10 SaaS Explainer Video Case Studies: Funding, Growth and IPOs

When a SaaS product becomes harder to explain, growth can make the communication problem even bigger. New features appear, the audience expands, investors ask different questions, and a product that once fit into one sentence may now need a full diagram.

That is what makes these SaaS explainer video case studies interesting. They are not simply examples of companies that used animation. Each project had a specific communication problem to solve during a period when the business itself was changing.

At Yum Yum Videos, an explainer video company, we worked on all 10 projects in this article. Some clients needed one video. Others came back for a series aimed at different audiences. The useful part is seeing what the video had to explain, how we approached it, and what was happening at the company at the same time.

If you are looking for creative references instead of business cases, our guide to SaaS explainer video examples focuses on style, structure, product screens, characters, motion graphics, and storytelling.

TL;DR

These cases should not be read as proof that a video caused a funding round, valuation, acquisition, or IPO. Those business milestones belong to the companies. The videos were communication assets used during those periods to explain products, rebrands, workflows, and value propositions to customers, partners, users, or investors.

The comparison below keeps those two things separate.

10 SaaS Explainer Video Case Studies at a Glance

How I Selected These SaaS Explainer Video Case Studies

I wanted cases where we knew the production work firsthand and could point to a public company milestone or a direct video result.

That matters because a case study can become misleading very quickly when the marketing asset and the business outcome are blended together. A funding round belongs to the company. A view count belongs to the video. A case study becomes more useful when it explains the relationship between the two without pretending they are the same metric.

The examples below focus on three things: the communication problem, the production decision, and the company milestone that happened during the broader period.

1. Accelerant: Nine Videos for a Platform That Kept Expanding

Accelerant was never a one video problem.

The company operates a data driven insurance platform with different audiences, including members, partners, clients, and investors. A single general explainer could introduce the model, but it could not answer every question those groups had as the business expanded.

Between 2021 and 2024, we produced nine explainer videos for Accelerant. Some introduced the company. Others focused on investors, new members, or specific problems in the insurance market.

The practical lesson from this project is that a video system can be more useful than one hero piece. As the company changed, the communication assets changed with it, while the visual language stayed consistent.

During the collaboration period, Accelerant raised $190 million in 2022 and $150 million in 2023. In 2025, the company went public on the NYSE, raising $724 million at a $6.4 billion valuation. Reuters covered the IPO and debut valuation.

Those are Accelerant’s milestones. Our role was to help the company explain a complex model across several audiences. The full Accelerant case study covers the nine videos and how the relationship developed over three years.

2. Chargebee: Making Subscription Billing Visible

Subscription billing sounds simple until the conversation reaches revenue recognition, recurring payments, taxes, failed payments, and the logic behind a growing billing system.

We produced three animated explainer videos for Chargebee in 2020. One of the creative ideas was to take familiar expressions such as leaks and tangled billing and make them literal on screen. That gave the audience a visual way to understand a problem that normally happens behind the software.

One of the core videos passed 265,000 views on YouTube.

Chargebee raised $55 million in 2020 and then $125 million in 2021, when the company reached a $1.4 billion valuation. TechCrunch reported the 2021 round. In 2022, Chargebee raised another $250 million at a $3.5 billion valuation, reported by Reuters.

The interesting production lesson is the metaphor, not the valuation. Subscription logic is invisible. Animation gave us a way to turn that invisible workflow into something the viewer could understand in a few seconds.

The Chargebee case study has the project timeline and the three videos.

3. Fonoa: Explaining Global Tax Automation During $85M in Funding

Fonoa built software for a subject that gets complicated almost immediately: tax determination, reporting, and compliance across countries.

The explainer had to give enterprise viewers a mental model for how the platform fits into global transactions without turning the video into a tax lesson. We used animation to map the workflow and keep the focus on what the software handles for the customer.

The company raised about $25 million in Series A funding and later $60 million in Series B funding, bringing those two rounds to roughly $85 million. The Series B was covered by TechCrunch, while Tech.eu covered the earlier round.

For me, this is a good example of when animation earns its place in SaaS. The product is real, but most of the value lives in rules, data, and processes that the audience cannot physically see.

