Incorporating animated titles into videos is one of the simplest ways to start branding your content. Using titles with cool graphics grabs the attention of your viewers and keeps them engaged, which means they’re more likely to stick around until the end.
At this point, you’re probably thinking that creating professional titles for videos requires pro-level editing skills, right?
The good news is that’s actually not the case; with the right tools, you can easily create custom titles to be added into all of your video content.
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In this animated title tutorial, we’ll provide you with the step-by-step process on how to make animated titles in a few simple steps. No matter which editing software you’re using – Adobe After Effects, Final Cut Pro, Apple Motion, or something else – these steps can be applied across the board.
So if you’re ready to start making animated titles for video, let’s get started!
How to Make Titles for Videos: Step-by-Step Guide
One method for creating animated video titles is to build a professional-looking template from scratch. Unfortunately, this route will take a ton of time, not to mention the headaches involved if you don’t already have some design skills under your belt.
The better option is to start with a premade template, which can then be customized to match your branding. This is a lot easier than starting from scratch, and it won’t take nearly as much time.
In terms of making it happen, these are the main steps we’ll be covering to show you how to make an animated title:
- Using VideoHive to Access Professional Titles for Video
- Using Adobe After Effects to Customize Your Video Title
- Accessing the Template Project Files
- Editing Animated Titles Using After Effects
- Exporting the Title to Use In Your Video Editing Software
- Using Editing Software to Add In Your Title
#1 Using VideoHive to Access Professional Titles for Video
VideoHive is our recommended tool for accessing tons of templates of cool titles for your videos.
VideoHive is jam-packed with video effects and features. You can access things like 3D templates, stock footage, motion graphics, and even software-specific effects for tools like Apple Motion, Premiere Pro, and After Effects.
For now, let’s focus on the title templates that are available for use with Adobe After Effects.
The first step is to click on the ‘Titles’ tab in the After Effects dropdown on the menu bar.
You’ll then be taken to a page with all the different template options that are compatible with After Effects – there are nearly 5,000 of them! Take some time browsing the template options, then select the one you like best.
Pro Tip: Select a ‘Title Pack’
As you browse the thousands of templates, our main tip is to choose one that comes with different variations within a ‘Title Pack’. Some templates feature a single title animation, but then there are others that offer a heap of different titles that can be added to your videos.
Since a Title Pack gives you more options than a single title animation, opting for this offers a lot more bang for your buck.
VideoHive Pricing Guide
Once you’ve selected your title template pack, the next step is to download it. But before you can do that, you have to pay for the template.
The good news is that VideoHive is super affordable, and most of the video titles cost between $15 and $30. No matter which one you go with, you don’t have to break the bank when it comes to creating titles for YouTube video content.
When you’re ready to pay for your template, add it to the shopping cart or hit ‘Buy Now’. Before you head to the payment page, just confirm that the template is in fact compatible with After Effects (or whichever software you’re using).
#2 Using Adobe After Effects to Customize Your Video Title
Now that you’ve paid for and downloaded your template from VideoHive, it’s time to move on over to After Effects so that you can customize your title. This software from Adobe is great for creating pro-level motion graphics, and that includes animated video title effects.
It does require a monthly subscription, but you can access the Adobe After Effects Trial for free, and this should give you more than enough time to create a ton of titles.
#3 Accessing the Template Project Files
Most VideoHive downloads will appear as 2 separate files within a zip file – one that’s labeled as the project file and one that’s labeled as the tutorial. The tutorial gives you step-by-step info on how to use and edit the specific template, and the project file is where you’ll do the actual customizing.
Click on ‘Project file’ to be taken to the After Effects interface. You might have to click through a few boxes to convert files, install fonts that you don’t currently have, etc.
Once you’ve done that, you can start browsing through the different title variations that came included in your VideoHive title pack. Select the one that works best for your content, and then move on to the editing phase.
#4 Editing Animated Titles Using After Effects
We won’t go over every single detail for using After Effects, but we will give you all the info you need to know to customize your title.
