Videos which make you think

Explainer videos are short types of videos usually less than two minutes that explain a business concept or product in an entertaining, visual way. They typically use basic animations to explain a larger topic, product, or service. Explainer videos simplify complex ideas into easily digestible content. Recording a presentation makes it available for an audience to watch after the fact — perfect for people who want to rewatch and reabsorb the content or for those who may not have been able to attend the in-person event.

This might be as simple as recording just the audio for a presentation, or as advanced as recording PowerPoint point slides, a webcam, and a separate microphone all at once. Lecture and presentation capture tend to be longer than a tutorial video and span the length of the entire class or presentation. This makes them more time intensive to consume and requires a higher level of investment from the audience.

Screencasts tend to be quick and informal, and are usually intended for a smaller audience than tutorial videos. These videos are digital video recordings of your computer screen and usually include audio narration. The format lends itself to just-in-time teaching, where an instructor, colleague, or manager can quickly create a screencast to answer a question or clear up a problematic concept.

As you can see, instructional videos go by a variety of different names. But whether you need to make a how-to video or a tutorial, the goal is the same. Unlike other forms of video, an instructional video instructs. When it comes to making instructional videos there are a few common mistakes people make. Here are a few you can easily avoid:. Knowing your audience is critical.

Understanding your audience will guide key decisions about your videos. Things about that product that they might not know initially when they take it out of the box. Too often people worry about getting things perfect. If you start with perfection in mind, it will paralyze your creative process and you will struggle to begin. Punch fear in the face, and just hit publish, because you just got to put out your first videos, and the reality…is your first videos are going to be your worst videos.

Learn the basics, then start to upgrade your tools. What am I trying to get across with my brand? They stumbled upon the job. Before you even think about hitting the record button, get to know your audience and understand why they need help. If you have a product or service, talk to your customers about how they use your product and where they struggle.

Are you training a new hire? Ask yourself what questions they need to be answered to be most successful. Before you move on to step two, make sure to answer these questions about your audience and video:. What is your topic? Pick ONE topic per video. By narrowing your scope, your video will be more focused, and easier to create.

Who is the audience? Start with basic demographic information like education, age, professional organizations, association with other groups and then advance to their interests, concerns, and goals. Do you want more tips on creating videos?

Watch the entire Video Workflow series. Once you have your topic and know your audience, I recommend you create a storyboard to outline and visualize what you plan to show. Quick sketches and stick figures are perfectly fine for live video.

For a screencast or screen recording, you can use a series of simple screenshots to roughly show what you plan to display with the narration. Not quite. Before you go any further, write a script. A script even a simple one will help you be efficient with what you say, saving you and your viewers time.

Camtasia comes with a built-in, easy-to-use voice recording feature and can be an excellent option. But I also want to take this opportunity to introduce you to TechSmith Audiate. Audiate takes voiceover recording and editing to an entirely different level by transcribing your voice in real time — as you record. Then, you can literally edit your audio just like you would edit text in a document.

So, rather than staring at a wave form and trying to figure out exactly what you said and where, you can see it right on your screen. You can even delete them all at once. You can even export the edited text as a transcript or as an SRT file for captions. Next, if you can, get your hands on the best microphone you can find. Even a middle-of-the-road mic like the one connected to your headphones will provide much better sound quality than the one built into your computer.

Then, find a quiet place to record. Being a YouTube creator may seem like all fun and games, but it takes hard work to be successful. And success means being able to keep your audience engaged through fun and interesting videos. You may be surprised at how quickly you can run out of content ideas for your channel. Opinion videos are a great way to ride the wave of a trending topic and get some exposure.

Review a new or trending product related to your niche to entertain and inform your audience. Make sure you keep your review honest and interesting if you want it to have any value.

You could even create a recurring series of review videos. Look for opportunities to interview other content creators or influential figures in your industry. Do you disagree with their opinion or do you have something to add? Share your thoughts in a video. Perhaps you can teach them to create a certain look with makeup, craft something, use a new design tool, or even use a particular product.

Tutorials give you an excellent opportunity to create recurring videos for your channel. Book reviews also make for excellent video content if you know how to keep things exciting and fun.

Choose a book that you love, hate, or have recently read and tell your audience what you think about it. Movie reviews can also help you attract an audience. Make sure you choose a trending movie and keep the review interesting with relevant jokes and expressions.

Is there a trending video that everyone seems to be talking about? When you watch it for the first time, film your reaction to create a reaction video. Parody videos can be a huge hit if humour is part of your channel identity. Parody a famous movie, show, YouTube video, or music video to entertain your audience. Giveaways are perfect for attracting new viewers and engaging your existing ones.

Make sure you offer a reward that your audience will find valuable. Every now and then, a new challenge comes up and takes over the internet by storm.

Improve the visibility of your channel by participating in a trending challenge. Take your viewers on a tour around your room or studio so they can learn a bit more about you and how you work. Show them where you turn your ideas into reality. Do you collect baseball cards, comic books, coins, or perhaps vinyl records?

If you have a decent collection of items, you could create a video showing it off to your viewers. Create a video showing your viewers what apps you have on your phone and which ones you use most frequently.

Promoting your YouTube videos on your other social channels is the easiest way to grow your audience. So think about what channels you are on? Facebook, Linkedin, Instagram, TikTok? There are many to choose from and lots of great ideas for social media videos. And if you have a podcast , it can function very smoothly with your YouTube channel. When you put a face to a brand, your audience can more easily connect with you as an individual.

This is especially important for vloggers; fitness, life, or business coaches; and solopreneurs. Additionally, if you are this type of YouTuber, use a photo of yourself on your channel not your logo. See the example below from marketing guru Adam Erhart. They may seem like a small thing well, they are , but thumbnails can have a big impact.

YouTube advertises other videos via thumbnails in its sidebar, so you want yours to stand out among the pack. The same goes for YouTube search. To get your CTR where it needs to be, try using tactics such as highlighted areas, arrows, large text, and unexpected or eye-catching l images. See the examples below from Neil Patel. We know that YouTube rewards channels that keep viewers on their pages longer. These longer average watch times mean people are engaged with your content.

You can see how long people stay on your videos by using YouTube analytics. By adding YouTube cards , you can include links to other videos or relevant content at the exact point where users drop off.

There are a variety of card types to choose from such as a playlist, poll or donation and you can feature 5 cards per video that appear as a rectangular box or teaser in the right-hand corner of the video.