4. Branch: One Core Story for a $4B Mobile Platform

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Branch needed to explain mobile attribution, deep linking, and its open ecosystem position in language that made sense outside a technical product team.

We built the explainer around the platform idea first. The technical concepts came after the viewer understood what Branch was trying to make possible across the mobile ecosystem.

That order matters. When a product has several layers, starting with terminology can force the audience to work too hard before they understand why the system exists.

In 2022, Branch raised a $300 million Series F at a $4 billion valuation. Reuters reported the round, and Branch published its own funding announcement.

The funding is Branch’s result. The explainer was one of the assets the company used to communicate its platform and positioning. Our Branch case study goes deeper into that communication problem.

5. Digital Turbine: Four Videos for Invisible Mobile Infrastructure

Digital Turbine had a different issue. The platform sits behind mobile experiences that users often never see.

We produced four SaaS explainer videos covering Dynamic Installs, SingleTap, AppWizard, and GamesFolder. The series used a consistent motion graphics language, but each video had its own product job.

This is where motion graphics are particularly useful. Data flow, installs, product connections, and mobile infrastructure can move through the frame instead of being described only in narration.

Digital Turbine reported $313.6 million in fiscal 2021 revenue, up 126% year over year, in its financial results. The company’s market capitalization also moved above $5 billion during its growth period.

The company performance and the video work are separate measures. The useful case study point is that a four video series gave Digital Turbine a repeatable way to explain several products inside the same technical ecosystem.

6. Kevel: Explaining the Product After a Rebrand

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Kevel was previously known as Adzerk.

A rebrand can create a second communication problem on top of the product problem. Existing customers need to understand what changed, while new prospects still need a clear explanation of what the software does.

The video helped connect the new Kevel identity with the company’s API based ad serving platform. We kept the product logic visible while giving the new brand enough space to establish itself.

Kevel later raised a $10 million Series B. WRAL TechWire reported the round and the company’s revenue growth, and Finsmes also covered the funding.

I like this case because it shows that an explainer can have two jobs at once when those jobs are closely related: explain the software and help the audience understand the new identity attached to it.

7. BetterUp: Two Videos for Two Different Audiences

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BetterUp did not need one generic explanation for everyone.

We produced two explainer videos with different communication goals. One introduced the coaching platform to a broad user audience. The other focused more closely on sales performance and enterprise leaders.

The subject was similar, but the reason for watching was different. That changed the script, emphasis, and level of detail.

In 2021, BetterUp raised a $300 million Series E at a $4.7 billion valuation. BetterUp published the Series E announcement, and Fierce Healthcare also covered the round.

This is a useful reminder for enterprise SaaS teams. If the user and the buyer need different information, forcing both into the same 90 second script can make the video weaker for both groups.

8. BrightInsight: Explaining Software in a Regulated Health Environment

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BrightInsight operates in digital health, where the audience may include pharmaceutical teams, clinicians, partners, and investors.

We produced two explainer videos around the platform and disease management solution. The visual approach had to make the software understandable while keeping the tone appropriate for a regulated healthcare environment.

That changes small production decisions. Interface metaphors, terminology, pacing, and the amount of visual abstraction all need to respect an audience that is used to technical and scientific information.

BrightInsight raised a $101 million Series C. The company also reported 400% revenue growth in connection with its recognition on the Deloitte Technology Fast 500. BrightInsight published the growth announcement, while Mercom Capital covered the Series C.

The case is useful because clarity in healthcare cannot come from stripping away every technical detail. The better approach is deciding which details the audience already understands and which ones need visual support.

9. Practifi: One Product, Two Markets

Practifi gave us a localization problem.

The wealth management platform was expanding from Australia into the United States, so the core product story had to work across both markets. We produced two localized explainer videos, including voiceover choices for each audience.

The visual structure stayed consistent, which meant the company could adapt the message without rebuilding the whole communication system from zero.

Practifi raised a $16.3 million Series B. PR Newswire published the funding announcement, and Coverager also covered the round.

