Three Steps to Creating an Online Video

See Paul Tumarkin's So, You Want to Post a Video-
A Tragically Bad Montage on YouTube!

Check out more on FaceBook

Report-Back from August 26 Meeting
By Vanessa P. Reyes
Sally Sumner, Keith Page and the rest of Firehouse Pictures took a lively fact-filled 90 minutes to talk about how to create an online video. Here are some pointers from that August 2009 workshop.

Rationale
Assess whether video is the most effective medium for your message.

What’s the purpose of your video? For example, do you want your audience to buy a product or join your organization?

  • to inform them about your workshops or training sessions?
  • to entertain them?
  • Good reasons for using a video:
  • Create intuitive understanding by showing rather than telling.
  • Create emotion and set a tone.
  • Model behavior, visualize performance and demonstrate.
  • Let your audience know quickly who and what.
  • Bring people together.
  • Compress time and experience.

Examples: Training, seminars, workshops, branding, corporate image, employee engagement, infomercials, annual reports, marketing, image reinforcement.

Assessment
What are you goals? Do you want to:

  • increase sales?
  • generate more clientele?
  • engage your employees?

Deciding what you will create helps you determine the video’s look and feel. Each of these examples will require its own style and vision:

  • Record an event.
  • Train employees.
  • Sell a product.

Assess if the style, content and vision work well together to create the video you want. For example, if you want an interactive video with professional actors, will your budget allow that?

Style: What will the video look and feel like?
Content: What is my message or concept? Is it a good fit with the style?
Vision: Do I have the budget to produce in the style that my vision (the script, concept or message) demands?

Execution
Now put a plan together. Round up a creative team to help you develop your style and message and how to integrate your ideas.

Depending on your budget, your creative team may be just you, some volunteers or a professional production company.

For inspiration, check out BooneOakley.com’s videos on YouTube and the creative work on by Firehouse Pictures.

Top tips:

  • Shorter is better, 2-3 minutes.
  • Bring extra batteries, tapes and microphones to the shoot.
  • Warn interviewees that the camera is coming.
  • Before an interview, ask questions as conversation starters.
  • Check audio levels and lighting.
  • Record on the highest resolution possible for clear, crisp images.

Vanessa P. Reyes is president of the UA Communication Club and is a student employee in marketing communications at the BIO5 Institute. She will graduate in December with a B.A. in Communication.

How to Post a Video
University of Arizona employees can post a video on the UA’s iTunesU site.

Anyone can learn how to post a video in YouTube.