You know those awesome stop-motion videos that start-up companies with marketing budgets create to showcase their products? Design companies charge THOUSANDS to create these custom videos, but now they have a strong competitor!

I am now officially in love with PowToon. When I say in love, I mean head over heels. The service lets you use easy-to-manipulate figures to create your own stop-motion videos. It takes a little finagling to get used to the interface, but once you understand the basics, it’s pretty easy to create a video.

PowToon at a glance:

• What it is:
  Animated presentations and videos
• How it works:
  Place characters, objects, text and music on a timeline, then save, export and enjoy!
• How long it takes:
  Figuring out how to get started takes a couple of hours. Once you have the basics down, you should be able to create something acceptable in an hour or so.
• Where to use it:
  Promos for events, resumes, product demos, commercials — anything!
• How much it costs:
  Free version — up to 5 video exports a month using up to 3 templates (45-second limit). Paid versions start at $9/month.
• Awesome factor:
  HUGE! What a fantastic way to engage viewers. A high-end animation tool at your fingertips.

Here’s my first PowToon masterpiece, which took me about an hour to fine tune.