scripting formula so closely. We love metaphors in explainer videos and the “moving apartments metaphor” works very well in expressing the value in Pied Piper’s unique algorithm for data storage.
Generic Brand Video
When you’re crafting a branding video as a relatively new company, it can be tough to find the right balance between saying too much and not saying enough. This video by Dissolve, pokes fun at the latter, and says a whole lot of nothing.
The main reason we’re fans of this video? Most entries on this list were made purely for fun, without any real purpose of promoting an actual product or service. But, Dissolve is a stock video company and this video helps them encourage viewers to move away from the generic clips we’ve seen a million times, and towards some of the more unique footage they have available.
Exploozy Explainer Video
We have to be honest, this may be our favorite fake explainer video because it hits so close to home. As a company that creates handcrafted animated and live action business videos, Demo Duck often hears about other companies who are a “cheaper option”, to which we always wonder about the drop in quality this involves. Luckily, the good people at Planet Nutshell use Exploozy to cheekily demonstrate an age old concept: you get what you pay for.
Even though this was an April Fool’s joke, their commitment to promoting Exploozy in the comments and the balance between those that “got it” and those that didn’t (we don’t blame them by the way!) shows how well they struck a chord with their audience. This is just a gem of satire that, while a bit inside baseball, makes us smile from ear to ear.
Gmail Tap Product Video
There is a new April Fools Day video rolled out each year by these search engine pranksters but this one seems the most plausible and real… until LL Cool J makes an appearance towards the end. But it doesn’t seem that far fetched does it? Morse code is a form of communication after all, right? Maybe we’re hoping we weren’t the only ones fooled upon first watching this…
The tone, pacing, and style are all spot on for a product launch testimonial and given all the inventive things they are doing out there in Mountain View, we don’t blame the commenters who were excited to get their hands on this new technology.
LIVR Testimonial Video
“If you’re inebriated enough, we’ll let you into the app” is just one of many lines that are delivered flawlessly by the actors portraying the founders of this app that infuses getting sauced with getting social. Kudos to these two guys who perfectly matched the tone and cadence of app creators who are excited about their revolutionary product.
At Demo Duck, we take our video projects seriously, but we try not to take ourselves too seriously, and it’s good to see that other people feel the same way. We hope a few of these videos brightened your day and maybe inform how you approach your next video project. However, we know there are many more comedic video gems out there, so feel free to share any fake corporate videos we missed in the comments below!
Itching to learn more about video? Here are other great posts:
5 Inspiring Marketing Videos that Will Warm Your Soul