Most marketers are moving away from text-only content and using video across campaigns and channels. Today, 89% of businesses use video as a marketing tool.
But, as a marketer, I know firsthand how challenging the video creation process can be — it’s expensive and time-consuming, and many AI solutions on the market are unpredictable. Not to mention, endless back-and-forth reviews lead to scope creep, and a frustrating experience.
In past roles, I’ve seen it all. We once spent $60,000 and several months producing a one-minute company vision video. At another company, I’d request product announcement videos only to be deprioritized in favor of brand-first videos. Most of the time, I relied on screen recording to produce product-related videos (or simply didn’t create videos). There was never enough support.
That’s why I’m so excited about HeyGen and AI Studio, our new script-based editor that gives marketers complete control of their avatars and the end-to-end video creation process. It’s completely changing how I create videos as a marketer at HeyGen, and I know it will transform the video experience for marketers globally.
The current state of video creation: Complex, costly, and slow
There's a massive problem in the market — it's incredibly difficult for marketers to produce high-quality videos at scale. The video creation process is riddled with lengthy timelines, endless revisions, high costs, and inconsistent and complex AI-driven solutions.
Here's what we're seeing — and why we're on a mission to make visual storytelling accessible to all.
Lengthy production timelines
External agencies and in-house creative teams take months to produce a single video. There are multiple layers of approvals, rounds of edits and revisions, and never-ending scope creep.
The constant back and forth means you need to start working on a video at least two months before you want the finished product. During those two months, a lot could change to make the video obsolete before it’s even published, like feature names or the product interface.
After the video is finished, it can take just as long to make small edits. With tedious and rigid editing processes, it’s impossible to keep pace with the market.
Expensive production costs
As I mentioned above, creating a single video can cost tens of thousands (or more!), so video production isn’t accessible to most companies.
Smaller companies usually don’t have the budget to work with agencies or hire in-house creative teams, which affects their ability to compete with larger businesses. And enterprise organizations with the funds often don’t want to spend it all on one video.
Regardless of the company you work for, video production isn’t cheap.
Random AI outputs
Creating videos with traditional AI solutions is like putting money in a slot machine, crossing your fingers, and hoping for the best.
Most solutions require expert-level prompting skills, which can be intimidating when getting started. And even after perfecting prompting, the output can still be random. The lack of control and consistency is incredibly frustrating.
Many of these AI solutions also aren't integrated with your martech stack, making it difficult to put your video to use.
Meet AI Studio
Now, with AI Studio, you can create polished videos on your own, without any production experience. Trust me, it’s a walk in the park.
AI Studio was developed directly from extensive user feedback and the belief that marketers need intuitive tools that simplify, rather than complicate the video-making process. Users don’t want to learn complex timelines — they want quick, high-quality results that communicate their message clearly.
With that in mind, we designed AI Studio around two core pillars:
- High-quality A-roll generation: Your presenter is the heart of your video. We've prioritized realism in facial expressions, voice, tone, and gestures to ensure your footage feels authentic and professional.
- A smarter, more intuitive editor: Unlike traditional editors built for experts, AI Studio’s script-based approach lets anyone easily and intuitively create polished videos. It eliminates the steep learning curve and accelerates your workflow, so you can focus on your message rather than editing skills.
Now, you can easily and quickly control video elements based on your script, lowering the barrier to entry and enabling you to create videos in minutes. And, AI Studio works seamlessly with your stack — including tools like HubSpot and Canva.
Precision and authenticity in every detail
Subtle nuances — like tone shifts, timing pauses, and gestures — transform a simple message into an impactful story.
AI Studio empowers you to take complete control of these elements, helping you build authentic connections with your audience. We believe "close enough" isn't good enough; the best videos are precise, intentional, and crafted with care.
Customize your avatar
AI Studio makes it easy to produce predictable and consistent outputs because it’s easy to control the inputs.
Here are some of the features that make AI Studio so powerful.
- Voice Director and Voice Mirroring: Voice is telling, so it’s critical to be able to control how your avatar presents your script, and now you can with Voice Director and Voice Mirroring. HeyGen is the first solution that makes it easy to control tone, pauses, and more.
- Gesture Control: Dictate exactly how you want your avatar to move. Add custom gestures to your script, making your avatar's movements seem human, natural, and realistic.
- Collaboration: The video production process involves many different stakeholders. Now, you can determine who can comment, edit, and view your video. It’s incredibly easy to collaborate in the platform and implement controls to avoid editing overrides.
Own the video creation process
The new editor opens the door for marketers to produce videos for every use case from product how-tos to social media clips. I’m excited to see how everyone — from one-person solopreneurs to enterprise marketers — uses AI Studio to create engaging and creative videos.
And we’re continuing to build and innovate. Soon, you’ll be able to tell HeyGen what you want your video to look like and the platform will do the heavy lifting, unlocking new levels of productivity.
Want to learn more? Sign up for a free HeyGen account and bring your video visions to life.