To start, scrub through the template’s timeline to get a better idea of what you’re working with – and what you’d like to change. By scrubbing across, you’ll be able to view all of the animations in slow-mo.
Scrub across to the end of the animation before you start making adjustments to things like the font style, size, and color. The title’s many layers will be all listed out in the bottom left corner of the After Effects interface. Some of them might be hidden, so to view them all, just press the ‘Shy’ button.
You have complete control over each of these layers to customize the title exactly to your liking, even if that means changing the background color of the template. This is just one of the many reasons we love using Adobe After Effects.
Change Text, Fonts & Colors to Match Your Branding
To change the text, click on the big ‘T’ on the menu bar up top and type in whatever you’d like the title to say. Then move over to the right side of the screen to play around with fonts and colors.
It goes without saying that you should choose the font style, colors, and other effects with your specific branding in mind. So if you use a blue color scheme for all of your video content, use shades of blue in the title animation.
Scrub Through Again to Preview the Animation
Once you’re happy with the changes you’ve made, do another quick scrub through to see the finished product. If you’re happy with the way the title looks, you can move on to exporting it so that you can use it in your editing software.
#5 Exporting the Title to Use In Your Video Editing Software
To export your shiny new title animation, first confirm that the title you’re about to save is the one you want to edit into your videos. Up top in the menu bar, click on ‘Composition’ and drop down to ‘Add to Render Queue’.
Before exporting, head down to the Render Settings found at the bottom left-hand side of the interface. Change the Output Module from ‘Lossless’ to ‘Lossless with Alpha’ to make sure the background of the animation is transparent. This allows the video footage to stay visible, even with the title overlaid on top.
Then, just select where you’d like the file to be saved. On Windows, the file default is AVI, and for Mac, it’s MOV. Either one works, so just click ‘Save’ before hitting the ‘Render’ button.
#6 Using Editing Software to Add In Your Title
Once the file has been rendered and saved to your computer, it’s time to open your editing software. Open the interface with the current video you’re working on, and then import the title into the interface.
With most editing software, it’s possible to just drag and drop the imported title file into the video timeline. Drop it in wherever you’d like the title to animate on the screen.
After it’s positioned in the timeline, feel free to move the title around on the screen or change its size by scaling it up or down.
Pro Tip: Duplicate the Title for Off-Screen Animation
Some titles will animate on-screen, but they won’t animate off-screen. If you want your title to appear for a few seconds before animating back off-screen, there’s an easy trick for this.
You can duplicate the title and reverse the animation. To do this, copy and paste a second title directly next to the first one on the timeline. Then right click the duplicated title, select ‘Speed/Duration’, and tick the ‘Reverse Speed’ box.
Top Titles Ideas for Better Video Content
Now that you know exactly how to create animated titles for video and edit them into your content, let’s cover some title ideas that can make your videos better. Some of our go-to titles here at Primal Video include things like:
- “Subscribe for More Tips”
- Titles for numbered lists – “#1”, “#2”, “#3”…
- Titles for the name of your channel at the start of all videos
It’s really easy to make minor tweaks and adjustments to your title, which means you can create an infinite number of different titles, all from the same template.
Make sure to save each of your customized titles, because chances are, you can use a lot of the same titles across all of your content.
Now You’re Ready to Create Animated Titles Like a Pro!
There you have it – the complete guide on how to make animated titles for YouTube videos and more!
With the right tools, creating animated text and titles for videos is easier than ever. Start by picking your favorite template on VideoHive, then use an editing tool like After Effects to customize the template to better match your branding.
If you want to go one step further and add an animated intro into your videos, check out our full tutorial to learn how easy this can be.
Want to learn more tips and tricks for engaging your viewers with quality video content? Check out our guide on the ULTIMATE Process for Editing Videos Faster. This free download provides you with tons of video editing tips and tricks that can take your videos to an entirely new level.
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