The activity

Students were shown 4 videos which - across all of them - represented different topics, levels of production value and lengths. We asked them what they did and didn’t like about each one, keeping questions relatively open in order to not influence their responses.

If you want, have a quick look at the chosen videos below and think about what works/doesn’t work.

The results

5 key themes emerged from the comments on each video which I will unpack below. (one student suggested adding music to all videos. I discarded this as it was a bit of an outlier!)

Production quality

Length

Content/comprehensibility

Narration speed

Chapterisation / interactivity

Production quality

High production value was important to the respondents, with this being the most discussed theme in the feedback. This concerns comments about, for example:

In contrast, the production value of videos #3 and #4 was viewed less favourably. These were both produced by narrating the screen recording ’live’,  with comments about poor synchronisation between the audio and video which was detrimental to the comprehensibility of the information.  We’ll discuss this approach more later in this article.

Length

The students valued shorter videos; the longer the video, the more negative comments it received.

1:31 - Most positive comments about length

2:40 - Next highest number of positive comments about length

3:58 - Couple of negative comments and one positive comment about length

13:49 - Overwhelmingly negative comments about length

This presents a conundrum in some cases. Often the temptation is to pack as much value into a video as possible, resulting in a long video that might be less digestible. Conversely, leaving out important details for the sake of shortening it could also be detrimental.

Content/comprehensibility

Respondents praised videos with clear, concise instructions and a logical progression.

Several students picked up on the virtues of videos not containing too much information (though one student did express interest in a longer version of video #2).

Videos fell down where there was lack of clarity in the voiceover script. Several comments about videos #1 and #2 highlighted where an on-screen element was not sufficiently described, which could have been clearer.

There were lots of positive comments on several videos about the use of practical examples to demonstrate a programme’s capabilities. Video #3 performed particularly well here, despite it falling down in other areas (length, production quality). 

When commenting on their ranking choices, one student commented on video #3: “ A tutorial should be specific. This is just far too long and covers too many things.”

Narration speed

Several students highlighted a “well paced” narration as an important characteristic of a software tutorial, however, this is quite a subjective notion.

On 3 of the 4 videos there were directly conflicting comments about the pace of the narration, with some students finding it suitable, and others finding it too slow or too fast.

The speech in video #3 was deemed by one student to be “a bit slow, which made the video feel like it was dragging.”. However it’s possible that the length of the video may have contributed to this sensation.

Several students acknowledged the needs of international students who might prefer a slower narration to aid comprehension (see also content/comprehensibility).

Playback speed was mentioned a couple of times - one commenting that they could use it if the video was too fast, another suggesting that it would be useful to draw attention to the functionality.

Chapterisation / interactivity

Chapterisation was a prominent theme in students’ comments on the 4 example videos. All students spoke of its importance to aid navigation through the video.

The key to it all: a great script

Writing a great voiceover script is the key to making a video with a high production value, that’s not too long, that’s easy to follow and narrated at a suitable pace for your audience.

See below for a breakdown of why a script is the key to hitting all of the identified important components of a good video.

Length

You can control the length of your video before you start recording anything.

Tips:

• Use a speech in minutes calculator to get a rough idea of how long your video will end up being based on the word count of your script.

• Redraft sentences to trim fat that doesn’t contribute to the point you are trying to make. These words add up and unnecessarily inflate the length of your video. For example:

  • Before editing: You can select the button on the right hand side of the screen when you are ready to submit your video to the assignment link.

  • After editing: When you’re ready, select the button on the right to submit your work.

Content/comprehensibility

Writing a script allows you to carefully consider what you’re including, the order that you’re presenting the information in, and how you’re articulating it. It also gives an opportunity for subject matter experts to review content to ensure it’s accurate. 

Tips:

• Think about the elements of your video that are the most important to communicate. Consider excluding details that could be covered on a webpage in the interest of not diluting the more important content. This also helps to keep it at a manageable length.

• Use Google Docs with comments/suggestions to consult subject matter experts on content. 

• Redraft sentences to make sure you are articulating your instructions in the clearest way possible.

• Consider the flow of the video - present steps in a logical order, for example if a student had just been directed into a certain area of Blackboard, consider covering something that is also found within that area whilst they’re there, rather than skipping elsewhere and then having to direct them back there later.

Production quality

Recording a voiceover from your script and cutting it together with screen recording footage will help you end up with a much more polished video. It generally allows for much more control and flexibility at every stage of the production process, and there’s less pressure to get it ‘right’ in one take.

Tips:

• When recording the voiceover. Use a high quality microphone to achieve a crisp, clear recording. Take the opportunity to record multiple takes to deliver a line with the intonation that conveys your message most effectively (i.e. putting the stress on the correct words). 

• When recording the screen footage. Take care to frame your browser correctly, for example zoom in a bit so that the on screen elements are as enlarged as possible without distorting their appearance. Re-record a section if you made lots of mistakes, or simply chop it out when editing (see below). 

• When editing. The flexibility of editing software gives you much greater control over timing. You can cut out unnecessarily long pauses, or insert a bit of extra time if your viewers might need a bit longer to take something in.

• When reviewing. If something changes in your video, it’s easier to return to your editing software and replace a short section of screen recording than re-recording a whole video.

Narration speed

Recording a script which has been tightly edited to be as clear as possible could mean that the narration does not have to be quite as slow.

Care should still be taken that you’re not rushing through, but an overly slow narration can be annoying to watch, and clear language should help users to understand what you’re saying without the need for it to be overly slowed down.

Chapterisation / interactivity

Chapters are worth adding to videos regardless of whether they are very long or not. Helping your user to know what to expect from what they’re about to watch and having the choice to skip to a particular section allows for a more transparent and flexible learning experience.

What are the negatives of recording a video from a script?

Creating a tutorial video in the way set out in this article is not always going to be the right thing to do. There are some pitfalls which are worth bearing in mind.

• Less personable/conversational. This approach is driven by providing clear, concise instructions. Whilst it is possible to write a more colloquial script, in some instances the recording process can result in a dry delivery without as much personality as a voiceover that is delivered ‘off the cuff’. 

• Learning curve. This approach requires more advanced editing skills which not all users might have, or have the time to develop.

• Time. These types of videos take longer to produce than an off-the-cuff one, even with advanced editing skills. Sometimes time is of the essence and a video needs to be turned round more quickly.

Conclusion

Communicating via video is different to teaching something to someone directly. There is no back-and-forth or opportunity for clarification with your audience.

Though this approach won’t always be feasible, if you can spare the time, creating a video following the advice in this article will help you to communicate your message in the most clear and concise manner. It will make it more likely that:

• People will choose to watch your video, if it is a reasonable length

• They’ll keep watching if the quality is good (crisp visuals, good audio)

• They will get a lot out of it because of the care you have taken in crafting your message. 

• You will not have to update your video as regularly, as errors will have been minimised.

Workflow summary

Write a script - consider:

1. 1. 1. Content coverage - present steps in a logical order, don’t try and cover too much.

      2. Content accuracy - check with a subject matter expert via a Google Doc

      3. Length - have you worded things concisely?

Record the voiceover - consider:

1. Do multiple takes to get the best possible performance

2. Use a high quality microphone to get the clearest audio signal

Record the screen footage - consider:

1. Zoom in on your browser

2. Record it a section at a time if you need to.