Top 11 Tips For Storytelling A Good Online Video

You’ve heard it umpteen times – people love a good story. Ability to weave a narrative that retains the interest of readers till the very end is something every storyteller craves for. And video is no exception.

Storytelling in words is not comparable with that in video, though essentially the logic to keep the ‘issue alive’ is the same in both. Video needs more detailing, because it not only presents the pictorial details of the underlying story, but takes into account the script or the audio part as well.

In our simple video works for the clients, we often face them feeling nervous about what to say in the videos. Evidently, storytelling in videos takes on a new dimension when we work for our clients. Many a time, videos that are done to satisfaction have to be done again with just a nominal change in the script. Sometimes a ‘final’ video becomes truly final after 2 or even 3 revisions.

Given that doubts do persist till the very end, it is a good idea to visit the important points to find a balance between storytelling and making of the video. We have found the following factors important for making a good video (mind you, we’re discussing simple online videos – the how-to-do sorts and the video ads – for websites, and not some big video production!):

1. Like the usual good story, a video too needs a beginning and an end. The purpose of the video requires to be spelled out in the title, and the video to the extent feasible has to stick to it.

 

2. The flow or the pace of the video should be uniform. At no stage may it seem that the video is progressing faster or slower than earlier or vice-versa.

 

3. The voiceover and the video should be synchronous. It is a good idea to record voiceover separately, and then match it with the progress of the video part.

 

4. The script for voiceover should be pre-written as far as possible. This eliminates the risk of suddenly not knowing what to say as the live video recording progresses.

 

5. Prepare a rough note of the video scenes that are to appear one after another. This becomes helpful while making videos from PowerPoint, screencast, etc.

 

6. If the client gives you the responsibility of preparing the entire video, then make milestones for different stages of the video and show them whenever ready. Also get the client’s nod before proceeding to the next stage.

 

7. It is a good idea to keep the technicalities like video transitions between scenes, zooming and panning of scenes, text messages on the running video and their colors, etc. the same throughout a video. Viewers may not like changes in them in the course of a video, especially if it is a short one. Also, ensure that there is no change in the video resolution and the format of the different components of your final video.

 

8. An underlying catchy background tune is always welcome, more so if there is a perceptible gap in the narration as the video progresses.

 

9. No video is ever liked by all just as no story is loved by all readers. Listen to critics but identify the merits of their dislike if any. If you really feel that some correction will be good, do it by all means. Otherwise, move your mind away from unjust criticism.

 

10. If a change to a completed video is needed remember that the altered version may perhaps turn out to be worse. In that case, do not waste lot of time in effecting the change. Come back to the previous version and explain the issue clearly to the client.

 

11. Last but not the least, ask yourself, is there a good story to your video? Will the video benefit the viewers? What is the intrinsic value of the video?

     

    At 2WebVideo we run the e-course to learn training video production that touches on many important points mentioned here.

What Matters Is Quality

Don’t get this wrong. I’m not saying that your video has to be technically brilliant, that it must have lots of animations and special effects, and suchlike. None of those is important. They may or, more likely, may not create a lasting impression in the viewers’ minds about your ability to tell them a good story.

Instead, make a video that really helps your viewers to understand a point, to make a quick decision, to learn a new technique, to know about a new place, and so on. If you can convey quality information through your video in an easy way, rest assured your viewers will cling on to every educational video production of yours.