A good compelling video starts with a script. What do you want to say? Put each point you want to mention on its own line – it makes it easier to edit. Think in terms of the benefits a feature gives the customer, not the feature itself.
We already know videos must be short, and for a video under a minute, the script can be a few lines of text, definitely less than a page. You want bullet points, not chapters.
Your script should take the form of: Introduce a problem, show the results your solution provides, and ask them to buy or call you.
That’s pretty much it.
“Is your bathroom grout growing hair? Is it scaring your children and neighbors? Zap-o-Grout will make grout cleaner then new, cleaner than you ever thought possible! Call Today, and stop scaring the kids!”
Easy stuff, right? I bet you can do better than that!
Now that we have a script, let’s make some movies!
There are two types of videos to choose from – ‘live action’ (where you appear and speak) and ‘slideshows’ which use text and graphics to tell your story.
Option 1: A simple ‘Live Action’ video
Live action requires a video camera, but low-cost pocket cameras (like the Flip and Kodak Zi8) take great HD video. Even your digital pocket camera will take great movie clips. In a pinch, your computer’s built-in camera will work fine.
If you choose live action, try to place yourself in front of your business or projects, or select a single color background. A plain background makes you more prominent on the screen.
A tripod is a cheap and effective way to get rid of camera-shake, greatly improving video quality. Your cameraman’s job is simple: aim the camera, check your placement in the frame, and record. Go through your presentation, smile, speak clearly and remember to look at and speak to the camera. Turn the camera off and you have your video, ready to edit and post.
Option 2: A ‘Slideshow’ video
If you don’t have a camera or don’t want to be seen, you can make screen capture video of a prepared presentation. Here’s how to do that…
This easy way to make a desktop video uses PowerPoint (or KeyNote if you’re on a Mac). Just create a slideshow, add the script we just wrote, one line or feature per slide, plus your call to action, and record it as a movie.
Start a new presentation and pick a theme for the slides. Add the titles, features and benefits from your script. Keep the show simple and use just one or two fonts and colors throughout the presentation. When you use bullet points, more than 3 per slide become hard to read. Make sure the last slide shows your contact information.
Include your logo, photos from your business or non-copyrighted art work to illustrate your slideshow. Transitions and text effects (used with restraint) add interest to your slides. When you are happy with slides and narration, save your work; it’s time to record.
If you are on a Mac and using KeyNote, you are ready to record. Just go to you ‘File’ menu and click ‘Record’ and the slideshow starts. Step through your slideshow to record your video and narration. When you are happy with the results, select ‘Export’ to produce your video.
Capturing the screen to video on a PC does require screen capture software, but here are 2 free programs you can download to capture your slideshow and make your movies.
Jing (http://download.cnet.com/Jing/3000-13633_4-10744274.html) is a free, easy to use screen recording utility. It allows you to capture videos to disk or share them on-line. There is a 5 minute limit to the videos, but we already know that is more than enough time. Jing is also a handy screen capture utility that takes stills as well as video.
Camstudio (http://camstudio.org/) is another free recorder that produces sharp, crisp movies.
To record your video, start your slideshow, and launch the recorder. Place the capture region over the slide show, and hit ‘record’. When the recorder counts down and starts recording, step through your presentation. Record your narration as you go. Click the ‘stop’ button to end the recording. Name your video, save it, and you are done.
If you want edit your recordings, add titles, captions or background music, PC users have Movie Maker (it is on your machine). Mac users have iMovie, which is also pre-loaded on your Mac. These built-in editing programs let you put your business information and phone number on top of your live action videos.
Here’s a sample of a slideshow video used on the ‘Camarillo Hair Salon‘ web page. The videos on that web site are created with Animoto, a web-based video production service.
