Quick Summary
With more and more library staff faced with creating videos for their library, we thought sharing a few tips on the subject may be welcomed.
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With more and more library staff faced with creating videos for their library, we thought sharing a few tips on the subject may be welcomed. Our Minitex video team (Sarah Anderson, Tammi Halverson, & Zach Miller) has been growing in skill and experience over the last couple of years creating videos on Minitex conferences, services, personnel introductions, History Day and more.
- Tell a story. Storytelling is one of the most powerful teaching techniques. Create a story for your video content whether it’s for promoting library services or for teaching purposes. List the outcomes you have for the video and think about situating those outcomes within a story or scenario.
- Plan ahead. A well-planned script and storyboard will save a lot of time in the end. It’s also important to be open to unplanned yet necessary changes that arise as you work on your video. Have a step-by-step plan for your video shoot and a script, but remember to be flexible.
- Keep it short. Draw in viewer attention right away and keep it short. Two minutes is a good target for keeping audience attention. Use as few words as possible to get your point across. But remember, even though you are trying to keep it short, keep text on the screen for long enough to make it easily readable. This is where flexible scripting is important. If you’re not experienced with writing for video content, your first-draft script may be too wordy, long, or complex. Be ready to revisit your script. You’ll likely need to shorten sentences and be more succinct in telling your story.
- Have fun. Make sure everyone on camera is comfortable and having fun. Awkward interactions can make your viewers feel uncomfortable. And, let’s be honest, your viewers expect to be entertained!
- Be creative. Grab your drawing pencils or guitar. Or recruit artistic colleagues or friends to help out. Great visuals or peppy music can make subjects that might not be the most entertaining seem, well, entertaining! But, there is a limit. Stay away from flashy or gimmicky effects that can distract from your message.
- Be consistent. Use the same fonts and colors throughout your video and stick with visual representations that fit with your branding.
- Monitor stats & feedback. Most social media tools like YouTube allow you to keep track of how many have viewed your video. This can be a helpful indication of your reach and interest. Consider allowing comments as well. Viewer feedback can help you identify any problems with the video or questions about its content.