A North West animation firm has grown six-fold after Covid-19 created "a generation of video-makers".
Viddyoze’s technology allows people to create and use their own video animation in three clicks - and is now being used in 250,000 videos every month worldwide.
The growth in demand has already seen the Lancashire’s tech firm’s turnover grow "dramatically" and the business is trading at an annual revenue rate in excess of £24m.
The company attracted 10,000 new customers in April, a six-fold increase on February’s figure.
David Chamberlain, who founded Viddyoze in 2015 with Jamie Garside and Joey Xoto, said the lockdown had created millions of new video-makers.
He said: “Everyone wants to make content and it just so happens that our platform allows people to make content easily or improve the content they’ve already got.
“We’re in a space where we’ve had a business for five years and we are pleased that the business continues its straight line growth despite the pandemic.
“It’s forced people to use technology like Zoom and Google Hangouts and it’s the same with making video.”
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Viddyoze said it is attracting around 850 new customers a day, partly because it’s been able to increase its advertising budget as global advertising rates have dropped during the lockdown.
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Mr Chamberlain said: “My wife is a dog groomer who hasn’t been able to groom dogs during the lockdown because of social distancing.
“What she did was shoot some videos for her customers to show them how to keep their dog’s coat in good condition during Covid-19. She’d never made video content before.
“If you apply that across the world there are millions of people now making video content for the first time.
“Shooting a video is one thing but adding an introduction or an animated call to action at the end is what we do. We enable people to improve their video by adding these animated elements.”
Viddyoze employs 13 people at its base in Preston, Lancashire, and another 18 people around the world.
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Staff have been working from home since March.
Mr Chamberlain added: “Our turnover was consistently growing but recently we implemented a new marketing strategy and we are happy that despite Covid-19, our efforts have paid off.
“We’re on track to break £2m in sales for the month of May alone which will be a company record.
"The great news is that all signs are pointing to long-term, sustainable growth. We’re on course to triple turnover this year with £25m being firmly in our sights.
“The cost of advertising has gone down so we’re able to reach a lot more eyeballs. Rather than being down to one thing, our growth is down to a lot of things coming together at the same time. It’s the perfect storm in a way.
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“Our generation has been forced into making video content. People aren’t afraid of it. Parents home schooling their kids are making video content because they have time on their hands. Even after the pandemic is over I don’t think they’ll revert back to what they did before.”
Viddyoze’s customers include giants like Tesla, Sony and PwC to churches and SMEs.
It has 1,500 templates on its platform.