This is the case I would look at when a SaaS company is entering another market but the core product remains the same. Localization can change voice, examples, terminology, and context without changing the underlying story.

10. Airtm: Start With the Financial Reality the User Already Knows

Airtm needed to explain a digital dollar account and a P2P escrow model to people living with currency instability.

That audience did not need a long introduction to the problem. They already knew it.

We produced English and Spanish explainers that started from that reality, then moved into how the product works. The video series accumulated more than 600,000 views across platforms.

In 2021, the Stellar Development Foundation Enterprise Fund invested $15 million in Airtm. Stellar published the investment announcement, and CoinDesk covered the deal.

The direct video result here is the audience reach. The investment is Airtm’s business milestone. Keeping those measures separate makes the case more useful.

What These SaaS Explainer Video Case Studies Have in Common

The companies are very different, but a few production patterns repeat.

Complex SaaS Needs a Visual Model

Fonoa, Digital Turbine, Chargebee, and Branch all deal with systems that are difficult to picture.

The script alone can explain the logic, but animation gives that logic a visual form. Data can move. Workflows can connect. Billing problems can become objects. A technical system gets a shape the viewer can remember.

One Audience Is Not Always Enough

Accelerant and BetterUp are good examples.

Investors, users, members, partners, and enterprise buyers can all care about the same product for different reasons. A series can be more effective than forcing every message into one video.

This is also why our SaaS video production work usually starts with the audience and communication goal before style.

Video Results and Business Results Need Different Labels

Views, completion, clicks, and watch time are video metrics.

Funding, revenue, valuation, market cap, and IPO performance are company metrics.

A useful case study can put them on the same timeline, but it should not treat one as proof of the other. That distinction is especially important when evaluating marketing work around fast growing companies.

The Format Depends on What Is Hard to Understand

Kevel needed to connect a rebrand with a technical product. Practifi needed localization. Airtm needed to establish trust around a financial workflow. BrightInsight had to communicate inside a regulated industry.

The common format is not one animation style. The common factor is that each video has a specific explanation problem.

How Much Should a SaaS Explainer Video Cost?

The budget depends on length, animation style, complexity, revisions, and deadline.

In our 2026 pricing research, we contacted 125 animation companies and collected 61 usable quotes. The median quote was $9,680 per minute.

That number is useful as a market reference, not a fixed rate for every SaaS project. A simple motion graphics piece and a character driven series with several audiences require different amounts of production work.

You can see the methodology in our animation cost study. If you are comparing vendors, also look at what the quote includes for scripting, storyboard, design, revisions, voiceover, and sound.

SaaS Explainer Video Case Study FAQ

Can an explainer video increase a SaaS company’s valuation?

A video does not determine a company’s valuation.

An explainer can help a company communicate its product to customers, partners, employees, or investors, but valuation depends on the business itself, including revenue, growth, market opportunity, margins, product, and investor demand.

The cases in this article show communication work that happened during major business milestones. They do not prove that the videos caused those milestones.

How long should a SaaS explainer video be?

Many SaaS explainers work well around 60 to 120 seconds, but the communication problem should determine the length.

A straightforward product introduction may need less time. Accelerant required longer videos for some audiences because the platform and business model needed more context.

Is animation better for complex SaaS products?

Animation is useful when the product involves data, APIs, automation, integrations, workflows, or other processes the viewer cannot see directly.

A real interface can be better when ease of use is the main selling point. Some SaaS videos combine both approaches.

What metrics should a SaaS case study include?

Use direct video metrics when you have them, such as views, completion rate, watch time, clicks, or conversions.

Company milestones can provide business context, but they should be labeled separately. Funding, revenue, valuation, and IPO results describe the company, not the performance of the video.

A Better Way to Evaluate Your Own SaaS Story

Before deciding on animation style, runtime, or budget, answer four questions:

1. Who needs to understand the product?
2. What part of the product is hardest to explain verbally?
3. Which outcome should the viewer understand by the end?
4. What evidence can the video show instead of simply claiming?

Those answers usually tell you whether you need one explainer, a product demo, or a series for several audiences.

If you can answer them clearly, the production brief is already much stronger.