Video Script – Effective Steps for Engaging Content – Part 2
Video creation and production are not child’s play. If you make them, you must know how tiring it gets, and no, it’s not just about hitting the record button and getting done with it. Making a video requires a lot of thought and effort, more so because you need to be engaging, as the ‘close’ button is easy to press for any viewer. So, what are the vital tips that make content stand out from the rest? Keep reading to find out. (Hint: you’ll be surprised how you never thought about these)
Tips for Making a Video that Outshines
Here are the secrets to creating a masterpiece:
Goals and Concerns of the Target Audience
There are three main areas to focus on to ensure that a video connects with the target audience and gets the message across. The first two are the goals and concerns of the viewer. Here’s how these factors affect video production.
● Goals
First, before you even start creating the video, think about the target audience and what they want to learn from the content. For the sake of discussion, let’s say you’re creating a video on ‘why you shouldn’t use a teleprompter,’ and your target audience is VA of sales. Think why a VA clicking on the specific video is. What’s their goal? Maybe they’ve used a teleprompter before but didn’t quite like the process. Or, maybe they’re short on time and don’t want to waste it on writing and rewriting the script. Once you brainstorm the goals of the end audience, it’ll make video production easy and smooth. On top of that, it’ll aid you in aligning your thoughts and ensure that the viewers keep watching it till the end.
● Concerns
Once that’s out of the way, think about the audience’s concerns. What do they fear? Are there any drawbacks to the said content? For example, if a VA of sale watches a video on the drawbacks of teleprompters, what will they be concerned about? Let’s make it easy; a teleprompter does help in making content consistent and error-free. It ensures you don’t forget your lines and remain on track to describing the content without mistakes, right? But, on the contrary, it will make the presenter sound monotonous and fake. If you’re consistently reading from the cue, your video will not only be tedious but also unauthentic. So, keeping the concerns in mind, drift the audience towards a viable solution. Does the viewer feel they’ll screw up? Let them know that it’s okay, that no one is perfect.
So, once you’ve thought deeply about the aims and concerns of people watching your video, you can move to the next part. You’ll realize that you’ve covered a huge chunk of the content without starting the scripting process, and that’s what this point is about. Knowing and connecting with your audience is a primary step to creating precious and relatable content.
Don’t be Scared to Screw up
Don’t we all want a perfect video? One that plays in alignment and fully follows the pattern. But let me tell you that perfection is overrated. But just because you have a camera and can press the record and rerecord button a million times doesn’t mean you have to. Trying to make something perfect only ends up making it worse and worse.
So, what is the solution to that? Don’t go overboard while editing, retaking, and perfecting the content. Imperfect is fine, and imperfect is relatable. Do we have a record button in real life? No, right. So, why misuse it while creating an online video? If your content is 90% satisfactory, the 10% won’t kill anyone. Honestly, no one’s going to care about that tiny hiccup in the middle of a little slip of the tongue. Trying to polish every second of the content will waste your time without adding value to the content.
Hit Them Up with Bullet Points
A video, whether for education or entertainment, has a core theme. You must start with the most vital information to hook the audience and provide value. Here the top three things for a good video are:
- Keeping the audience’s goals in mind
- Answering their concerns
- Being okay with screwing up a bit
But these points are brief, and you may be done with them in under a minute. So, what does one do to make the other half of the video engaging without drifting off topic? Now, here’s when bullets and cues will come in handy. You can add these in the video to prompt your mind about discussing other important stuff related to the topic. For example, you can write ‘be confident’ on the bullet sheet, and when you read the cue, you will start talking about it automatically. Discuss how speaking confidently increases the value of a video; you can even give them a pep-talk on how to present their views and thoughts. Remember to keep the bullets relatable to the main topic and turn them into talking points.
End with a Strong CTA
The last but vital part of any video is a strong CTA. Call to action allows the viewers to take action about their goals and get more information (if they desire). Additionally, closing your presentation with a bang is imperative if you want to leave a positive influence on the viewer.
So, what can one do to ensure that the audience is satisfied once the video timer strikes off? Well, there are many ways to add value and provide helpful information after the video ends. For beginners, you can sprinkle in some graphics at the very end, like little end cards. Adding little details like a link to download a PDF, information about a webinar, and even a phone number to call can help provide more data about the topic. Finally, you can add your content like a cheat sheet to creating videos without a teleprompter; it will be a great call to action and help the audience stay connected.
Cutting it Off!
Keeping the tips mentioned above in your mind will ensure a few things, i.e., your content remains highly engaging, relatable, and valuable without sounding fluff and repetitive. However, don’t run after perfection. Remember, you’re only human, and so are the viewers.