Video is a great way to share knowledge. A training video is a video with the objective of teaching a skill or knowledge. Or simply, a video that teaches someone new skills. A training video can help employees learn how to do tasks better, help customers learn how to use products better, or help teach a new practice or art (such as streaming music or sports lessons).

 

 

1. Types of training video

Talking head training video

This is a training video format where a person speaks to the camera as if they were speaking directly to the viewer. The advantage of this type of video training is that it is easy and inexpensive to produce. However, they can be quickly unattractive because of the static plan. It is, therefore, necessary to make sure to make dynamic editing with a change of shot (tight then wide video shot) and insert some pictures / images for example (PowerPoint slides, graphics etc.).

 

Screencast training video

These are training videos that consist of broadcasting one’s computer screen in video, either to scroll through a presentation or to teach digital or computer tasks. Generally, they are produced with screen capture software with a voice-over. The risk of this format is to have a boring presentation with a monotone voice. The ideal is to add a video capture of the face of the person teaching to customize it.

 

Animated training videos

Animated videos create the illusion of movement using drawings, 3D images, or animated characters. In online video training, most animated videos are produced using software such as Adobe After Effects, PowToon, Toon Boom, and iClone. They have the advantage to be very captivating, although they are often quite time-consuming or expensive to produce.

 

 

2. Steps for creating engaging training videos

Once you have chosen the subject of your training video, follow this creation process :

 

Preliminary work: objective and target

What is the purpose of this video? What outcome do you want your students to learn? Determine the set of points that the video must address, as well as the knowledge that must be acquired as a result of the video.

Know your audience: Who is the training video for? Understanding your audience is critical to designing an effective training video. Dig into their demographics to understand their average age, location, culture, job functions, etc. In some cases, we also recommend sending them a questionnaire beforehand to analyze what they want to achieve with the video and create the content that best meets their expectations.

 

Write a plan for your training video

This is everything you are going to tell and show in your training video. In some cases, training projects do not consist of a single “sequence shot” video. More often, it is a series of many short videos or several “shots”. All of these must be planned in advance, from the first to the last. For example, if you are creating a video training course to learn how to use a tool or software, it will certainly alternate between talking head shots and a screencast of the software or tool.

 

 

Optional: draw a simple storyboard 

To help you visualize the final result without mobilizing crews for a shoot, you can create a storyboard. The storyboard is a graphic visualization of the different shots and the scenario you have in mind. It allows you to determine which shots to make and when. You don’t need to be very precise, simple sketches or drawings can be enough.

 

story board video training streaming

Write your script

The script is the “audio” of the video, whether it’s a speaker or a voice-over, it’s important to plan what will be said, and when. Especially if you plan to shoot you or someone speaking in front of the camera, we recommend writing down as much as possible the sentences that will be said, even if some people prefer to have a few keywords and then improvise. If you are giving a sports or music class, you will need to have all the points of the session in mind in order to better formulate them and to have a certain fluidity in the video.

To make a quality script for your training video, we recommend shortening the sentences as much as possible. You should also not try to make complicated sentences at all costs: you should be able to address a large number of people simply.

 

Preparing the shooting of your training video

Prepare your equipment in advance: if you’re doing an embodied class, one or two cameras, a tripod for stability, and a microphone for quality sound will be sufficient. If you are doing on-screen training, a good screen capture tool, a microphone, and presentation or animation software will do the job.

Build your team: depending on the type of video, you may need help. Some training video projects can be done by one person. Others require a group of 5 people. Some people are more skilled at editing, some at capturing, and some at speaking (doing voice-over or training in front of the camera) adjust your team depending on your resources.

 

Shooting your training video 

Choose a well-illuminated place, and not noisy. Place your camera on a tripod and make tests to check the best framing. You can also use a smartphone with a powerful integrated camera, but don’t forget to have a microphone, for example, a tie microphone connected via Bluetooth. Use the script as a prompter, do not hesitate to redo the shots several times to make them as natural as possible.

If you make a recording of your screen, test beforehand to check that the image is fluid, and if you speak over it, that the sound is correct.

Do, do, and redo: mastering the art of training videos can take time, experience will speed up the learning curve. So get started!

Once your training videos are created, if you are looking for a solution to distribute or even monetize them, OKAST is the tool you need! Contact us at hello@okast.tv for more information.

 

 

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